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Original headline:
Photos show China’s low-cost lifestyle in vast, semiabandoned housing complexes
Source material:
After China’s debt-fueled real estate bubble popped, vast housing developments across the country were left partially abandoned — including “Life in Venice,” a sprawling residential complex perched on China’s east coast.
Just an hour and a half drive away from China’s bustling commercial hub of Shanghai, “Life in Venice” was inspired by the famed Italian city, featuring European style sculptures and buildings connected by canals and bridges.
Stone statues stand over a waterless fountain by a vast, largely empty hotel at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Stone statues stand over a waterless fountain by a vast, largely empty hotel at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Residents fish in an artificial canal at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Residents fish in an artificial canal at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
It was once advertised as the garden of Shanghai, promising a luxurious, relaxing, resortlike lifestyle by the sea. But property prices faltered a few years ago, and in 2024 the complex’s developer, Evergrande, declared bankruptcy.
Today, “Life in Venice” is a ghost town with a sea view, many of its units left unsold.
Watchtowers stand at an empty beach at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Watchtowers stand at an empty beach at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Home prices here have more than halved. Many villas are abandoned, mere husks of concrete and alabaster, their private docks left unused. A three-bedroom apartment here can be rented for just 800 yuan ($116) a month.
Those bargain prices are luring some who are seeking a laid-back, low-cost way of living and an escape from the hypercompetitive rat race in China’s megacities.
A resident dines on hand-pulled noodle soup at a restaurant in the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A resident dines on hand-pulled noodle soup at a restaurant in the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A few grocery stores, some restaurants and a package delivery station offer enough for the people who have chosen to move here.
In the winter the complex is largely quiet, as residents enjoy a slower pace of life. Some men fish next to a deflated rubber ducky. Children’s clothes are hung out to dry in public. A lone man, swaying on a swing on an empty beach, gaze out at an abandoned pier.
Residents play with their children in a playground at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Residents play with their children in a playground at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A man swings on an empty beach at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A man swings on an empty beach at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A delivery driver idles away time by watching videos on his phone on his scooter in the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A delivery driver idles away time by watching videos on his phone on his scooter in the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A resident carries groceries under the shadow of the massive dome of the International Conference Center of the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A resident carries groceries under the shadow of the massive dome of the International Conference Center of the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A partially deflated giant rubber duckie floats in an artificial canal at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A partially deflated giant rubber duckie floats in an artificial canal at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Laundry hangs on trees at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Laundry hangs on trees at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Young residents shop for groceries at a store in the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Young residents shop for groceries at a store in the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A lone pedestrian walks on a bridge passing through the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
A lone pedestrian walks on a bridge passing through the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Many apartments remain empty and unlit as dusk falls at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
Many apartments remain empty and unlit as dusk falls at the semi-abandoned “Life in Venice” housing complex in Qidong, on China’s east coast, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dake Kang)
This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.
