China
Urban land in China is state-granted, so 'landowner' JVs are really project-company partnerships or village-collective renewal deals — both run on relationships and escrowed presales.
Rongjilv is contractual, not negotiable post-grant. LAT 30–60% dominates the tax stack; presale escrow supervision shapes cash flow. Currently a domestic-capital game.
- Title system
- State-owned urban land; granted land-use rights (70-yr residential) + building ownership in unified national e-registration.
- Foreign ownership
- Foreign individuals: one self-use home after ~1 yr local work/study; foreign developers need FIE approval — land via public auction; market effectively domestic.
- Authorities
- Municipal Planning & Natural Resources bureaus under MNR; MOHURD for construction.
- Zoning metric
- Plot ratio (rongjilv) fixed in the land-grant contract — tier-1 residential ~1.8–3.5; sunlight-spacing and green-ratio coefficients.
- Height control
- MOHURD 2021: >250m restricted, >500m banned; sunlight spacing dominates residential; typical ≤80–100m.
- Building code
- GB 55xxx mandatory general codes, GB 50011 seismic, GB 50016 fire.
- Approvals & timeline
- Land grant → planning permits → construction permit → presale permit (~25%+ built); presale proceeds escrow-supervised. (~6–12 months)
- Transfer taxes & fees
- Deed tax 1–3% (buyer); developer VAT 9% + Land Appreciation Tax 30–60%; land premium is the core government take.
- Foreign capital
- SAFE capital controls both ways; QFLP niches; most foreign developers exited; policy pro-stabilisation.
Common JV structures
Land-as-Equity SPV
20–50%Owner conveys land into a new project company at an agreed value; that value becomes the owner's equity stake. Developer and investors contribute cash and expertise; profits distribute through a waterfall (capital back → preferred return → promote).
Development Management + Profit Share
10–30%Owner keeps ownership and funds the project; the developer acts as development manager for a base fee (2–5% of cost) plus a promote (10–30% of profit above a hurdle). Effectively a JV without a land transfer.
BOT / DBFOT Concession
2–15%Mostly for public or institutional land: the developer designs, builds, finances and operates for 20–50 years, paying an upfront premium and/or revenue share, then transfers the asset back.
- ⚠ Multi-year price decline + developer credit distress
- ⚠ Demand softness despite eased curbs (2025-26)
- ⚠ Capital controls on exit
Whitelist financing gates project credit.