Housing low-income families

THE DRAFT REGULATION THAT THE STATE Council published on Thursday to solicit public opinions on subsidized urban housing could give China's cooling property market a much-needed shot in the arm.

By explicitly including 100 million migrant workers into government-subsidized urban housing programs, the new regulation assures homebuilders of sufficient demand in coming years. Yet, even more important is the long-term significance this new effort has for the country's ongoing urbanization, which will be a major driver for economic growth and transformation over the coming years.

The current picture for the real estate sector is not rosy. Housing prices are losing steam across the country. New home prices in China's 70 major cities rose 8.7 percent year-on-year, down from the 9.6 percent growth in January.