China is expected to adopt new housing policies by the end of September.              China is expected to adopt new housing policies by the end of the month to favour middle- and low-income urban residents, officials and insiders said over the weekend. One important adjustment is to divide current affordable apartments into two types: those for sale and those for rent. This will create the backbone of the nation's housing guarantee system in the future, said an official with the Ministry of Construction. Different from past policies, cities will be encouraged to construct and lease out "low-cost houses" for minimum earners, officials said. Moreover, local governments will provide certain allowances for these tenants on rental fees. The remarks were the latest steps in regulating the real estate market. On May 29, nine cabinet departments jointly issued an announcement to curb the property price hikes in many cities, reports said. "Cities at all levels must work out concrete plans on housing construction before the end of September," it said. "Because China is a populous nation, it is unrealistic to help each person purchase an apartment of his/her own," said Fang Mingli, a real estate entrepreneur in Beijing. By building low-cost houses, the nation will handle the problem of the large-number of urban people who cannot afford to buy a new house, he noted. One controversial issue for real estate developers and insiders is that small apartments no bigger than 90 square metres must now account for 70 per cent of new homes being built. "Low-priced apartments are welcomed by the mass of people who participate in the distribution of social resources by purchasing new houses," said Meng Xiaosu, who is chairman of China Real Estate Development (Group). But "the small size is just the eye-catching part of the problem." Nowadays, the proportion of investment into economically affordable housing only accounts for 5 per cent of the total, which is far short of the increasing demand for new houses from middle- and low-income families, Meng said. "The ideal proportion of economically affordable apartments in China's real estate market should surpass 30 per cent," he suggested. By Jiang Zhuqing (China Daily)

据有关官员和内部人士上周末透露，我国将于本月底之前开始实行有利于中低收入者的新住房政策。 其中一项重大调整就是将现有的经济适用房细分为销售型和租赁型。建设部的一位官员称，这个划分将成为未来中国住房保障体系的主要框架。 据有关官员介绍，与以往政策不同的是，新政策将鼓励城市建造一些"廉租房"，提供给那些处于最低生活保障线下的人群租住。此外，当地政府将为这些租房者提供一定的租房补贴。 以上内容是政府调控房地产市场的最新举措。 据报道，今年5月29日，国务院九大部委联合下发了一份旨在抑制很多城市房价过快上涨的意见。 《意见》中提到："9月底前，各级城市必须制订出关于住房建设的详细规划。" 北京一位名叫方明立的房地产商说："中国人口众多，所以为每个人提供购房补贴是不现实的。" 他说，通过建造廉租房的举措，大量无力购买新房的城市居民的住房问题可得到解决。 新政策规定，建筑面积90平米以下的住房必须占到新建房数量的70％，这在房地产开发商和业内人士中引起了争议。 中国房地产开发集团董事长孟晓苏说："低价位房受到想买新房的人民大众的欢迎"，但"面积小（造成的总价低）是其中一个重要因素"。 孟晓苏说，目前，经济适用房的投资比例只占房地产总投资的5％，远远不能满足中低收入家庭不断增长的购房需要。 他说："中国房地产市场上的经济适用房比重应该超过30％。" (英语点津姗姗编辑)