From Chinese Press

Govt must regulate house rents

(China Daily)
Updated: 2010-07-05 08:08

The uncontrolled rise in house rents is perhaps a bigger problem for the people than the skyrocketing property prices. So, the authorities should pay more attention to the problem, says an article in Xinhua Daily Telegraph. Excerpts:

Although the real estate market is passing through its coldest winter, housing prices remain unreasonably high, said 98.1 percent of the respondents to a survey, conducted by National Statistics Institute in Beijing from April to May. This has prompted landlords and apartment owners to raise their rents drastically.

Fresh graduates and migrant workers have no choice but to rent houses in cities and suburbs. Rising rents will thus make their life more miserable. Since such people don't (and perhaps will never) have the money to buy a house, their best option is to rent one on a long-term basis. But rising rents are making even that impossible.

Lack of regulations for the leasing market is causing landlords to scrap contracts with their tenants and forcing them to pay higher rents to sign new contracts.

(China Daily 07/05/2010 page9)