(Yicai Global) Feb. 4 -- The international spread of a novel coronavirus originating in Wuhan, China, is harming property sales nationwide as local governments shut down sales offices of real estate firms.

China's top 100 real estate firms posted CNY510 billion (USD73 billion) in sales in January, a 12 percent decline in a month only partially affected by the outbreak of the deadly disease, according to figures from the property-focused CRIC Research Center.

China Evergrande Group, one of the country's big three property builders, made around CNY40.6 billion in sales, a 6 percent decline, according to a statement the Shenzhen-based developer published yesterday. It has put 1,246 developments on hold and closed 1,040 sales offices until at least Feb. 20.

February is typically a peak season for property sales but this will not be the case this year as the value of sales plummets, said market analysis firm Zhuge Zhaofang. Many firms are looking to sell online but it is yet to be seen how effective this is, it added, saying the future could be bleak for highly leveraged developers.

Midea Real Estate Group saw an 11.7 percent decline in sales to CNY5.2 billion last month, with ground floor area sold shrinking 16.7 percent to 495,000 square meters. Ronshine China Holdings and its joint ventures racked up CNY7.4 billion in sales, an annual decline of 2.1 percent.

Editor: James Boynton