Home prices in Hebei are put on the fast track

By Zhao Yanrong (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-03-09 09:19

Home prices in Hebei are put on the fast track

COURTESY OF MIRROR EVENING NEWS

Hundreds of people stand at the Shangshangcheng community to buy an apartment in Yanjiao, near Beijing.

Housing prices could double or even triple in some areas of Hebei province once the capital's subway system reaches the vicinity.

The expansion of the Beijing subway into Hebei is on the agenda of the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15), Zhang Gong, director of the Beijing municipal commission of development and reform, said on Sunday.

"To generate domestic demand, and build Beijing as 'a one-hour metropolis', subways in Beijing will be extended to Hebei province," the Beijing News on Monday reported Zhang as saying.

Once the government approves the plan, property developers in Yanjiao, a developed zone in Hebei east of Tongzhou district, expect to see big increases in apartment prices.

"Our properties will be sold for as much as 10,000 yuan per sq m, after the government confirms the subway expansion," said a real estate developer surnamed Hu, from the Sky Ocean community in Yanjiao.

"It's just a matter of time," Hu added.

In April 2009, apartments at Sky Ocean sold at about 4,000 yuan per sq m. As of Spring Festival, the price had doubled. According to Hu, more than 100,000 people live in Yanjiao and work in Beijing. Currently, their house prices do not compare with the ones in central Beijing because of the long commute.

"Our design and quality are as good as the real estate in the central area," Hu said. "When it's much more convenient to travel from Yanjiao to Beijing, our prices will get closer to theirs."

Wang Kun, a 26-year-old salesman, is saving to buy an apartment in Yanjiao.

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"Living expenses are lower than in Beijing but the place is not far from Beijing," Wang said. "Once subways are available, the house prices will be much higher than what they are now. So, it's a good time to invest in property."

Still, the rising prices wrought by the new subway lines are giving potential buyers cause for pause.

Xie Yi, a young professional who works in Beijing, inspected apartments in Yanjiao before Spring Festival.

"The prices are lower than the house prices in Beijing and the apartments look very modern, but I still don't want to buy them," Xie said. "The housing prices are jumping too fast in that area and it seems they will go even further after the subway is built. I don't feel secure investing there," he added.