2011-02-22 17:22

The Beijing municipal government released stricter policies to regulate the purchase of homes last week. But Chen Zhi, the deputy secretary-general of Beijing Real Estate Association, said those policies may be adjusted if the housing price drops to a reasonable level, The Beijing News reported Tuesday.

The municipal government's new regulations require non-Beijing residents to pay their monthly income taxes or social security fees for five consecutive years before buying an apartment.

Chen said that period may shorten to three years if the housing price in the capital drops to a reasonable level. He said such regulation was initially made to curb the flipping of real estate, according to the newspaper.

The regulation also stipulates that people with Beijing hukou (permanent residence permits) will be allowed to have two properties, while non-locals who meet other qualifications will be limited to one apartment.

The new policies were implemented immediately upon their release. Statistics from bjfdc.gov.cn and 5i5j Real Estate Service show that the volume of properties transactions, including second-hand housing in Beijing, totaled only 435 units between Feb 17 to 20.

Those 435 transactions amounted to just 15 percent of the transactions which occurred on Feb 16. There were no transactions made on Feb 19 and 20, according to the newspaper.

The number of transactions between Feb 13 and 16 dropped more than 92 percent compared to the same period last year, the newspaper said.

Liu Jun, general manager of Geland Real Estate Company, said the company shut down 50 chain stores, 20 percent of its total, in five days in order to avoid severe losses from the strict housing policies.