Sales of residential property in China's major cities dwindled
drastically during the first weeks of 2008, the China Securities
Journal has reported.
Cities such as Beijing, Wuhan and Chongqing saw their housing
transactions in the first week of the year decrease by more than 20
percent than the previous week, the report said.
Housing transactions in the booming southern city of Shenzhen
fell by about 38 percent and sales in Nanjing, capital of the
coastal Jiangsu Province, plummeted by more than 52 percent, it
said.
In witnessing continuous shrinking housing transactions in most
cities, Wang Shi, chairman of the Shenzhen-based Vanke, China's
largest real estate developer, recently admitted the "turning
point" of China's property market had come.
His remarks sparked furious debate, and some developers blamed
him of fanning the wait-and-see attitude among consumers.
Housing prices also fluctuated in various cities with dwindling
trading volume. Beijing saw its average housing sales price rise
slightly by 1.33 percent in the first week of January, but Shenzhen
reported a 3.96 percent slump.
Real estate developers in Beijing were trying to attract more
buyers by offering discounts or special "gifts", such as a free
parking space or home decorations.
A salesman of Webok International, a new residential development
in the bustling Chaoyang District of eastern Beijing, said his
company recently cut the sale price from 24,500 yuan (3,297 U.S.
dollars) to 22,000 yuan a square meter.
Other developers also joined in on the price-cutting to promote
sales in the city. Common residents, however, still couldn't afford
a commercial apartment in the capital's downtown areas.
"People who have bought our apartments are usually from the top
ranks of the social pyramid, such as company bosses and university
professors," said the Webok salesman.
Pan Shiyi, head of SOHO China, another major real estate
development company, pointed out housing prices would be further
restrained in 2008 and 2009 as the government is to offer more
economic flats and low-rent housing to middle- and low-income
residents.
China's housing prices have soared over the past few years. The
government has taken a series of measures, including more stringent
land control and housing mortgage policies, to curb speculation in
the property sector.
(Xinhua News Agency January 17, 2008)
