Web Exclusive

Speculators leaving Shenzhen housing market

By Zhang Jiawei (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2010-04-16 13:58

For Shenzhen's secondhand houses, the 467.42 percent increase in trading volume from the previous month, to 1.82 millions square meters in March, signaled that speculator were running away, according to a report in the Wuhan Evening News on Friday.

In March, the volume of secondhand houses for sale in Shenzhen was 27,389 units. This was a 146.66 percent increase from February, and some investors even have hundreds of houses for sale.

Centaline Property Agency strategy director Zhou Yao said this was a sign that investors who have a lot of houses on hand were running away from the market after intentionally driving up prices.

"A lot of investors and speculators intentionally drive up housing prices and then make a profit by selling their houses at a high price. It's just like what they do in the stock markets," Zhou said.

He added that cities like Shenzhen, Shanghai and Beijing are favorable places for housing speculators because of their high liquidity in the market.

He also said Shenzhen's speculators will run out of houses to sell in June and he suggested people should get out of the market as soon as possible.

However, Zhou conceded he is not confident that housing prices would plunge.