A 30-year-old Chinese man managed to achieve financial independence by investing in rundown apartments and earning a steady rental income.
A 30-year-old Chinese man managed to achieve financial independence by investing in rundown apartments and earning a steady rental income. However, after spending over 2 million yuan (US$300,000) acquiring old properties, he has now decided to ditch real estate in favour of dividend-paying stocks and investment funds, sparking widespread discussion across China.
Fan Junjie, originally from Jilin in northeastern China, moved to Changsha in search of better career opportunities. However, his professional life soon turned into a gruelling routine, with 18-hour workdays in internet healthcare sales, according to mainland media outlet Sanlian Life Laboratory.
Having witnessed the sky-high property prices in China’s major cities, Fan began looking at ageing apartments in downtown Changsha as an affordable investment opportunity. Some of these properties were available for as little as 300,000 yuan (US$45,000), including renovation costs.
In 2023, he began an aggressive property-buying spree, purchasing 14 so-called “laopoxiao” apartments over two years for a combined investment of more than 2 million yuan. These cramped, decades-old flats typically come with outdated facilities but offer relatively affordable entry prices.
Of the 14 properties, 11 are currently rented out, generating an estimated 210,000 yuan (US$31,500) in annual rental income.
Fan strategically concentrated his investments around Xiangya Hospital, banking on rental demand from people visiting or working near the medical facility. He also standardised renovation work across his properties and kept spare parts readily available to streamline maintenance.
His investment portfolio includes apartments purchased at different price points. His cheapest property cost just 150,000 yuan and brings in 1,700 yuan in monthly rent. Meanwhile, his most expensive apartment required an investment of nearly 310,000 yuan, including taxes, agency charges and renovation expenses, and generates 2,200 yuan in monthly rental income.
By the age of 30, Fan had achieved his ambition of Financial Independence, Retire Early (FIRE), using rental income to support his lifestyle without relying on a conventional job.
Managing multiple properties proved far from effortless, with agency commissions, taxes, maintenance expenses and tenant-related responsibilities gradually eating into his returns. Falling property prices also raised concerns about the value of his investments and the risk of losing capital.
On October 26, Fan announced on social media that he was calling time on his property-buying journey, declaring: “The prime window has passed.”
Instead of expanding his real estate portfolio, he now plans to channel his money into dividend funds and high-dividend stocks, hoping to replace rental earnings with regular investment payouts.
Fan believes rental income and dividends essentially serve the same purpose: generating cash flow from income-producing assets. However, he sees one major advantage in financial investments — liquidity.
According to him, dividend funds can be sold within days, whereas renting out a property involves finding tenants, completing paperwork and waiting weeks before the first payment arrives.
According to Ant Fortune data, people born after 1995 accounted for nearly 40 per cent of dividend index fund users during the first half of this year, marking a 44 per cent increase year on year.
However, financial experts and market observers have cautioned against viewing dividend investments as a guaranteed source of passive income. Corporate dividend payouts depend on business performance and profitability, while declining stock prices can significantly erode the value of an investor’s capital.
Fan has also adopted a diversified approach to managing his money rather than putting everything into stocks.
He maintains emergency savings in Yu’ebao, Alipay’s money-market product, while funds intended for expenses over the next one to three years are allocated to relatively low-risk bond funds and bank wealth-management products.
Now living and travelling in Laos, Fan has acknowledged that his investment strategy may not work for everyone, stressing that financial decisions must be based on individual circumstances and risk appetite.