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BIZCHINA / Construction |
More affordable housesBy ()
Updated: 2007-06-25 15:53 As double-digit growth of the Chinese economy continues, it is natural the country's real estate sector will ride the growth curve. But that does not mean the government can drag its feet on building more affordable houses for low-income groups. Thanks to the economy's reliance on investment for growth and accelerated urbanization, the country's real estate investment increased to 721.4 billion yuan ($94 billion) in the first five months this year, rising 27.5 percent over the same period last year. Meanwhile, property prices in 70 of China's large- and medium-sized cities last month was up 6.4 percent from a year earlier, faster than the 5.4 percent growth rate in April. Beijing is among a number of Chinese cities that have seen the fastest growth of property prices so far this year. Latest figures from the statistical bureau show that house prices rose 9.6 percent year-on-year last month. However, what is particularly noteworthy of these new numbers is the slowed growth of real estate investment in Beijing. While the whole country's property investment is picking up considerably, Beijing registered only a 10.8 percent growth in the first five months, 7.3 percentage points lower than for the same period last year. This should be a cause for concern. While rising house prices indicate that the demand in the market remains strong, slowed real estate investment will, more than likely, point to inadequate supply in future that can further fuel price hikes and shatter many people's housing dreams. Moreover, what calls for immediate attention and response from policymakers is the sharp drop in investment in affordable housing projects. Latest statistics shows that Beijing's investment in such property projects unexpectedly plunged by 56.3 percent between January and last month. One of the key measures the central government adopted to rein in runaway house price hikes was to expand the supply of affordable housing for low- and middle-income families. Local governments that have financially benefited from the boom in the property markets were ordered last year to come up with a detailed plan for development of affordable houses. The small sum in such investments reveal a general lack of enthusiasm from local governments. There may be some seasonable reasons that can explain the slowed investment growth. But the sharp drop in investment for affordable houses clearly shows local governments have made little progress in their role of meeting the basic housing demand of the low-income group. (For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates)
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