Weekly sales of new homes rose to the highest in three months in Shanghai while the average price stayed below the 20,000 yuan (US$2,950) per square meter barrier for the seventh consecutive week.

Sales of new homes, excluding those designated for relocated residents under urban redevelopment plans, jumped 44 percent to 115,000 square meters last week, the highest weekly volume since April 26, Shanghai Uwin Real Estate Information Services Co said yesterday.

New homes sold at an average 17,678 yuan per square meter during the seven-day period, a 4 percent drop from a week earlier. That's also the lowest average weekly price registered this year, according to Uwin.

"Compared with the average 225,000-square-meter weekly volume of new home sales recorded over the past 12 months, current home buying momentum in Shanghai is still very sluggish as a result of the country's latest rein-in policies," said Lu Qilin, a researcher with Uwin. "Therefore, some real estate developers have worked out independent strategies to trigger sales."

A new residential development in suburban Jiading District, the city's best-selling project by area for two straight weeks, sold 81 units from July 12-19, its launch week, at an average price of 11,883 yuan per square meter. This compared with prices of 13,000 yuan to 15,000 yuan per square meter in a neighboring area. The project's sales soared to 171 apartments from July 19-25 with the average price climbing 5 percent to 12,502 yuan per square meter, Uwin statistics showed.

"The first apartments were likely offered at low prices to designated buyers such as employees or those with a close relationship with the developer," said Sky Xue, an analyst at China Real Estate Information Corp. "Robust sales usually trigger buying sentiment among more people, making it possible for the developer to raise the price."