HONG KONG -- Chen Peng put his entire life savings, and that of his parents, into a 300,000 yuan ($44,000) down payment for a condominium that should have been finished in 2018. Four years later, the 36-year-old musician is still waiting for the keys.
His complex is one of tens of thousands of residential projects lagging behind schedule across China. And as the songwriter and guitar player is unable to earn much -- the government's zero-COVID policy all but prohibits musical performances -- he relies on credit cards to cover bills, sinking deeper and deeper into debt.
