China’s real estate market enters 2026 in a state of deep reassessment. Four years of subdued leasing, soft sales absorption, weaker footfall, rising vacancies,cautious capital, and persistent debt strain have pushed every asset class into a defensive posture. The old model—relying on scale, momentum, and rising prices—no longer offers a path forward. What the sector faces today is not simply cyclical weakness, but a structural shift in expectations, business models, and economic purpose. The only sustainable response is to break the cycle of decline: the cycle in which cost-cutting erodes service quality, eroded service quality weakens demand, and weaker demand triggers yet more cost-cutting. This downward spiral has reached its limit.