The United States currently faces a housing shortage, which is aggravating efforts to reduce high living costs and rampant homelessness. At the same time, China is trying to cope with exactly the opposite situation: a 20% vacancy rate in its housing causing or reflecting major economic problems.
Would it be possible for these two problems to help solve each other? How about inviting retired Americans and those who can work remotely to live in the surplus Chinese housing.
Properly arranged, such a program could benefit both countries as well as the Americans who decided to live in China for the time being.
The rents and other revenue from resident Americans could be attractive to Chinese leaders and local businesses.
The lower cost of living in China could be a major attraction to Americans with limited financial resources.
There are obvious obstacles to negotiating such a program, but the mutual benefits might be large enough to motivate U.S. and Chinese negotiators to remove these obstacles.
Significant political tensions exist between our two countries. But these do not inherently rule out cooperation in limited areas of mutual interest.
The vacant housing in China is not always in cities where American expats might prefer to live. But if enough Americans lived in some of them they might be able to form communities where they could feel comfortable.
A major obstacle to doing remote work would be China’s current restrictions on the internet, which Americans would rely on for personal and business purposes. However it might be possible to negotiate free access to the internet for the American enclaves, or Americans might be allowed to use workarounds like VPNs.
Healthcare in some parts of China might not be up to American standards, making it hard to get the treatment we expect.
And the Americans might need to obtain private insurance, since they would not be covered by the general insurance systems applying to the Chinese. Or maybe they could buy in to the Chinese insurance.
A major obstacle would be China’s current visa and residency restrictions. Long-term residency for American retirees or remote workers would require substantial Chinese policy changes.
An obstacle for which there might be no easy fix would be language and cultural differences that many Americans might not cope with easily.
With large enough American enclaves, many might be able to get along well enough without knowing a word of Chinese. But training programs allowing them to learn enough Chinese for local shopping and navigation and to understand and cope with local culture should be established for those who are interested.
Modern travel and communication technology could contribute greatly to the success of a housing exchange program.
In the Zoom age, Americans in China would still be able to talk face to face with family and friends in the United States. Many of us are already using this kind of technology to keep in touch with friends and family in other parts of our own country.
Inexpensive international travel has already turned many Americans into “medical tourists” who find it cheaper to get major surgeries abroad even after paying for plane fare and local accommodations. Inexpensive travel would allow expatriate Americans living in China to return frequently to the U.S. for business or pleasure.
A housing exchange program might not go on forever and should not be an excuse for failing to fix the current American housing shortage. But in the short run, such a deal could be a win-win for America and China.
If a beneficial deal like this cannot be negotiated, imagine how nice it would be to live on a planet where it would be possible.
At the very least, it is an idea worth thinking about.
Paul F. deLespinasse is Professor Emeritus of Political Science and Computer Science at Adrian College. Read Professor Paul F. deLespinasse’s Reports — More Here.
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