PROPERTY REVIEW: Beijing loosens buying restrictions

Beijing has further loosened home-buying restrictions, offering one of the clearest signs this week that Chinese authorities are still struggling to turn policy support into a lasting recovery in housing demand. From August 8, non-Beijing residents have been allowed to buy homes anywhere in the capital after paying local tax or social insurance for just one year, down from two years previously. The change is particularly significant because it includes homes within the Fifth Ring Road, where restrictions had remained tighter than in the suburbs.

The city has also increased the amount buyers can borrow through the state-backed housing provident fund. A couple who both contribute to the fund can now borrow up to RMB 2.4 million for a first home, with additional increases available for some families and properties. Beijing’s municipal government says the measures are intended to meet reasonable housing demand and stabilize the market.

Early signs suggest the changes have encouraged more people to look at Beijing property, although it is far too soon to know whether that will translate into a sustained rise in sales. Beijing government reporting from the first weekend after the announcement showed increased viewings at both new and second-hand homes. One brokerage branch reported 20 viewings over the weekend, compared with 12–15 on a typical weekend in July, while another agent said the number of buyer-seller negotiations in his area had more than doubled from the previous weekend. Asking prices, however, had not noticeably risen.

That distinction matters, as Beijing is one of China’s wealthiest cities, and the fact that authorities are still lowering barriers to buying homes there shows how cautious demand remains even in stronger markets. Nationally, the latest official figures have offered some signs of stabilization: unsold housing inventory had declined for four consecutive months by the end of June, while second-hand housing transactions in the first half increased 10.2% from a year earlier. But property development investment remained deeply weak, falling 18% year-on-year in June.

The next major test will come from July housing data. China’s National Bureau of Statistics is due to release its monthly home-price report on August 17. If easier buying rules lift transactions without stabilizing prices, Beijing’s latest move will have supported activity but not yet restored confidence—a problem that continues to weigh on household wealth, consumption and China’s broader economic recovery.