In Communist China, Property Developers Are Accepting Watermelons and Peaches as Payments

Official data shows that home sales in Communist China measured by floor area have slid for 11 consecutive months and were down 31.5 percent in May compared to the same month last year.

In Communist China, the property market slump has discouraged many buyers. Now, struggling developers have started taking payments for homes in the form of watermelons, peaches, and other agricultural produce, news agency AFP reported on Sunday, citing the country’s state media. The news agency added that the developers are doing so in an attempt to lure buyers.

The housing market in Communist China has been hit by a slowing economy and debt crisis caused by a government ban on builders taking deposits before construction begins on a project.

State-run China News Weekly reported that one developer in the eastern city of Nanjing said it would accept truckloads of watermelons worth up to 100,000 yuan as a down payment from local farmers.

Homebuilder Central China Management said on social media in late May: “On the occasion of the new garlic season, the company has decided to benefit garlic farmers in Qi county. We are helping farmers with love and making it easier for them to buy homes.”

AFP report mentioned that in the nearby small town of Wuxi, another developer was taking peaches as payment, the magazine said.

Homebuyers in Qi county, a major garlic-producing region in central Communist China’s Henan province, can exchange their produce at three times the market price to settle part of their down payment.