Why can’t China’s lower-level poor people achieve original capital accumulation?

Ma’s former colleague in the crypto circle—his wife was killed in a car accident.
He received $2 million in death compensation, and there were also two children at home.
In the first moment, he thought about changing homes.
The reason was very realistic: the house was under 80 square meters; with one son and one daughter, they couldn’t live long-term in the same bedroom, and there were also elderly relatives coming over to help take care of the children, making the living space extremely tight.
Switching to a bigger house sounds natural, and most people can understand. This happened around 2022 or 2023.
Looking back now, if he had bought a home decisively back then, he would likely have been stuck waiting at a high level.
In the end, he couldn’t buy a home—not because he didn’t want to, but because a dispute arose over how that $2 million death compensation was to be allocated, and it kept dragging on without being finalized.
His wife unexpectedly passed away, and as her husband he also had to raise two children. He naturally felt that the compensation should be held entirely by himself and the children.
But the wife was also her own parents’ biological daughter. When a bride is gone and their parents suffer the loss of their own child, the two elderly parents should rightfully receive part of the compensation payment.
The two sides argued back and forth over this, delaying the timing for buying a home.
Later, both finally reached an agreement on the allocation plan. I don’t know exactly how much each side got, and it’s not convenient for me to ask.
In these past few years, since they still hadn’t managed to buy a home, the former colleague started talking about his girlfriend.
At first he had no intention of remarrying. Yet less than a month after his wife died, people around him kept introducing him to potential partners. Everyone could tell: he had a large sum of death compensation money in his hands. Even his parents kept urging him to remarry.
After struggling and resisting for half a year, he still started dating. As time went on, his day-to-day expenses also increased.
By the time the compensation allocation finally settled completely and his funds became fully free—when he finally had the conditions to buy a home.
Everyone’s views had changed. People everywhere advised him not to buy a home, saying housing prices would keep falling. He also abandoned the idea of buying property.
Since he wasn’t going to buy a house, the money still had to be spent. He turned to planning to change cars.
The reason to change cars was also very well-founded: his old car had been driven for six years, and it had also had malfunctions in the middle.
During casual chats, he kept complaining about all kinds of issues with the old car, as if unless he replaced it, a safety accident on the road could happen at any time.
This justification was exactly the same as what he said back when he was desperately trying to buy a home—then he sounded as if without exchanging for a bigger house, the whole family would be trapped in misery.
It’s just that as housing prices fell, the “urgent demand” rationale for buying a home disappeared out of thin air. Living in the old place also became “good enough,” and only the car problem he could no longer tolerate.
We, a bunch of friends, followed the topic and agreed with him, advising him that he really should change to a new car.
In my view, although the former colleague had $2 million, his regular salary income was ordinary. He also had to raise two children, so buying a $100,000-ish household sedan for getting around would already be enough.
Unexpectedly, in the end he bought a M5 by AITO (not an advertisement), landing at more than $300,000.
His explanation was still plenty: long-distance driving makes people tired and prone to losing focus; intelligent driving systems are needed to ensure safety. And then my other friend, A.
Back in the early days, she bought real estate during a low-price window period. Seeing housing prices keep going down, with the whole internet singing the downfall of real estate, she moved fast and sold the properties, netting $700k.
Up to this point, the moves were very rational.
But once she got $700k, she immediately bought a large-area new apartment.
The reasons were also compelling: her children’s schooling needs, and conflicts in daily life with her mother-in-law—she wanted to live separately, while also solving the children’s school-district issue.
At that time she spoke so sincerely and passionately, as if unless she bought this house, the children couldn’t enroll normally; otherwise, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law conflicts would be constantly intensified without end.
But recently, she sold that new home at a low price at a loss.
All the “hard reasons” for buying back then no longer existed. The children could attend other schools, and they could also continue living with her mother-in-law.
And there’s friend B.
She took over two properties at the high end, and she’s been stuck since—still trapped.
Later she saved some cash again—only a few tens of thousands. Her thinking became active again.
Then she decided to use the money to renovate the old house in her rural hometown.
I was very puzzled and asked why she wanted to do it.
The reasons she gave were also enough: the old house was broken; without repairs, it couldn’t even be lived in.
She was very certain she would frequently return to live in her hometown, so renovating the house wasn’t a waste.
She also added: if she didn’t pay together with her brother and sister-in-law to renovate the house, then when they returned to the hometown later, her original room would be taken over, and she would completely lose a place to stay.
When describing it, it was as if she had to return to the hometown to live every month; as if without paying for the repair expenses, in the future when she returned, her brother and sister-in-law would kick her out of the house with no place to go. In the end, she put part of the funds into the renovation project.
The remaining money couldn’t be used to continue putting in because her husband was laid off and also had to shoulder mortgage payments for two houses.
Now she’s thinking whether she can get her brother and sister-in-law to return the several tens of thousands already paid, and give up ownership of that room in her hometown.
These cases reflect the same common phenomenon.
Ordinary people can’t hold on to money at all. When money is in their hands, it’s like a hot potato—they can’t wait to spend it quickly.
As if if they delay even for a moment, their palms will blister with heat.
At the same time, ordinary people’s linear thinking is deeply ingrained.
If someone saves $100,000, their first thought is to gather money to buy a house. They firmly and unshakably believe real estate is the top wealth vehicle—only a house can shelter them from wind and rain.
It’s as if the period before they bought a home was all unbearable suffering, living like in hell.
Even if they take on a large mortgage, and even if they still live outside by renting after buying a house—just as long as there is property registered under their name, their mind feels particularly secure.
Lost your job? No problem—I have a house.
Heartbroken? No problem—I have a house.
Short on cash? No problem—I have a house.
One house, as if it can solve all of life’s problems.
Many people say Chinese people are atheists and don’t believe in religion.
But in my view, people in China have a special religion they worship deep down—house-buying.
They worship houses and praise houses, forcibly giving buildings made of steel and concrete countless spiritual meanings, as if they were creating a god.
They weave the past and future into the house, tying happiness, life salvation, emotional support, and their children’s prospects all to real estate.
In essence, isn’t this also a kind of religious fixation?
Back to the point: the reason we’re talking about real estate is precisely because when ordinary people unexpectedly receive a large amount of money, their first instinct is always to acquire property.
The value narrative of real estate runs deep into people’s hearts, becoming embedded in mass thinking. Next comes buying a car, and then various scattered expenses—quickly exhausting the idle money in hand.
It all comes down to the heavy psychological pressure of holding large amounts of cash. Money just doesn’t feel comfortable staying there; they only want to spend it as soon as possible to feel at ease.
After getting to know these situations, it turns out that so many ordinary people are in exactly this state.