From Grok

Q: Does China still have "ghost cities" if so, which ones

A: As of today, March 18, 2025, China’s “ghost cities”—newly built urban developments with significant underoccupation—still exist, though the phenomenon has evolved. The term “ghost city” often exaggerates the reality: many of these places aren’t fully abandoned but are underpopulated relative to their ambitious designs, with occupancy rates growing over time in some cases. This stems from China’s rapid urbanization and speculative real estate boom, where construction outpaced demand, fueled by government incentives and investment culture. While exact current data is scarce due to limited official transparency, a mix of historical evidence, recent reports, and expert insights points to ongoing examples and shifting fates.

Do Ghost Cities Still Exist?
Yes, China still has areas classified as ghost cities or underoccupied developments. Estimates from as recent as 2021 suggest around 65 million vacant homes nationwide, a figure tied to a 20% urban housing vacancy rate from the China Household Finance Survey. This doesn’t mean every “ghost city” is empty—many are partially occupied but fall short of their intended capacity. The real estate crisis, highlighted by Evergrande’s 2021 collapse and subsequent developer defaults, has left some projects stalled or sparsely populated. However, some once-notorious ghost cities have seen population growth as urbanization catches up, while others remain starkly underused.

Which Ones?
Here are key examples based on available data up to 2025, noting their current status where known:

Ordos Kangbashi (Inner Mongolia)
Background: Built in the early 2000s for 300,000–1 million residents, Kangbashi became the poster child for ghost cities after a 2009 Al Jazeera report showed it with just 30,000 people amid vast, empty infrastructure.
Status in 2025: It’s no longer a true “ghost.” By 2019, Xinhua reported 150,000 residents, and Bloomberg in 2021 noted it “stirring to life.” The government relocated top schools here, driving family migration. Today, it’s likely closer to 200,000, though still below capacity. Posts on X from 2025 suggest it’s still cited as a ghost city, but this reflects outdated perceptions rather than current reality.

Yujiapu Financial District (Tianjin)
Background: Modeled as China’s “Manhattan,” this Binhai New Area project aimed to house a financial hub but was largely empty by the mid-2010s, with skyscrapers and no tenants.
Status in 2025: Remains underpopulated. While some businesses have moved in, it’s far from its envisioned bustle. A 2021 Bloomberg report suggested slow growth, and no significant updates indicate a major turnaround by 2025. It’s a ghost city in the sense of unfulfilled ambition.

Chenggong (Kunming, Yunnan)
Background: One of Asia’s largest ghost cities by 2012, Chenggong was built for hundreds of thousands but had vast unoccupied housing and idle construction sites.
Status in 2025: It’s filling up. Government offices and universities relocated here have boosted residency, with occupancy rising steadily since the 2010s. While not fully occupied, it’s transitioning away from “ghost” status, aligning with trends of delayed urbanization.

Zhengdong New District (Zhengzhou)
Background: Planned for millions, this mega-project was labeled a ghost city in the early 2010s due to low occupancy despite grand designs.
Status in 2025: Largely a success story. Standard Chartered noted its occupancy doubled from 2012–2014, and by 2021, Bloomberg reported it thriving. Today, it’s likely a functional urban center, shedding its ghost label, though some peripheral areas may still feel sparse.

Tianducheng (Hangzhou)
Background: A Paris replica built for 10,000, complete with an Eiffel Tower, it was mostly empty in the 2010s, used more for wedding photos than living.
Status in 2025: Still a ghost city by most accounts. While some residents have trickled in, its scale and oddity keep it underpopulated. No major 2025 updates suggest a significant shift.

Caofeidian (Hebei)
Background: A $161 billion eco-city project stalled in 2014 after bank loans dried up, leaving half-built structures and few residents.
Status in 2025: Remains a ghost. Construction hasn’t resumed meaningfully, and it’s cited in 2024 Architectural Digest reports as emblematic of China’s real estate woes. Sparse occupancy persists.

Jingjin New Town (near Beijing)
Background: Built with 3,000 villas for affluent buyers, it had a 10% occupancy rate by the mid-2010s.
Status in 2025: Likely still underoccupied. No recent data shows a boom, and its luxury focus limits mass appeal amid economic slowdowns.

Broader Context
The ghost city phenomenon isn’t static. Some, like Pudong (Shanghai), once mocked as empty in the 1990s, are now thriving with 5 million residents. Others, like Forest City in Malaysia (Chinese-built), mirror this pattern with 9,000 residents against a 700,000 goal. In China, the 50+ ghost cities identified in 2014 (China Urban Construction Statistical Yearbook) have mixed fates: third- and fourth-tier cities like Changzhou overbuilt housing as manufacturing slowed, per a 2017 study, and many remain underutilized. The 2023-2024 Evergrande fallout and an aging population (projected to halve by century’s end) suggest new ghost cities could emerge from unfinished projects, while existing ones slowly populate or stagnate.

In short, China still has ghost cities—Caofeidian, Yujiapu, and Tianducheng stand out as persistent examples—though others like Ordos and Zhengdong are shedding the label. The real story is less about total abandonment and more about a mismatch of scale and timing, with some areas catching up and others left as haunting relics of overreach.