Beijing's State Land and Resources authority has, for the first time, presented the city's first three patches of land designated for a scheme to facilitate the construction of cheaper apartment buildings for Beijing's middle and lower income families.

The Beijing News reports that the city's Municipal Bureau of State Land and Resources Administration posted the locations of these three patches of land on its official website on Monday. Together, they share a total area of over 1 million square meters and will be designated for cheaper-housing-project-oriented auctions between April and May. Strict restrictions on the use of this land were also announced. Each apartment must be built to below 90 square meters in area, and will only be available to Beijing's local middle and lower income residents.

The three pieces of land are located in Xisanqi, Beijing's northern Haidian District, Huaxiang in the southwestern Fengtai District and Jinding Street in the western Shijingshan District. Estimates show that the houses of such projects, upon completion, will be sold at an average price of 6,350 yuan, or about US$820 per square meter, about one third cheaper than other houses sold in their vicinities.

This move arrives against the backdrop of Beijing's skyrocketing house prices. Reports say that with the housing price hikes occurring these days in Beijing, many people have assumed it to be nothing more than a daydream to buy a house with a price below 6,350 yuan per square meter within the fifth ring road of Beijing, or even beyond that.

The new cheaper housing projects are just an example of Beijing's massive package to develop middle and lower price ranged housing projects in the long term. According to the details of the program, Beijing will continue its annual supplies of such cheaper housing project oriented land, which will not be less than 70 percent of its total yearly land supply. All of such land sales will be conducted through open and fair auctions.

The Beijing News quoted a local housing project developer as saying that those eligible for the new, cheaper houses will largely be limited to three groups:

One will be those who are Beijing Hukou holders, or permanent local residents qualified to purchase budget houses in Beijing.

Another group is middle and low-income local families.

The third group are those families who have suffered from land acquisitions or been moved for the purpose of construction.
 
(CRIEnglish.com April 4, 2007)