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'Resigned' to higher real estate prices

(China Daily)
Updated: 2007-01-23 10:34

Public desire

The skyrocketing realty prices have obviously dampened people's desire to buy a house in the near future. Nearly 40 percent respondents said they could not afford to buy one, and another 54 percent said they could only do so if they opted for those subsidized by the government or if they chose to live in the suburbs.

Nearly half said a definite "no" to buying a house this year, and only 20 percent would as much as consider buying one.

To check property prices from rising rapidly, the country implemented a series of macro-control measures in the last two years.

Last May, the central government banned the use of new land for luxury villas and reiterated that more land be made available for smaller, affordable housing.

In June, a statement issued by nine ministerial-level departments ordered that houses within 90 square meters should account for at least 70 percent of the planned real estate constructions, and raised the down payment to 30 percent.

The latest move came on January 16, when the tax authorities announced they would levy a land appreciation tax from next month on real estate companies.