With the introduction of new real estate policies in China's four major cities, industry insiders believe that the measures taken by multiple departments will help boost market confidence and contribute to the recovery of the property market, with first-tier cities leading the trend.
In late September, major Chinese cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen introduced a new wave of real estate policy adjustments aimed at revitalizing the property market.
Starting October 1, Beijing introduced new property policies focused on easing purchase restrictions and increasing credit support. The minimum down payment for first-time home buyers has dropped from 20 percent to 15 percent, and from 30 percent to 20 percent for second homes - easing financial pressure and facilitating both first-time buyers and those looking to upgrade their homes.
Beijing’s real estate market has shown promising signs under these policy incentives. In the three days following the new policy release, the number of viewings for new homes in the Chinese capital increased by 92.5 percent compared to the same period last year, with purchase agreements doubling. Viewings for resale homes also rose by 104.1 percent year on year.
"Since the new policies came out, we've seen a rise in customer inquiries, whether they're looking to buy or sell a home. The number of customer viewings has also increased. Around 90 percent of them are looking to upgrade their homes. Some clients previously lacked confidence, but the new policy has made many feel that now is a good time to make a move," said Wu Bei, regional manager of Maitian Real Estate Agency.
In addition to Beijing, other first-tier cities such as Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou have introduced similar measures, including lower down payment requirements and eased district-specific purchase restrictions.
"As the new policies take effect, we expect a rise in visits to real estate agencies and property viewings after the National Day holiday. We also anticipate that property prices will soon stabilize across the country, driven by Beijing and other top-tier cities," said Zhao Qingxiang, secretary general of the Beijing Real Estate Agency Association.
According to the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, cities conducting promotional activities reported over a 50-percent year-on-year increase in visits to real estate projects during the week-long National Day holiday. Some properties in Guangzhou saw over 150 visits per day, up 200 percent from normal levels.
Adjusted policies motivate China's home sales: experts
Benefiting from the recent real estate policy adjustments, the real estate market and related industries in many cities across China have been booming during the ongoing National Day holiday.
On Sept 30, Beijing announced to ease restrictions on home buying rules to boost its property market, including lowering the threshold on non-locals to buy a property in the downtown area.
In a real estate sales agency in Changping District, Beijing, the sales manager said that in recent days, all sales staff have become motivated due to the new policy. In the first two days of the holiday, the total sales volume of their project reached 200 million yuan (around 28.5 million U.S. dollars).
"After the policy was released at around 22:00 on Sept 30, three customers completed their payment in the early morning. Nearly 30 properties were sold in the past two days, which is close to our transaction level of the previous month," said Fei Teng, sales director of the agency.
At around 11:00, more customers came to the sales agency. Although there were more than 10 sales agents in the office, customers had to wait in line to be shown around the show houses. The time spent on talks with customers was also much longer than before.
"Because of the needs for home changes, this policy may have a certain stimulating effect on the housing market, which is also one of the reasons why I am preparing to buy a home now," said a resident in Beijing.
Throughout the day, a total of 56 groups of customers visited the sales office, and eight sales agreements were reached. It was not until after 20:00 that the last customer left the office.
According to the statistics from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, from Oct 1 to 3, the number of people being shown around new properties by real estate agents in Beijing increased by 92.5 percent compared with the same period last year, and the number of subscriptions increased by two times.
Impacted by the intensive issuance of real estate policies, real estate markets in many other places are also changing. Many cities are actively building various platforms, encouraging real estate developers to provide discounts and convenience for home buyers in selecting and purchasing homes.
Ahead of the National Day holiday, the China Real Estate Association issued an initiative to the entire industry, mobilizing thousands of real estate companies and brokerage agencies in over 100 cities to carry out various forms of commercial housing promotion activities in October in order to stimulate consumer enthusiasm and boost confidence in property purchases.
In Ganzhou, east China's Jiangxi Province, a local housing expo attracted the participation of 28 high-quality real estate projects and offered a variety of preferential benefits.
"I feel today's event is quite good and offers some real benefits," said a resident.
In Nanjing, the capital city of east China's Jiangsu Province, sales offices of 152 newly built commercial housing projects launched various festival activities and public welfare benefits during the holiday, including low- and medium-priced commercial housing for new citizens and young people, as well as properties that meet the diverse needs of people with plans to improve their living conditions.
In Huizhou, south China's Guangdong Province, many local real estate projects have launched promotional activities, meting out special offers, special discounts, complements such as furniture and home appliances among other preferential measures.
China sees boom in housing market as new policies take effect
