Wendy Zhang/ Shanghai Daily news

With  business sluggish at the Real Estate Fair, property developers are having to offer discounts to woo prospective buyers, eastday.com reported today.
A total of 80,000 people have visited the fair since it opened on June 24, and the number is expected to hit 100,000 by today, according to the fair sponsor. Although the numbers are a big improvement on those in May, there is still a large shortfall compared with the 180,000 visitors recorded in the same period last year, the sponsor indicated, adding that it is no longer necessary for people to wait in queues to purchase properties. Furthermore, it is easy to find a parking space at the Shanghai Exhibition Center, where the fair is held, said a visitor. Most visitors are holding a wait-and-see attitude, and it's a buyers-market now, he pointed out.
To woo more buyers, property developers are having to provide incentives. One real estate developer is committing to pay the contract tax of 1.5 percent of the selling price on behalf of the buyers. Another is offering one percent off if buyers pay the purchase price in one lump sum.
"Government policies have affected our sales," rued a developer.