China Polices 'Bone Ash' Apartments

Reports say Chinese authorities are cracking down on families who bury loved ones' ashes in empty condominium units rather than buying cemetery plots. This intersects rising funeral costs, surplus high‑rise housing, and enforcement of social norms about death and property use. — If true, the crackdown is a concrete sign of state intervention at the intersection of housing markets, private ritual, and social welfare — with implications for urban policy, property rights, and how regimes manage scarcity and social unrest.