(Yicai) Sept. 30 -- An increasing number of young Chinese professionals are rethinking traditional career and homeownership aspirations. Many are leaving their office jobs and, rather than cramming vacations into fragmented periods of leave, are taking advantage of lower rents and more attractive surroundings in scenic locations to embrace a more mobile lifestyle and live for extended periods in different places.

The number of digital nomads in China is estimated to have surged 32 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier to more than 8 million people, according to a report released by recruitment agency Zhaopin and the School of Social Sciences at Tsinghua University.

A 30-year-old woman who previously worked for several major Chinese internet companies told Yicai that a holiday in Dali, southwestern Yunnan province during the Covid-19 pandemic introduced her to many new friends and exposed her to a different way of living. In 2024, she left full-time employment altogether and embraced a digital nomad lifestyle, combining long-stay travel with freelance work.

"The external environment is beyond our control, so people should find the city that suits them best," she said.

China’s long-stay living market is developing a two-age-group structure, according to a survey of the sojourner market released last year by PLUS Hotel Consulting and Asset Management’s research institute. While people aged 60 and above still make up the largest share, young people aged between 18 and 35 now account for 31 percent of the market. Workers in industries such as finance, technology and social media, who have the ability to work remotely, are emerging as the main group of young digital nomads.

Cities and provinces that are well positioned to benefit from this emerging trend, such as Yunnan province, Anji in estern Zhejiang province and Huizhou in southern Guangdong province, are leveraging their favorable natural environments while accelerating improvements to local amenities and services to attract long-stay residents from across the country.

Affordable Living

Over the past decade, excessive real estate development in many cities has resulted in a large number of unsold vacation properties. These properties are now providing affordable short-term rental options for young people opting for a more mobile lifestyle. For example, in Foshan, Guangdong province, a fully furnished studio apartment can be rented for around CNY1,500 (USD224) a month, while a fully furnished vacation apartment in Emeishan, southwestern Sichuan province can cost as little as CNY800 (USD119) per month.

A two-bedroom apartment located in Guangzhou’s central Panyu district currently rents for around CNY2,500 (USD373) a month. "In downtown Shanghai, that would only get you a small room without a living room in a shared apartment," another young woman who previously worked for an IT company in Shanghai and who now lives in Guangzhou on a long-stay basis told Yicai.

Apart from rents, the overall cost of living in Guangzhou is also quite affordable and convenient, she said. The significant reduction in living costs allows her to maintain a "rich" lifestyle while working at a relatively lower intensity.

New Priorities

The younger generation no longer sees buying a house as a non-negotiable life goal. While they are not opposed to homeownership, they are increasingly unwilling to overextend themselves to do so, making renting a deliberate lifestyle choice.

"Renting in big cities is already tough. Why should we drain our parents' savings just to buy a house?" two interviewees told Yicai. Both said that while having a home of their own would be nice, they will not pursue homeownership if it is beyond their means.

This shift in attitudes among young people is creating a new way of absorbing excess housing inventory, said Yan Yuejin, deputy director of the Shanghai E-house China Research and Development Institute. Long-stay living can help put idle properties in scenic areas and rural locations back into use and transform them into operating assets capable of generating recurring cash flow.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Kim Taylor