State Council proposes more affordable housing

The State Council, China's cabinet, proposed providing more low-rent housing for urban poor, Economic Observer reported (in Chinese). The proposal covers four aspects: expanding the category of those covered to include "lower-income" families, increasing the base area of apartments from 50 to 60 square meters, urging county- level governments to be responsible for implementing the policy and ensuring that at least 10% of the revenue from land auctions be used to fund the housing system. The proposal is the third document directly released by the council on housing reform since 1994.