Beijing bans low-income families from reselling subsidised apartments

BEIJING (Feb 3): Beijing has banned low-income families who have purchased government-subsidised apartments from reselling them on the market, a practice that has long been criticised since the country's property boom began several years ago, officials said on Thursday.

The subsidised apartments, usually smaller than 60 square metres per unit, should only be sold to the government if families want to sell them, Xinhua news agency quoted officials with the Beijing Municipal Commission of Housing and Urban-rural Development.

Only families with low incomes and limited financial assets are eligible to buy subsidised apartments at prices far below the market average.

Despite heavy taxes levied on resales, many families have still profited significantly from the practice, as housing prices have continued to rise over the years.

Authorities will prioritise families with more than two members for subsidised housing allocation while encouraging younger couples to apply for public rental houses, the officials said.

The ban on the resale of subsidised housing comes as the Chinese capital, along with other cities, is in the midst of the construction of large quantities of affordable housing in a bid to cool down the property market.

The commission announced that half of the land set aside for residential housing during the 2011-2015 period will be used for the construction of subsidised apartments and public rental houses.

China's property market has been showing signs of cooling recently following a raft of tightening policies, including tighter credit supplies, higher down payments and purchase limits.

Several cities reported drops in prices of residential apartments by the end of last year.

In December, 52 out of a statistical pool of 70 major cities saw drops in new home prices from November, compared with 49 cities during the previous month, the National Bureau of Statistics said.

On a year-on-year basis, nine cities out of the 70 saw new home price declines in December, up from four in November. Growth of new home prices eased in 55 cities, the bureau said.

The government aims to build 36 million low-income housing units by 2015 as part of continued efforts to reform the country's property market. — Bernama