Soaring Property Prices Dash Chinese Home Ownership Dreams
- 14 years ago
Soaring property prices in Chinese cities are a grim reality facing those dreaming of home ownership.
Now living in Shanghai, 24-year-old Chen Jian and his girlfriend Zhu Qiong are getting married at the end of the year. Like many Chinese, they were hoping to get a place of their own.
[Chen Jian, Shanghai Resident]
"I’ve started looking for a home because I’m about to get married to my girlfriend. I had been looking at properties for a while and all I can say is that the price of properties is difficult to accept. I feel they’re relatively expensive. The ratio of my personal income to that of the price you have to pay for the property is not very balanced."
Together, Chen and Zhu make the equivalent of 1,000 US dollars per month. The mortgage payment on the apartment they want would take up nearly 70% of that.
Property prices around China’s economic hubs have shot up over the last few years, as rural workers and foreign investors head there in search of opportunity.
The Wall Street Journal reports that property prices across 70 Chinese cities increased by nine-and-a-half percent year-to-year in January, the fastest pace in nearly two years.
Fearing a property bubble, the Chinese regime has already tightened monetary policy to help cap the rise of land prices and residential markets. But many local communist officials and public projects rely heavily on property-related income—so they have an incentive to keep prices rising. And with the property sector being the main pillar of China’s economy—holding up 10% of its GDP—Beijing is avoiding taking aggressive measures.
For now, with property prices out of reach for millions of middle-class Chinese, they will have to swallow the fact that their dreams of owning a home may just have to wait.
Now living in Shanghai, 24-year-old Chen Jian and his girlfriend Zhu Qiong are getting married at the end of the year. Like many Chinese, they were hoping to get a place of their own.
[Chen Jian, Shanghai Resident]
"I’ve started looking for a home because I’m about to get married to my girlfriend. I had been looking at properties for a while and all I can say is that the price of properties is difficult to accept. I feel they’re relatively expensive. The ratio of my personal income to that of the price you have to pay for the property is not very balanced."
Together, Chen and Zhu make the equivalent of 1,000 US dollars per month. The mortgage payment on the apartment they want would take up nearly 70% of that.
Property prices around China’s economic hubs have shot up over the last few years, as rural workers and foreign investors head there in search of opportunity.
The Wall Street Journal reports that property prices across 70 Chinese cities increased by nine-and-a-half percent year-to-year in January, the fastest pace in nearly two years.
Fearing a property bubble, the Chinese regime has already tightened monetary policy to help cap the rise of land prices and residential markets. But many local communist officials and public projects rely heavily on property-related income—so they have an incentive to keep prices rising. And with the property sector being the main pillar of China’s economy—holding up 10% of its GDP—Beijing is avoiding taking aggressive measures.
For now, with property prices out of reach for millions of middle-class Chinese, they will have to swallow the fact that their dreams of owning a home may just have to wait.