(Yicai Global) April 28 -- With more emphasis on education and lower barriers for household registration in big cities, more young Chinese are choosing to buy homes where they work.

A survey of 18- to 44-year-olds living in China’s first-tier cities and new first-tier cities found that 57 percent of respondents already own homes near their places of work.

About 12.9 percent of those surveyed plan to buy a property this year, according to a report released by housing intermediary platforms 58.com and Anjuke yesterday.

While 44.3 percent of respondents accepted a purchase price of CNY1 million to CNY2 million (USD154,000 to USD308,000), 60.6 percent could afford a monthly mortgage of CNY2,000 to CNY5,000 (USD308 to USD771). Some 56.9 percent want a 90- to 120-square-meters home with three bedrooms, the survey found.

People aged 25-29 buy homes mainly when getting married or for stability.

Meanwhile, there has been a marked increase in the consideration of children’s education among people aged 30-34, with 40.7 percent buying a home in the catchment area of good schools.

Convenient lifestyle, kids education, career development, medical conditions and investment are the reasons why young people buy in big cities, according to the survey. Prices are the main concern of those buying in their hometowns.

The proportion of people buying homes near their work place has risen significantly, compared with the previous year, while the share of those buying houses in their hometowns has slumped, according to an earlier report by Anjuke.

Many cities have opened up to outsiders, introducing preferential policies to attract talent. This has also eased the challenge of buying where people work.

Improvements in transport, especially of rail links, will boost land development and industries in the suburbs, Hu Gang, president of the South China Urban Research Association and professor at Jinan University in Guangzhou, told Yicai Global. Lower housing prices are also conducive to attracting people to buy homes in suburban areas.

Editor: Peter Thomas