Photos show China's low-cost lifestyle in vast, semiabandoned housing complexes

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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.

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.

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 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.

This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.