Shanghai new home sales jump in August

Shanghai's new housing market rebounded in August, indicating recovered sentiment among buyers.

Citywide, a total of around 776,000 square meters of new residential properties, excluding government-subsidized affordable housing, were sold last month, an increase of 26 percent from July, according to a regular monthly report released on Monday by Shanghai Centaline Property Consultants Co.

"Buying sentiment really started to pick up since the second half of August mainly in outlying Fengxian District and the Nanhui in the Pudong New Area," said Lu Wenxi, Centaline's senior research manager. "As a result, the average price of new homes fell accordingly due to a structural shift."

Fengxian, where three projects made it into last month's top 10 list by area, led the local market with monthly sales of 128,000 square meters. It was most closely trailed by the Nanhui area, which registered transactions of some 122,000 square meters, according to Centaline data.

Notably, a development in Nanhui topped August's list after selling 22,172 square meters, or 244 units, for an average price of 26,248 yuan (US$3,657) per square meter.

It was immediately followed by a project in Fengxian which saw 21,311 square meters, or 112 units, sold at an average of 34,993 yuan per square meter.

Around the city, the average price for a new home fell 7.6 percent month over month to 49,729 yuan per square meter in August, the lowest monthly price since May 2018, Centaline data showed.

New supply, meanwhile, continued to head south as the slow-season kicked in.

Only some 432,000 square meters of new residential properties were launched into the local market, a plunge of 46.1 percent from July and the third lowest monthly figure so far this year.

Looking forward, Centaline said it expects improvement in market momentum as more real estate developers gear up to launch products in September, which is the traditional start of a busy season for property sales.