China to buy second-hand flats
13/10/2003 14:37
According to a senior official with the country's housing authority,
the Chinese government is considering purchasing small used apartments to
provide low-rent homes for people of low income,
Cited by yesterday's
Beijing Evening News, Xie Jiajin, director of the housing and real estate
division of the Construction Ministry, said some government departments are
drafting a joint regulation governing low-rent housing as a part of the
country's housing reform.
Under the reform program, people of middle-to-high
income will buy the homes they live in, while those of lower income will get
rent subsidies or government-sponsored low-rent apartments to live in.
"Since
it's unlikely for the country to build blocks of low-rent housing projects, it's
a good idea to buy used apartments for renting," Xie said.
She expected the
regulation to come out by the year's end.
Market analysts predicted the rule
would further heat up the country's second-hand housing market, which has
already experienced sharp growth in the previous two years.
In Beijing for
example, 210,000 square meters of old homes were sold last year, 260 percent
above the volume of the previous year.
Jane Chen / Shanghai Daily news
|
