新城规划泡沫(xīnchéng guīhuà pàomò):New town bubble

According to a research by the China Center for Urban Development of the National Development and Reform Commission, the development of urbanization faces many problems, including overexpansion, homogenization and over-reliance on real estate development.

In many areas new towns and new districts have launched too many real estate development of projects that have failed to attract people, resulting in many "ghost towns" with few residents. This has become a noteworthy phenomenon of new town planning.

According to Wang Yukai, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance, even with the relaxing of the family planning policy, there will not be a large scale population growth in the future. Therefore, the new urbanization areas must attract the rural population.

Thus one of the major tasks of some small and medium-sized cities, especially in the western region, is to implement policies that attract the rural population to new urban areas and keep them there.

Many small and medium-sized cities face difficulties in preventing a subsequent outflow as the newly urbanized residents choose to seek work in bigger cities due to the better job opportunities and living conditions they offer.

The new town bubble should prompt local authorities to adjust their urban planning policies.