A fence with the sign "Happy Every Day" in the center of Shijiazhuang, northern China, hides an incomplete apartment building that stands as a daily reminder of the unsolved costs of the sudden collapse of China's once-biggest developer.
Following China Evergrande Group's default in 2021, the Central Plaza project, which had promised buyers 1,800 new houses, was put on hold. The location has a government notification stating that a new developer is needed for the project.
Those who made a complete payment years ago have been left in the dark, hoping for a lifeline.
A 38-year-old resident of Shijiazhuang, who paid over $350,000 for two incomplete flats in 2017, expressed frustration that there doesn't seem to be any way to resolve the problem.
On Monday, a judge in Hong Kong ruled that Evergrande must be liquidated. This process is expected to last for years and involve reorganizing the company's over $300 billion in liabilities.
Evergrande has stated that, in spite of the order, it will endeavor to complete ongoing projects. Resolving the unfinished housing issue is a top policy goal, according to China.
However, the project in Shijiazhuang, an industrial metropolis of nearly 11 million people, demonstrates the scope and challenge of clearing the backlog of incomplete development left by Evergrande as well as the extent to which its collapse has undermined confidence.
The Evergrande property buyer said that this has caused him to lose faith in both real estate and the housing authorities' capacity for management.
Requests for responses from China's housing ministry and Shijiazhuang's housing office were not immediately answered. When contacted for comment, Evergrande did not respond.
In November, investment bank Nomura calculated that Evergrande and other bankrupt developers had abandoned almost 20 million unfinished residential units throughout China. The study calculated that a total of $446 billion was needed to finish those projects.
As of last year, Evergrande has reportedly received payments in advance from buyers equal to nearly 600,000 housing units, according to estimates from the China-focused research firm Gavekal Dragonomics.
"Gurantee" of home delivery
According to official statements and media reports, state-run developers and local governments have taken over some halted projects under a government-operated guarantee home delivery strategy in recent months.
The whole count of incomplete Evergrande projects in Shijiazhuang could not be verified. The local administration declared last month that 40 of the 44 housing projects it had taken over in 2021 had been completed. None of them were Evergrande's assets.
Another Evergrande complex of 48 residential blocks with approximately 3,600 units has begun building in the rural fringes of Shijiazhuang, although only a few employees were on site this week due to the approaching Lunar New Year.
The project comprises more conventional apartment buildings that seem to be almost finished, as well as two communal structures that resemble castles and have ornamental spires close to an incomplete retail strip. The shopping lane is still unpaved and has grown over with weeds.
After the local administration took over the project last year, workers and two individuals identifying as local officials said that construction had started again. The stonework on several buildings has been finished, according to a developer-run WeChat page for the project last month.
China has not revealed the number of projects that its authorities have taken up or the amount of financing that has been given to finish stalled construction. In August, the Housing Ministry of China reported that the program had delivered over 1.65 million pre-sold units.
Purchasing a new apartment in China is simply too dangerous, according to a resident of Shijiazhuang who is waiting for construction on the Central Plaza project to resume. He regrets not investing the funds he used in this project to purchase real estate in Tokyo or Osaka.