(Yicai) July 8 -- Sales of residential properties in Wuhan surged 14.8 percent in the first six months from a year earlier despite an overall slowdown in the country’s real estate market as the major city in central China rolls out a series of targeted support measures such as buying up more housing inventory and boosting the supply of prime plots in downtown districts.

The total area of newly built homes sold in Wuhan in the first half soared 30.6 percent from the same period last year to 5.07 million square meters, according to data released yesterday by the Wuhan Municipal Bureau of Housing and Urban Renewal. Sales of pre-owned homes jumped 10.8 percent to 5.33 million sqm. 

The average time it takes to sell a new home has shortened to 12 months from 17.6 months at the end of last year. Several premium housing projects in the city’s core districts are even selling out on the launch day. 

In June alone, new home sales surged 48.2 percent year on year to 1.42 million square meters, while the number of new properties sold per month exceeded 10,000 units in June for the first time this year.

"A series of new local property market policies clearly boosted Wuhan’s real estate market in the first half. New home sales are up and showrooms are seeing much more foot traffic," an official from the Wuhan Bureau of Housing and Urban Renewal told Yicai.

Tailored home purchase support for skilled workers, families with multiple children and people seeking to improve their living conditions have all helped unlock local demand, said Li Guozheng, head of market research at the China Index Academy’s Central China branch.

The increase in the supply of prime plots in central districts is encouraging developers to build low-density, premium projects, Li said. These become hot properties attracting a large number of buyers and lifting market sentiment.

The jump in sales also has to do with the government buying more new properties to reduce inventory on the market which it then offers as affordable housing for low-income families. This helps stabilize the local property market.

The uptick in housing sales has also reignited Wuhan’s residential land auction market. In the first six months, 28 residential plots were sold, 19 more than in the same period last year, according to local government data.

The total transaction value hit CNY11.4 billion (USD1.6 billion), nearly double from the year before. And the average premium on land sales reached 7.03 percent, over seven times higher than a year ago.

For example, a plot in downtown Jiang’an district sold at a 54.36 percent premium last month. Its floor price reached CNY27,920 (USD3,891) per square meter, the second-highest ever for residential land in the city.

Editor: Kim Taylor