Recently, at a series of themed press conferences on "Promoting High-Quality Development" held by the State Council Information Office, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development proposed that for affordable housing projects included in this year's construction plan, support policies in taxation, land, and finance should be implemented, project commencement and construction progress should be accelerated, and allocation and sale should be launched as early as possible so that people can move in sooner. At the same time, in light of local real estate market conditions, efforts should be actively made to purchase completed existing commercial housing for use as affordable housing, push projects with mature conditions to complete the purchase quickly, and carry out timely allocation and sale.

Since the beginning of this year, many places have started construction of sale-type affordable housing projects. Zhengzhou in Henan, Fuzhou in Fujian, and other places have launched the application and sale of the first batch of sale-type affordable housing. Shenzhen in Guangdong, Beihai in Guangxi, Dalian in Liaoning, and many other places have successively issued policies on "purchasing and stockpiling" existing commercial housing for use as affordable housing, stepping up the supply of affordable housing construction.

Multiple projects begin applications or registration

At present, some sale-type affordable housing projects have already begun applications or expression-of-interest registration.

Recently, Zhengzhou officially began the sale of its first batch of sale-type affordable housing. The sale-type affordable housing projects are divided into sale projects and pre-sale projects. Sale projects refer to projects that have been completed and can be sold directly to applicant families; pre-sale projects refer to projects for which applicant families register their purchase intention, and after Zhengzhou Chengfa Anju Co., Ltd. purchases according to demand, they are then sold to applicant families.

It is reported that the sale projects launched in Zhengzhou this time include three projects such as Qinheyuan, with 1,099 units, including 570 units in the Qinheyuan project, 322 units in the Huikang Jiayuan project, and 207 units in the Zhengzhu Xuesongyuan project. All projects are delivered fully furnished. The pre-registration project is located in the Zhengzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone and can provide 900 units.

The relevant person in charge stated that Zhengzhou's sale-type affordable housing mainly targets working-class groups with housing difficulties and low incomes who have household registration in the eight urban districts of the city, including Zhongyuan District, Erqi District, Jinshui District, Guancheng Hui District, Huiji District, and Zhengdong New District, as well as groups such as talent introduced by the city. It is subject to closed management, may not be mortgaged other than for housing mortgage loans, and may not be traded on the market; it may be repurchased by the operating company.

The Binhai Shuanglong Xinju project, a sale-type affordable housing project in Fuzhou, recently completed its second round of applications. The project plans to build 701 units of sale-type affordable housing. The sale price is determined on the principle of "covering costs with a modest profit," with an estimated average price of about 5,200 to 5,400 yuan per square meter. Under the principle of tiered and classified sale, priority is given to meeting the unit selection needs of groups with housing difficulties and low incomes, and the remaining units are supplied to ordinary working-class groups.

"To further advance the sale work, Fuzhou has optimized and adjusted matters related to the sale application for Shuanglong Xinju affordable housing," said the relevant person in charge. The project has added an online application function. Applicant families can scan the QR code to follow the "Fuzhou Anju" WeChat official account, view specific project information, and fill out and submit an intention form online.

Recently, the project has received multiple favorable developments. It has not only clarified the designated school district but also adjusted the original pre-purchase deposit of 20,000 yuan to 5,000 yuan, lifted restrictions on unit types, and allowed applicant families to choose their preferred unit type according to their needs. In addition, applying for this sale-type affordable housing does not affect homebuyers' subsequent purchase of commercial housing.

In addition, Xiamen in Fujian launched expression-of-interest registration for 5,500 units of affordable commercial housing. Meanwhile, Dalian in Liaoning, Qingdao in Shandong, and other places have also successively opened corresponding expression-of-interest registration or surveys for sale-type affordable housing, clarifying the housing situation, application conditions, application procedures, and so on.

Among them, Xiamen's expression-of-interest registration this time is located in Haicang District and Tong'an District respectively, covering both off-plan and completed housing. The average sales price is 45% of the market appraisal price, and the floor adjustment price difference is 50 yuan per square meter per floor.

Dalian's waiting list database for sale-type affordable housing is open for acceptance. Eligible prospective homebuyer families can submit relevant information and supporting materials to the system and apply to enter the waiting list database. Subsequently, the affordable housing operation and management unit will release project (batch) information in sequence and accept registrations. Waiting-list families intending to apply should update their waiting-list database information within the specified time and register for the project (batch). Dalian has proposed that each family may purchase only one unit of affordable housing, and the per capita floor area of self-owned housing (excluding rural housing) of families applying to purchase affordable housing should be less than 17 square meters.

Purchasing existing commercial housing for use as affordable housing

At present, many places have issued announcements soliciting housing sources for the purchase of existing commercial housing for use as affordable housing.

Regarding housing sources, the building area of a single unit is generally required to be 120 square meters or less; the property rights of the housing source must be clear and the property tradable, with convenient transportation, complete supporting facilities, and a certain parking space ratio, among other requirements. Regarding purchase prices, many places require that the replacement price of affordable housing in the same area be used as the reference upper limit, that is, the cost of allocated land plus construction and installation costs plus a profit of no more than 5%.

For example, Shenzhen's stockpiling policy clearly states that during solicitation, priority should be given to selecting whole buildings or whole units that are unsold and can be placed under closed management, and priority should be given to purchasing commercial housing of less than 65 square meters; Beihai requires mainly small units with a building area of no more than 70 square meters; Dalian also focuses its purchases on units with a building area of 70 square meters or less.

In the specific implementation process, many places follow the principle of "purchasing according to demand" and encourage state-owned enterprises to "purchase and stockpile" unsold new homes.

For example, Suzhou in Jiangsu adheres to "purchasing according to demand" and organizes local state-owned enterprises to purchase some existing commercial housing at reasonable prices for use as affordable housing. Qualified enterprises, public institutions, and social entities are encouraged and supported to purchase commercial housing for employee rental.

Kunming in Yunnan, following the principle of "purchasing according to demand and on a voluntary basis by both parties," has state-owned enterprises purchase completed but unsold existing commercial housing for use as affordable housing, to solve the housing problems of working-class groups and introduced talent.

Lanzhou in Gansu has selected Lanzhou Urban Renewal City Construction Development Group Co., Ltd. as the purchasing entity to carry out the purchase of completed existing commercial housing for use as affordable housing.

The Housing and Urban-Rural Development Department of the Xinjiang Autonomous Region requires all localities to thoroughly survey the actual housing needs of local working-class groups and introduced talent and other groups, survey local affordable housing demand and supply gaps, adhere to "purchasing according to demand," and ensure that after purchase, units are quickly sold or rented out and do not pile up.

It is reported that Xinjiang's specific purchase requirements can be summarized as "one completed, two no's, three suitable." "One completed" means the purchased housing must be completed existing housing; "two no's" means the purchase work must not increase hidden government debt and must not increase government moral hazard; "three suitable" means the unit type, price, and location of the housing source must be suitable, and luxury homes or large units must not be purchased for use as affordable housing.