Hi Just_A_Gal, i don't know much about other places, but Beijing Shanghai and other big cities are very very safe. i have been living here for more than 7 yrs and i haven't heard any of my fren being robed, bothered , harassed .. i once heard an incident where nepalese student got beaten up by chinese gang in a bar in small city, heard all of them were drunk.. don't know the real cause of it... but its very very rare. wow... buying a real state in china might be pretty expensive. a 300 sq m, house( not furnished) 60mins drive from centre of beijing, shanghai will cost more than 300,000US$. thats very very expensive (atleast for me) and moving with family ,.. Language will be one big problem and schools for childs will be another. one must know chinese language to get enrolled into government schools. international school .. too expensive. 1500US $/month. until an unless your cousin works for multinational company. these companies normally provide housing, education for 2 child, insurance and other allowances. I am talking mainly Beijing and shanghai. Things should be lot cheaper in smaller cities. please feel free to write if you need any further information