Nine government departments jointly released announcements requiring medium and large cities to step up efforts to improve rules guiding the housing rental market, according to a statement on the website of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development on Thursday.
According to the statement, 12 cities have been chosen to carry out pilot rental market reforms. The statement also encourages local authorities to create transaction platforms that offer rental information and protect the legal rights of home owners and especially tenants.
Local governments need to unleash land and housing resources with regulations that will benefit people over the long run, Chen Zhi, secretary-general of the Beijing Real Estate Association, told the Global Times on Thursday.
"Take Guangzhou, capital of South China's Guangdong Province, for example. The city has taken the initiative to offer rental tenants the same rights as housing owners to educational access, tax rebates and monetary support. This can help guide the market for healthy growth," he said.
The move is expected to provide more rental options, which will be helpful for migrant workers flowing into major cities to settle down, Xue Jianxiong, president of asset management firm UTC, told the Global Times on Thursday.
In addition, developing rental markets will also improve capital stability for developers and curb systemic financial risks, according to Xue. "When the domestic rental market becomes sustainable, developers will generate stable revenue, which will stabilize the domestic banking system as well," he said.
