"In another six decades a burial plot in China will cost 100 tim

http://www.opp-connect.com/price-of-cemetery-plots-surge-in-china/

With scarce cemetery plots fetching more per square metre than property, investors are now turning to the funeral sector

Investors in China are turning from land plots to cemetery plots as the values of graves outperform property.

The lucrative cemetery market prices have risen 100-fold over the last decade, with some grave prices in China fetching higher values per square foot than for houses.

With an estimated 9.3 million people dying every year, the Ministry of Civil Affairs says cemeteries across the country will be filled within the decade.

Although the numbers opting for cremation, including scattering ashes at sea or under trees, is rising and the government is said to want free or subsidised cremation introduced, there is still widespread support for the ancient tradition of burying the dead.

Tonghui Cemetery, in Beijing, is reported as charging up to 600,000RMB (almost US$100,000) for a three square metre plot and it cheapest plot of under one square metre is still 36,800RMB (US$6,000).

At Beijing’s main Babaoshan Cemetery (pictured) the price of a burial plot has risen from 19,000RMB per square metre (3,118RMB per square metre) to 100,000RMB (16,412RMB) in the four years to 2012. During the same period, average house prices only rose from 12,000RMB-20,000RMB (1,969-3,282RMB) per square metre.

Unlike standard property leases, which can last up to 70 years, graveyard management regulations introduced in 1992 stipulate that any money paid for a burial plot is valid for 20 years only. If after 20 years, the full tomb maintenance fees have not been paid – the plot is reclaimed and the remains of the deceased disposed of.

Wang Jisheng, of the China Funeral Association, says the rising prices are simply a result of supply and demand. China’s population is aging fast. In 2010 it had more 119million citizens aged 65 and over, but that is set to double by 2050.

“Australia has 20 million people but over 10,000 cemeteries. America has more than 50,000 cemeteries for a population of 300 million. China has only 3,000 cemeteries for 1.3 billion.”

The current asking price for a public cemetery plot in Jinan in eastern China’s Shandong province is 400,000RMB (US$65,650), higher than real estate average values.

Many insurance companies are also eying the profitable cemetery market to boost revenue, with analysts estimating that if the trend continues, in another six decades a burial plot in China will cost 100 times more than real-estate.

Beijing-based Taikang Life, one of the largest insurance companies in China, says it will invest in a cemetery project in Huizhou in Guangdong province.