In May of the current year, the average new house prices in 100 major cities in China amounted to RMB 16,006/square meter ($2,510/sq.m.), up 4.08 percent year on year, 0.03 percentage points faster than the year-on-year growth recorded in April this year, while up 0.34 percent month on month, 0.11 percentage points faster than the month-on-month growth recorded in April, as announced by CRIC, a real estate research institute of E-House, a Shanghai-based real estate transaction service provider.
In particular, in May, 71 cities recorded month-on-month price rises, 26 cities indicated month-on-month declines, while prices in the remaining three cities were stable.
The average second-hand house prices in the 100 cities in China amounted to RMB 15,810/square meter ($2,479/sq.m.), up 3.64 percent year on year, 0.06 percentage points faster than the year-on-year growth recorded in April this year, while up 0.5 percent month on month, registering the same month-on-month growth rate recorded in April.
In May, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of China (MOHURD) held meetings regarding the construction and development of affordable rental housing in Guangzhou and Shenyang, stating that 40 cities, including Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Shenzhen, will strive to develop affordable rental housing, aiming to solve the housing problem for new citizens and young people. At the same time, China has lifted the ban on the three-child policy, aiming to encourage parenthood. Moreover, property purchase restrictions in cities, including Ningbo, Huzhou and Shaoxing, have been issued, which may exert a negative impact on the real estate industry. It is thought that housing prices may stabilize in the future instead of recording rapid rises.
$1 = RMB 6.3773