"Half day tour"! Nanjing's "Cancellation of Second-hand House Purchase Restriction" was urgently stopped. What is the signal?
Zhang Da, author of Securities Times
On the afternoon of May 20, there were rumors that the purchase restriction on second-hand housing in Nanjing was lifted.
In this regard, a reporter from Securities Times called the real estate trading centers in Liuhe District, Gaochun District and other districts of Nanjing City as soon as possible, and the staff confirmed to the reporter: "I just received a notice this afternoon that the whole city of Nanjing has cancelled the purchase restriction on second-hand houses, whether it is Locals or foreigners, there is no limit to the number of houses to buy, and no proof of purchase is required.”
At 3:49 pm on the same day, the "Nanjing Housing Association" official account issued a document to sort out the three policy measures recently introduced in Nanjing, including the content that "second-hand housing transactions do not need to provide proof of purchase since May 20."
This is equivalent to an "official announcement" of the policy.
However, it is worth noting that at around 6 p.m., there were rumors that the policy of loosening purchase restrictions in Nanjing was suspended.
A Securities Times reporter immediately confirmed the news from a real estate agency in Nanjing.
The intermediary said: "The purchase restriction is continued now. Outsiders can only buy with social security for 6 months. Buying a house still requires a purchase certificate."
Subsequently, a reporter from the Securities Times found that the article on the public account of the "Nanjing Housing Association" was also deleted.
So far, Nanjing has cancelled the "half-day tour" policy of restricting the purchase of second-hand houses.
In this regard, industry insiders who were interviewed by the Securities Times reporter believed that the cancellation of the second-hand housing purchase restriction in Nanjing and the possibility of purchasing houses without restrictions on foreigners may lead to a round of investment speculation. It is necessary to pay close attention to the market's feedback on the policy, and prevent the sudden increase in the demand for various speculative types, which may interfere with the stable and healthy development of the real estate market.
"Half-day tour" in Nanjing loosens the purchase restriction policy
On the afternoon of May 20, a real estate agency announced on the Internet that Nanjing had lifted the purchase restriction on second-hand houses.
In this regard, the reporter of Securities Times immediately called the real estate transaction centers in Liuhe District, Gaochun District, Lishui District and other districts of Nanjing City for verification. There is no limit to purchase, whether it is a local or a foreigner, there is no limit to the number of houses purchased, and no proof of purchase is required.”
In addition, the above-mentioned staff also told the Securities Times reporter that the purchase restriction policy for new houses in Nanjing remains unchanged.
Subsequently, the official WeChat account of the Nanjing Real Estate Association "Nanjing Housing Association" published an article "Our city further strengthens support for reasonable housing consumption", and sorted out the three policies and measures recently introduced. There is no need to provide proof of purchase for real estate transactions”.
This is equivalent to an "official announcement" of the policy of loosening purchase restrictions in Nanjing.
The article said that in terms of optimizing the supporting policies for talents to purchase houses, on the basis of the existing housing purchase restriction policy, A, B, C, D and doctoral talents can purchase an additional house.
At the same time, the scope of the original housing services for talents to enjoy will be expanded.
In terms of promoting the rational purchase of houses by groups with rigid needs, starting from May 20, 2022, residents with household registration and non-resident registration in this city do not need to provide proof of purchase when purchasing second-hand houses, so as to meet the reasonable purchase needs of groups with rigid needs such as new citizens.
In terms of increasing the loan amount of the provident fund, starting from May 20, 2022, the maximum loanable amount of the housing provident fund will be adjusted from the current 300,000 yuan per person and 600,000 yuan per household for both husband and wife to the first use of the housing provident fund loan to purchase a second set of housing provident funds. To 500,000 yuan/person and 1 million yuan/household for husband and wife, effectively reducing the burden of rigid improvement groups in purchasing houses.
The Securities Times reporter learned that previously, Nanjing's overall housing policy stipulates that foreigners who buy their first home must provide a certificate of social security for a total of 24 months within 3 years.
On April 12, Nanjing’s Liuhe and Lishui districts took the lead in relaxing the purchase restrictions. Outsiders in Liuhe and Lishui districts only need to provide information such as ID card and household registration, and no social security certificate is required.
At that time, the purchase restriction policy in the main urban area of Nanjing did not change, and foreigners still needed a 24-month social security certificate within three years to purchase their first home.
On April 27, Nanjing once again relaxed the restrictions on home purchases by non-locals. Within one year, they can buy a house by paying 6 months of personal tax or social security in Nanjing.
The new policy on May 20 means that no matter in the main urban area or the suburbs, whether locals or foreigners, as long as they buy second-hand houses, they no longer need proof of purchase, nor do they limit the number of houses purchased, and the purchase of second-hand houses in Nanjing is restricted. Let go completely.
However, it is worth noting that at around 18:00 on the same day, there were rumors that the policy of relaxing the purchase restriction in Nanjing was suspended.
A Securities Times reporter immediately confirmed the news from a real estate agency in Nanjing.
The intermediary said: "The purchase restriction is continued now. Outsiders can only buy with social security for 6 months. Buying a house still requires a purchase certificate."
Subsequently, a reporter from the Securities Times found that the article on the "Nanjing Housing Association" public account had been deleted, and this policy may no longer be implemented.
So far, Nanjing has cancelled the "half-day tour" policy of restricting the purchase of second-hand houses.
Policy relaxation must adhere to the red line of "housing, not speculating"
Regarding the "half-day tour" of Nanjing's loosening policy, Yan Yuejin, research director of the Think Tank Center of E-House Research Institute, said that the cancellation of the second-hand housing purchase restriction in Nanjing was suspended, indicating that there may be some new situations and new problems in the current policy relaxation.
From the perspective of second-hand housing, it is similar to the fact that foreigners can buy houses without restrictions, which may lead to a new round of speculation and even increase the demand for real estate speculation.
Therefore, when the policies of various regions are relaxed, they also need to adhere to a basic red line, that is, "housing and not speculating."
It is necessary to pay close attention to the market's absorption and feedback of policies, and prevent the sudden increase in the demand for various speculative types, which interferes with the stable and healthy development of the real estate market.
Li Yujia, a senior researcher at the Guangdong Housing Policy Research Center, also believed in an interview with a Securities Times reporter that the cancellation of second-hand housing purchase restrictions in Nanjing is intended to drive the recovery of the new housing market through active second-hand housing transactions, but it may trigger the phenomenon of investment speculation. It is contrary to the "housing, not speculation" required by the state.
At the same time, hotspot cities have already entered the era of stock houses, and there is no need to build so many new houses. The local government's approach is also contrary to the state's requirement of "not using real estate as a short-term means of stimulating the economy".
Statistics from the Central Plains Real Estate Research Institute show that as of May 20, more than 56 cities have issued nearly 60 policies to stabilize the property market.
From the perspective of policy content, provident fund is the main one. Nearly 20 cities have increased the loan amount of provident fund and reduced the amount of down payment, but more and more down payment reduction policies have begun to appear.
"In addition to local governments, the central bank has also begun to comprehensively stabilize the property market, and policies such as interest rate cuts have been released frequently. Overall, the policies to stabilize the property market are getting stronger and stronger!" said Zhang Dawei, chief analyst of Centaline Real Estate.
However, Zhang Dawei pointed out that although the credit policy has continued to loosen and the difficulty of lending has been fully alleviated, due to the epidemic and the improvement of demand in hot cities, the credit policy is still strict, and the overall heat of the property market has risen very slowly. The market is still looking forward to more stable policies. More cities will speed up the pace of policy adjustment.