An outlet of Centaline Property in Beijing's Haidian District has been vacated for several days, with operations reportedly relocated to Xidiaoyutai, according to a staff member familiar with the area on May 18. During a site visit, the signage of the Wukesong North Road branch remained, though the interior was largely cleared, leaving only a district property map on the wall as a remnant of its former service scope.
Recent market discussions have centered on Centaline Property's store closures in Beijing. Following the shutdown of the Wukesong North Road location, speculation suggests the agency will retain just one outlet in the city—the Xidiaoyutai Jiayuan store, approximately two kilometers away. Investigations reveal that besides this closure, three Centaline branches in Beijing's premium Wanliu area ceased operations in late April. Staff from these four closed locations have been consolidated into the Xidiaoyutai Jiayuan store.
Centaline Group has clarified that there are no plans to exit the Beijing market. The recent closures represent a strategic adjustment to the city's secondary housing direct-sales business, reflecting current market conditions and operational realities. The group has launched its "Tengyun United Sales" service in Beijing as part of this shift.
Public information indicates that Tengyun is Centaline Group's official brand for agency empowerment, aimed at facilitating home purchases through online promotion and offline client outreach. This model fosters interaction, service delivery, and information transparency between developers and buyers. The "united sales" component involves shared property listings accessible to all industry agents for viewings and sales, with commissions split as agreed upon.
Centaline Group reports that within just one month of its launch, over 30 outlets have completed or are in the process of signing contracts for the Tengyun United Sales service. The group emphasizes its commitment to the Beijing market, planning to steadily advance various business operations amid a stabilizing real estate sector.
Centaline Property, founded in Hong Kong in 1978, is a veteran agency often regarded as a "godfather" in the industry. It entered the mainland market in 1990, a time when the commercial housing sector was nascent. Leveraging Hong Kong's mature real estate practices, Centaline played a foundational role in shaping mainland agency standards.
Beijing Centaline Real Estate Agency, established in October 1994, was among the earliest and largest branches on the mainland, also serving as the North China regional headquarters. At its peak, it operated over 200 outlets in Beijing with nearly 5,000 employees.
The landscape shifted in 2015 as Lianjia, backed by capital, aggressively expanded nationwide, challenging Centaline's dominance. By that year, Centaline's annual transaction volume was 725.9 billion yuan, closely trailed by Lianjia's 709 billion yuan. The subsequent rise of KE Holdings Inc. further widened the gap, particularly in Beijing, KE's headquarters city.
A veteran Beijing Centaline agent noted that while the market downturn has affected all agencies, Centaline's challenges appear more pronounced. He suggested that stable teams in some now-closed outlets were still profitable, attributing the closures partly to rumors of a Beijing exit, which spurred key staff departures and reduced morale, exacerbating performance declines.
The agent identified intense external competition and internal management adjustments as core factors. Former Centaline mainland chairman Limingkai acknowledged in a 2021 interview that the company's post-2015 slowdown stemmed from a strategic misstep during the 2008 financial crisis, when it downsized by nearly 20% in anticipation of a prolonged slump. However, the market rebounded swiftly due to quantitative easing, allowing competitors who endured the crisis to expand while Centaline missed key opportunities.
The 2018 launch of KE Holdings Inc.'s platform marked a new phase in industry competition, with KE's subsequent listing solidifying a reshaped market structure. Centaline has since adapted by launching its franchise brand, Baoyuan Property, in 2023, initially piloting in Tianjin and Shenyang. In a notable move, Baoyuan entered a strategic partnership with KE Holdings Inc. last April, bridging two long-standing rivals.
Centaline Group stated that Baoyuan's choice of Tianjin and Shenyang as pilot cities was based on market transaction trends and innovation needs in tertiary services (secondary housing and leasing). Within a year, Baoyuan expanded to 120 outlets in Tianjin, employing nearly 1,000 staff. By November last year, Baoyuan's franchise network had extended to Changsha, totaling over 150 stores across Tianjin, Shenyang, and Changsha.
In contrast to Tianjin's franchise model, Beijing Centaline is upgrading its secondary housing direct-sales business through the Tengyun United Sales model. The group reports that over 30 outlets have joined or are finalizing agreements since its recent launch. In January, Tengyun also partnered with UJU Beijing, a real estate internet trading platform, to integrate property listings, client resources, and channels for mutual resource sharing.
At the Centaline Property (Mainland China) General Manager Summit in February, Centaline Group chairman Shi Yongqing noted that while industry policies have bottomed out and tertiary market transactions are gradually reaching a low, the secondary market may still face adjustments, maintaining pressure on the sector. Accordingly, the company plans to optimize its layout—streamlining in the first half of the year to focus resources on promising regions, then intensifying efforts in the latter half to concentrate quality resources in core areas with growth potential and opportunities.
As the latter half of the year approaches, this veteran agency's transformation efforts will be tested for their ability to foster a recovery.