Interesting, I don't know all the laws regarding ownership of real estate there.  I know about property confiscation by the government and I also know that citizens are allowed to purchase residences and sell them later.  Sounds like their form of ownership may be somewhere between what we know as "fee simple" and "leasehold" here in Hawaii with regards to the land. But I'll admit ownership of a residence in China is less secure than ownership of a fee simple residence here.