China's Home Developers Accept Wheat, Garlic And Peaches As Down Payment

In China's sluggish real-estate market, desperate developers are accepting wheat and garlic as down payments for rural properties in order to stimulate sales, Business Insider's Katie Boon and Huileng Tan reported.

Photo Insert: Buyers can pay up to 160,000 yuan ($23,900) of their down payment with wheat, which is priced at 2 Chinese yuan ($0.30) per catty (21 ounces).

According to Reuters, economists predict property sales in China to have declined by 25% between January and June as a result of China's zero-COVID approach. According to Bloomberg, Chinese citizens are likewise avoiding real-estate investments, preferring to conserve cash in China's uncertain economic climate.

Central China Real Estate is providing a "swap wheat for house" campaign for residences in Minquan County, Henan Province, according to CNN, citing a now-deleted ad on the company's official WeChat account.

Buyers can pay up to 160,000 yuan ($23,900) of their down payment with wheat, which is priced at 2 Chinese yuan ($0.30) per catty (21 ounces). The development's property prices range from 600,000 yuan ($89,550) to 900,000 yuan ($134,300).

According to a Central China Real Estate agent, the promotion will conclude on July 10 and is aimed at farmers in the region. The corporation is not new to establishing farmer-targeted marketing efforts.

At the start of China's garlic season in May, the company accepted garlic as payment for another project in Henan Province, per the development's official Wechat account.

"On the occasion of the new garlic season, the company has made a resolute decision to benefit garlic farmers in Qi County," the company wrote in the WeChat post.

"We are helping farmers with love, and making it easier for them to buy homes," it added.

Central China Real Estate fell by 40.4% in net profit in 2021, per the firm's 2021 Annual Investor Relations report.

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