Property prices in many major China cities have been on a constant climb since 2011, and new home prices have once again risen last year, at its fastest rate no less.
Warning signs of a property bubble has been looming for sometime now, and as there has been no signs of relief, the fear is that the market might reach bursting point quite soon. Real estate market speculation threatens to hurt rather than help the economy even as China’s leaders fret over the country’s economic target for the year.
In over 70 cities across China, the average new home prices have risen 12.4 per cent. In top-tier cities such as Shenzhen and Shanghai, property prices have risen as much as 60 per cent in the span of a year. Some cities such as Beijing may have more leeway to cope with further market hikes, but in many cities, property markets are already languishing.
Out of 15 markets, 12 have shown signs of overheating as prices have began to fall. Growth is beginning to slow down as household loans and house sales have both been on the decline. The China government has implemented some cooling measures over the past year in attempts to slow down the growth of the bubble, the latest being limits placed on the number of new home loans banks are able to issue.
