Culture Insider: Housing issues in ancient China

An old photo showing the street scene of the Nanjing Road in Shanghai during the Minguo era in 1910s or 1920s. [Photo/IC]

2. Buying house on mortgage in Minguo Era's Shanghai

During the Minguo Era, buying a house through a mortgage became popular in Shanghai. Chen Cunren, a renowned TCM doctor, wanted to buy a house that was in the market for 25,000 silver dollars, but he only had 15,000, so he went to a money lender. The lender paid the rest of the amount and Chen paid the debt and interest to the lender.

It was not only the money lenders who were offering funds to individuals but also banks. An article published in the newspaper Shun Pao on March 4, 1936, said the volume of real estate trading in Shanghai was much bigger than other cities as people in Shanghai could buy a house on mortgage with a down payment of 30% to 40% to Chinese or foreign financing institutions.