China's home prices continue to stabilize

Potential homebuyers examine a property project model in Nanjing, East China's?Jiangsu province, Feb 28, 2016.[Photo/VCG]

Of 70 large and medium-sized cities surveyed, 35 cities witnessed a month-on-month price decline or a slower price uptick in May, up from 31 in April, said the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

A total of 29 cities witnessed a slower price rise year on year in May,said the NBS.

A total of 15 first-tier and second-tier cities saw slower year-on-year price rises in May, and nine of them also saw month-on-month price declines or flat prices.

New residential house prices in Shenzhen, a southern metropolis neighboring Hong Kong, fell 0.6 percent month on month in May, while house prices in Beijing and Shanghai stayed flat in May from April.

"Prices of newly built homes in 15 major cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen continued to stabilize in May on the back of targeted local government policies," said NBS statistician Liu Jianwei.

Since October of last year, local governments have implemented a slew of measures, including higher down payments, increased mortgage rates and tougher purchase restrictions, to rein in rising home prices and quash potential asset bubbles.

The market boom was also cooled by relatively tightened liquidity conditions as China moved to deleverage the financial sector.

The latest round of strict regulative measures came after more than two years of policy easing, starting with relaxation of purchase restrictions in 2014 and fueled by pro-growth policies, including interest rate cuts. Many third-tier and fourth-tier cities have excess supply in their real estate markets.