Tongzhou realtors feel the heat

Beijing housing officials have vowed a crackdown on suspect sales tactics being used by developers in the Tongzhou district of the city, after prices in the area have surged.

Xu Jianyun, head of Beijing Municipal Commission of Housing and Urban-rural Development, told a local radio station on Monday the department plans a series of measures to calm the market, including forcing companies to stick to their previous construction schedules and release dates.

Some developers have been accused of holding back on projects planned in Tongzhou in anticipation of price hikes there following speculation in May that the municipal government had decided to relocate to the district, 30 kilometers east of Tian'anmen Square.