With a population of 1.3 billion and a GDP that's expected to grow 8 percent to 10 percent annually through 2010, China is increasingly gaining the attention of U.S. investors, developers and retailers. Historically, however, finding detailed demographic data on markets throughout China has proven to be a tall order for real estate pros.
That is until now. In collaboration with the China Data Center at the University of Michigan, real estate technology firm SRC of Orange, Calif., has rolled out a new online product that provides data from the China 2000 Census. The site is called www.demographicsnowchina.com and is designed to let users slice and dice key information such as births, age, housing dwelling characteristics.
Want to know how many generations are living under one roof, or find specific information on a particular province? Real estate pros will be able to analyze the demographic and market potential for any geography in the People's Republic of China from the Web-based interface.
The annual subscription price ranges from $21,500 for the basic package to $41,200 for some of the more advanced features.
What's jumped out at SRC officials after combing over the data? “There are cultural differences between the U.S. and China. For example, we have multiple generations in China living in the same dwelling in one room or two rooms,” said Olivia Duane-Adams, executive vice president at SRC who is present at this year's convention to demonstrate the new product. That means, for example, U.S. apartment developers would need to adopt a different mindset when developing in China.
Dean Stoecker, president and CEO of SRC, believes that by teaming up with the China Data Center and launching www.demographicsnowchina.com, SRC is helping to shift the dynamic of global investment in China.
“With access to accurate demographic data and market and site location analysis, global retailers will have clear insights into the habits and patterns of potential customers in China, mitigating their risks and expanding horizons,” concluded Stoecker.
-- Matt Valley