No Property Fees, Faster House Sales

How a Points System Enables Properties to Sell Themselves

Background: A Dinner Conversation About a Sales Dilemma

One day, a friend in the hotel industry from Chaoyang District invited me to a dinner. His company chairman, Mr. Zhang, was already waiting at the restaurant. After exchanging pleasantries, we got down to business over the meal.

Mr. Zhang cut straight to the point: “My colleagues have told me about your company. I’ve invited you here to seek your advice — we’ve developed a residential project and want to speed up property sales.”

During our talk, we learned that Mr. Zhang adopted a “supporting facilities first” development strategy. Before the residential buildings were finished, supporting amenities including on-site hotels and supermarkets had already been constructed and put into operation. This approach was rare in the real estate market back then, designed to deliver a fully mature living environment ready for new homeowners upon move-in.

Yet once the residential buildings were nearly completed, sales moved sluggishly. Mr. Zhang urgently needed a solution to highlight the project’s unique value to prospective buyers.

Breakthrough: Waivable Property Fees via a Strategy That Lets Homes Promote Themselves

Instead of proposing conventional real estate marketing tactics, we focused on the fully operational supporting facilities — especially the project’s self-operated supermarket.

Our reasoning was straightforward: one major concern for homebuyers is long-term living expenses, with property management fees representing a fixed recurring cost. Absorbing this expense would drastically boost the property’s appeal.

We put forward a targeted proposal: Launch an exclusive points system for residents at the in-house supermarket, where accumulated shopping points can be directly redeemed to offset property fees. Meanwhile, the supermarket commits to pricing all goods no higher than comparable surrounding markets.

In practice, residents can cover their property fees entirely with points earned from daily grocery shopping. For buyers, this equates to effectively waiving property charges — not eliminating the fee outright, but earning it back through routine necessary consumption.

Core Logic: Every Community Is a Gold Mine

This strategy is rooted in the core concept we jointly established back in 2010 with strategic partner Shanghai Gujin Trading Co., Ltd.: “Every residential community is a gold mine. The communities themselves form the mines, and the thousands of residents within are pure gold.”

Property developers and management firms sit on these valuable resources; the key lies in unlocking their potential. Mr. Zhang’s project already held two core strengths:

1. Physical assets as the “mine”: Complete premium supporting facilities including hotels and supermarkets.

2. Resident groups as the “gold”: Thousands of future homeowners poised to move in.

Our points system fundamentally connects the two core assets — residents and supporting commercial facilities. Once operational, it creates a self-reinforcing positive cycle: Residents prioritize shopping at the on-site supermarket to earn points for property fee deductions → Higher supermarket revenue supports richer product ranges and improved services → The residential community becomes far more desirable to buyers → Property sales accelerate significantly.

Outcomes: Instant Recognition at the Dinner Table & Practical Implementation

Mr. Zhang and his team fully endorsed our strategy on the spot during our dinner discussion.

We did not follow up on which specific elements of the proposal they ultimately adopted. Even so, the case illustrates a classic business thinking framework: rather than selling housing in isolation, step outside traditional real estate logic, integrate on-site supporting resources, and build a win-win value loop for homebuyers, residents and developers alike.

Case Insights

The pinnacle of real estate sales is not selling buildings, but selling a lifestyle marked by lower living costs and superior quality of life.

This case also reinforces a universal business principle: the most powerful sales tactics do not push products directly, but design an irresistible value system for customers.

When buyers realize they can eliminate the long-term burden of property fees after moving in, the property gains the ability to market itself.