property

Home Comfort: China’s New Building Code Puts Livability First

Timely reports on issues and events from across China. Drawing on a vast range of sources, these succinct articles provide insights into the significance of each issue in a wider context.

NEWS

The revised national standard for residential projects aims to boost quality and market growth, but could pile more pressure on developers.

Li Xin

The Woman Who Found ‘Home’ in an Unfinished Building

Translations, cross-publications, and collaborative projects from Sixth Tone’s external partners. 

SIXTH TONE ×

Without power or running water, her newly built apartment was virtually uninhabitable. She moved in anyway.

White Night Workshop

China Introduces Yet More Tax Cuts to Spur Real Estate Market

The move comes amid a broader government effort to revive China’s economy.

After Mortgage Rate Cut, China’s Biggest Cities Ease Property Rules

Guangzhou fully lifts home purchase limits, while Shanghai and Shenzhen introduce partial relaxations ahead of the National Day holiday, aiming to boost the property market.

He Qitong

China Rolls Out Major Stimulus, Cuts Mortgage Rates to Spur Growth

The plan reduces mortgage rates by 0.5 percentage points, lowers down payments for second homes, and injects 1 trillion yuan in liquidity.

Jiang Xinyi

China Seeks to Allay Public Concerns Over ‘Housing Pension’ Plans

The government says the policy is vital for funding the maintenance of the country’s aging housing stock. But it is facing pushback from homeowners.

Guangzhou District Offers Homebuyers Free ‘Hukou’ Benefits

The policy is the latest sign that even China’s largest cities are struggling to revive the housing market.

Ye Zhanhang

China Signals More Flexible Real Estate Policies

At the crucial third plenum this past week, China’s leaders vowed to give local governments greater freedom to set real estate policy.

Ding Rui

Shanghai Takes Yet More Steps to Revive Housing Market

To jumpstart recovery, China’s largest city is moving to slash mortgage rates and housing purchase restrictions.

In China’s Most Expensive Cities, a Push to Build — and Sell — Cheap Homes 

Price and location will be key in determining the attractiveness of the new homes for prospective buyers.

Zhu Junxi

Room to Maneuver as Shanghai’s Rental Market Steadies

Lower income expectations and the growing supply of subsidized housing are affecting prices, but fluctuations mostly reflect traditional seasonal trends.

Shanghai Observer

Beijing, Shanghai Introduce New Housing Policies to Spur Demand

The measures include lowering both down payment requirements and mortgage interest rates to support first-time buyers and improve housing affordability.

Yang Caini

Homebuyers Biding Their Time as Second-Hand Prices Continue to Fall 

The second-hand housing market is crucial for overall market confidence and liquidity, especially in major Chinese cities.

The Creative Ways China’s Homes Are Being Sold 

With China looking to kickstart its real estate industry once again, here are some of the creative ways that properties are being sold across the country.

Jiang Zuer

Homebuying Yet to Heat Up in China’s Smaller Major Cities 

In two Chinese cities desperate for real estate to pick up again after a difficult few years, real estate agents say the latest loosening of homebuying restrictions has yet to make a substantial impact.

China Loosens Homebuying Policies — Will Buyers Bite?

The policies arrive just in time for “golden September and silver October,” the traditional peak season for property sales.

China Used to Be an Architect’s Dream. Now, It’s Becoming a Nightmare.

Articles that cut to the core of contemporary China. In-depth, informed, and carefully crafted, every piece is carried by the voices of the story’s participants.

FEATURES

A few years ago, architecture was among China’s most popular and glamorous careers. But as a decadeslong construction boom fizzles, the profession has been plunged into crisis.

Wang Lianzhang

Xu Cen

Looking to Buy a Home in China? It Might Come With a Gold Ingot.

In China, real estate companies are often banned from lowering prices too sharply. So many are using creative means to entice reluctant buyers, offering free cars, phones, parking spaces — and even 1 kilogram of solid gold.

Ni Dandan

Homebuyers Beware: Scalpers Cash In on Shanghai Real Estate Craze

Shanghai uses a scoring system to determine eligible buyers, but scalpers are manipulating the numbers for buyers who fall short of the requirements.

Jiangsu City Punishes Property Developers — For Selling Too Cheaply

Favorable discounts have been offered by developers in smaller Chinese cities where there is relatively more pressure to sell new apartments.