The ‘Ghost Condos’ of L.A.: Why Is a Chinese State-Backed Company Holding Hundreds of Empty Units?

In the middle of Los Angeles, four gleaming skyscrapers stretch toward the clouds. The glass-fronted development, dubbed Metropolis, includes two condo towers, one rental tower, and the luxury Indigo Hotel. All told, the block-long expanse includes more than 1,500 residential units. Its developer, Greenland USA, describes the complex as “a vibrant oasis where residents are privy to expansive spaces to gather and entertain, plus more intimate settings to work, dine, and unwind.”But on a recent trip to its downtown L.A. location, independent journalist Yoonj Kim found that the towers seemed half-deserted. Kim was investigating the long-whispered rumors that Metropolis was nothing more than a glittering ghost town. What she found, and what Realtor.com® independently verified, is that nearly a third of the condo units in the Metropolis towers are vacant, either because they were sold to absentee Chinese investors who never moved in, or because the properties were never put on the market.Seven years after the complex was completed, developer Greenland USA, the American subsidiary of Shanghai-based developer Greenland Holding Group, still owns hundreds of units across both condo towers. ...