How Market Speculators Are Disappearing Amid Vancouver’s Real Estate Collapse
In the wake of Vancouver’s turbulent real estate market, a new and disturbing trend is emerging—developers and speculators vanishing when their projects crumble. As massive debts pile up and projects face foreclosure, key figures behind these real estate ventures have disappeared, leaving a trail of unpaid creditors, investors, and unfinished developments.
One of the latest high-profile examples of this phenomenon is the case of iFortune Homes, a Vancouver-based real estate development company now embroiled in foreclosure proceedings across several of its major projects. Amid mounting debt and failed ventures, those tied to the company’s operations, including high-ranking executives and guarantors, have simply vanished, frustrating legal efforts to bring them to account.
iFortune Homes, like many other developers in British Columbia, thrived during the real estate boom. The company’s portfolio once included multiple high-profile projects, from luxury condo towers in Vancouver to large suburban developments in Richmond.
However, as the market turned, iFortune found itself unable to meet its financial obligations. This has resulted in four of its major projects falling into foreclosure, with over $59 million in debt and rising.
More troubling is that as these foreclosures proceed, key figures involved in iFortune Homes have become unreachable. For instance, Globalwide Capital Management Corporation, a second-ranking mortgage holder in one of iFortune’s foreclosed projects, cannot be served with legal documents. The company’s sole director, Xiao Yang Zhu, “cannot be located or served” and does not reside at the address listed on public records.
Another guarantor linked to iFortune Homes, Xu Ling Sun, has similarly disappeared. Court documents detail multiple failed attempts to serve Sun at her West Vancouver home. Despite nine visits by process servers, Sun has not responded, leaving creditors in the dark.
Sun is believed to be a family member of Feng (Peter) Luan, iFortune Homes’ president, raising further questions about the involvement and whereabouts of those at the top of the company.
The growing inability to locate these individuals complicates ongoing foreclosure proceedings, leaving creditors scrambling to recover millions. As Mortimer, a real estate commentator on social media, aptly noted, “People bid up land to speculate good times would continue… markets turned… and then they just disappear. Actually had that on my bingo card.”
Pattern of vanishing developers
The disappearance of speculators and developers when projects collapse has become a disturbing pattern in British Columbia’s real estate market. iFortune Homes is only the latest in a series of developers, including Coromandel Properties and Quarry Rock Developments, whose key players have evaded creditors and courts as insolvencies mount.
These companies often borrow heavily to fund massive pre-construction projects, hoping to sell or lease units at a profit once completed. When market conditions deteriorate or construction delays occur, these speculative ventures frequently default, leaving lenders exposed to millions in unpaid debts.
Many of these projects never even break ground, leaving vacant lots and abandoned construction sites scattered across the metro Vancouver area. In iFortune’s case, its foreclosed projects include Elm41 and Auberry in Vancouver, and a planned high-rise in Burnaby that never reached the approval stage.
“The common thread,” Storeys, a real estate news outlet, reported, “is that these aren’t one-off cases. When one project collapses, often the entire portfolio of a developer follows.”
The speculative nature of the real estate market in Vancouver—where developers often leverage massive loans with little liquidity—means that when projects fall apart, the impact ripples across the entire financial system. Lenders and contractors are left holding the bag, and even homeowners who bought into these projects early may face substantial losses if properties fail to be completed or sold at a discount.
In iFortune’s case, the company owes over $59 million across its four foreclosed projects, and the legal quagmire deepens as key figures remain unreachable. In one foreclosure, for example, Mega International Commercial Bank is attempting to recover $15.4 million owed on a project that never advanced beyond the planning stage. The process has been hindered by the inability to serve important legal documents to those responsible.
The sudden disappearance of market speculators like Zhu and Sun has profound consequences for lenders, investors, and contractors involved in their projects. Without key figures to answer legal claims or negotiate settlements, creditors are left navigating a slow and costly process to recover what they are owed. In some cases, this involves lengthy court battles, while in others, the properties themselves go unsold, further depreciating in value.
Information for this story was found via Storeys and the sources and companies mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to the organizations discussed. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
And so hiring a PI to find these people, have them arrested and brought to justice just isn’t done? Not surprising that offshore people gamble in Canada then flee when the debt becomes unpayable. Come on, when do we start truly prosecuting “white collar crime.”? As heinous as a punch in the head. This article makes it sound like it is impossible to find these people, who are clearly identified in said article. Again, come on. Cops, with handcuffs.