Shanghai resident Ms. Zhang encountered a bizarre situation: when she planned to buy a house in March this year, she found out that she had a property registered under her name in Dong’an Road, Xuhui District, Shanghai, which made her ineligible to purchase another property. However, this property had been demolished as early as the early 2000s and was referred to as a “ghost property” (a property that doesn’t actually exist). The process to deregister this property is considered absurd.
According to a report by Dahe Daily on April 14, when the property was demolished, the related company failed to complete the procedures for canceling the house registration, resulting in this non-existent property still being listed under Ms. Zhang’s name (the property information remains stagnant in the real estate registration system). The demolition company from that time has also been deregistered.
Ms. Zhang contacted Guangqi Company, which took over the documents, through the hotline 12345, and obtained a copy of the relocation agreement.
However, when trying to handle the deregistration process, the Xuhui District Real Estate Registration Center requested that the original relocation agreement and all four co-owners of the property (including Ms. Zhang’s parents and her deceased husband) must be present.
As her husband had passed away, Ms. Zhang was required to “first handle the inheritance notarization of the property” before proceeding with the deregistration. She questioned this, saying, “The house has disappeared, inheriting thin air is ridiculous.”
The report mentioned that some lawyers stated that according to the Civil Code, ownership of a property automatically ceases after demolition, but the issue lies in the failure to update the real estate registration information. The relocation unit back then failed to fulfill its duty to deregister, and the responsibility should be borne by them. The lawyers also cautioned that there might be similar hidden risks for properties relocated before 2011, and it is advisable to check the status of properties before purchasing.
The Xuhui District Natural Resource Confirmation and Registration Center stated that all the houses in that area have not been deregistered, and they are considering letting the company that took over the documents handle it in batches.
This incident has sparked heated discussions among netizens, who find it absurd and laughable, pointing out that the rigid system forces citizens to foot the bill for historical legacy issues.
Some netizens sarcastically remarked that even directors and screenwriters would not dare to depict such a plotline.