During the recent “Golden Week” holiday, there was a noticeable surge in activity in the real estate markets of major cities across China. Industry experts anticipate that sales data for the housing market in October will reflect significant growth.

At a monthly real estate analysis meeting on October 8, Li Yifeng, the deputy director of research at the China Index Academy, noted that during the holiday, many property companies ramped up their promotional efforts. This led to a substantial increase in site visits and purchase agreements in core urban areas, with some projects even exceeding their total sales for September. The signs suggest that the market is stabilizing.

Looking specifically at new homes, first-tier cities saw robust increases in both site visits and purchase agreements, driven by favorable policy adjustments. Cities like Guangzhou and Shenzhen outperformed Beijing and Shanghai. Notably, alongside the stable demand for upgraded housing projects, there was a clear improvement in sales for many entry-level housing options during the holiday period. In second-tier cities, hotspots like Chengdu and Hangzhou maintained high levels of activity, with an improved transaction conversion rate.

Li Yifeng believes that the significant rebound in purchase agreements during the holiday will soon be reflected in official signed agreement (net signing) data, forecasting a notable rise in October’s real estate sales figures.

The Chinese real estate market received unexpected positive news at the end of September when the four first-tier cities—Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen—adjusted housing purchase restrictions before October 1. Additionally, over ten provinces, including Chongqing, Sichuan, Guangdong, Hubei, and Yunnan, have recently announced provincial-level policies aimed at fostering the healthy development of the real estate market. More than 50 cities, such as Wuhan, Nanchang, Hefei, and Guangyuan, have also introduced local optimization policies for their housing markets.

On October 5, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development reported a significant increase in property viewings and visits across many areas during the holiday. Experts noted that compared to previous years, 2024 offers the most favorable home-buying environment, with ongoing policies designed to stimulate housing demand, leading to a revitalization of market activity.

It is also worth highlighting that the second-hand housing market was particularly lively during the “Golden Week.” According to monitoring data from the Linping Residential Big Data Research Institute, the average daily transaction volume in six key cities reached 384 units, representing a remarkable 117.6% increase from last year’s holiday season. Among these, the average daily sales of second-hand homes in Shanghai, Shenzhen, Foshan, Qingdao, and Dongguan surpassed last year’s figures by more than 50%.