China SCE Property sees continuing opportunity in first-tier cities
Fujian-based developer believes prices in leading mainland cities will continue to narrow the gap with global centres such as Hong Kong and New York
China SCE Property is shifting its investment focus to first-tier cities such as Beijing in the expectation that prices will continue to rise in the capital city owing to a shortage of supply.
In March, the Fujian-based developer won a land parcel in suburban Beijing Mengtougou District at public auction for nearly 4 billion yuan (HK$4.73 billion), a record 41,000 yuan per square metre. The deal followed an acquisition in December where it spent 500 million yuan for land in the city’s Changping Distirct.
“China’s domestic resources are concentrated in Beijing and Shanghai. The home prices there should be comparable with world top cities like New York or Hong Kong,” said Huang Youquan, executive director and vice president of China SCE.
With a target to launch sales next March or April, Huang said he expects the Mengtougou project’s selling price to exceed 60,000 yuan per square metre, compared to current transaction prices of 50,000 yuan on average in the region.
New home prices in Beijing rose 14 per cent on year in May, slower than Shanghai and Shenzhen, where prices surged 21 per cent and 59 per cent respectively, according to data provider China Real Estate Information Corp.
