Country Garden, China’s top developer, hops on TikTok to launch mainland’s biggest ever live-streaming home sales

Country Garden will sell 10,000 new homes in more than 60 cities on the TikTok live-streaming platform during a two-hour show tonight

S&P Global Ratings expects property sales in China to drop between 5 per cent and 10 per cent this year

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Published: 9:30am, 5 May 2020Updated: 10:32pm, 5 May 2020

Chinese property developers have found a sure-fire way to boost dwindling sales as buyers stay away from sales centres, fearing they might contract the dreaded coronavirus: live streaming.

Country Garden Holdings is the latest mainland company to jump on to the TikTok live-streaming platform, as it launches the biggest ever online property sales promotion in China to date.

The mainland’s largest developer by total gross floor area sold plans to offer 10,000 new homes across more than 60 cities on the video platform from 8pm on May 5. The company said discounts of up to 50 per cent on property purchases will be up for grabs during the two-hour variety show hosted by celebrities and pop singers.

Country Garden’s marketing strategy includes selling home coupons for 5.5 yuan (US$0.78), which can be redeemed for a discount of 55,000 yuan against a property purchase, distributing red packets worth 1 million yuan and giving away free hotel stays, travel vouchers and home appliances.

China’s property firms have been hampered by variety of factors that have weighed on the sector. First, it was the cooling measures introduced in 2018, which included price caps and limit on sales by the central government. Then came the Covid-19 outbreak this year, which led to lockdowns in dozens of cities in an effort to contain the spread of the virus, which also forced developers to shut down sales centres for weeks on end. As a result, the country’s economy shrank 6.8 per cent in the first three months of the year, the first quarterly contraction in decades.

Property was one of the sectors that was hit the hardest, with homes sales in China plunging by 20 per cent year on year in the first quarter, according to S&P Global Ratings.

Country Garden Holdings is going to offer more than 10,000 homes on live streaming platform TikTok on May 5. Photo: Handout

“Demand remains highly dependent on consumer [and investor] confidence, which is not a sure thing given the global economic downturn,” said Christopher Yip, senior director at S&P Global Ratings. “For now, we maintain our base case view, which is that national contracted sales will drop 5 per cent to 10 per cent in 2020.”

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