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The mortgage interest rates in first-tier cities have fallen again. At present, the first mortgage interest rates of large state-owned commercial banks such as Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China, and China Construction Bank in Guangzhou have been reduced from 55 basis points below the loan market benchmark rate (LPR) for more than 5 years to 75 basis points below the LPR for more than 5 years, and the second mortgage interest rates remain at 15 basis points below the LPR for more than 5 years.

At present, the national lower limit of mortgage interest rates has been cancelled, and interest rates have been marketized. Previously, the national lower limit of the first mortgage interest rate policy was 20 basis points less than the LPR for more than 5 years, and the lower limit of the second mortgage interest rate policy was 20 basis points plus the LPR for more than 5 years. Local governments have added basis points to the national lower limit based on their own actual conditions. On May 17, the People's Bank of China issued the "Notice on Adjusting the Commercial Personal Housing Loan Interest Rate Policy", canceling the national lower limit of the first and second commercial personal housing loan interest rate policy.

"After the cancellation of the lower limit of the mortgage interest rate policy, commercial banks can independently determine the interest rate level based on the risk status of customers, realizing the marketization of mortgage interest rates." Tao Ling, deputy governor of the People's Bank of China, said. According to data from the Shell Research Institute, as of June this year, mortgage interest rates in 100 cities across the country have generally dropped to the "3" level.

In addition to the downward trend in loan interest rates, the down payment ratio for home purchases has also declined. On May 17, the People's Bank of China and the State Financial Supervision and Administration Bureau issued the "Notice on Adjusting the Minimum Down Payment Ratio Policy for Individual Housing Loans", which lowered the minimum down payment ratio for individual housing loans at the national level, adjusting the minimum down payment ratio for the first home from no less than 20% to no less than 15%, and the minimum down payment ratio for the second home from no less than 30% to no less than 25%.

Driven by real estate financial policies, the real estate market has become more active recently. A spokesperson for the National Bureau of Statistics said on July 15 that all regions and departments have adapted to the new situation of major changes in the supply and demand relationship in the real estate market, implemented policies based on the city, actively adjusted and optimized real estate policies, and done a solid job in ensuring the delivery of houses, supporting rigid and improved housing demand. The policy effect has been gradually released, and the market activity has increased.

For newly built commercial housing, in the first half of this year, the national sales area and sales volume of newly built commercial housing decreased by 19% and 25% year-on-year respectively, a decrease of 1.3 percentage points and 2.9 percentage points respectively from January to May; the decline in newly started housing area and funds in place of real estate development enterprises also narrowed; in June, the sales price of newly built commercial housing in first-tier cities decreased by 0.5% month-on-month, a decrease of 0.2 percentage points from May, among which Beijing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen decreased by 0.6%, 1.2% and 0.7% respectively, and Shanghai increased by 0.4%.

For second-hand housing, both transaction area and sales price have rebounded. In terms of transaction area, the online signing area of ​​second-hand housing has increased year-on-year in recent months, among which the transaction area in first-tier cities in June increased rapidly month-on-month. In terms of sales price, the sales price of second-hand housing in first-tier cities fell by 0.4% month-on-month, 0.8 percentage points narrower than that in May. Beijing and Shanghai turned to increase for the first time this year, up 0.2% and 0.5% respectively, while Guangzhou and Shenzhen fell by 1.5% and 1.0% respectively; the sales price of second-hand housing in second-tier cities fell by 0.9% month-on-month, 0.1 percentage point narrower than that in May; the sales price of second-hand housing in third-tier cities fell by 0.9% month-on-month, the same as in May.

"Recently, the real estate market is undergoing positive changes. We must adhere to the combination of digesting existing stocks and optimizing incremental growth, further implement and improve new real estate policies, do a good job in ensuring the delivery of houses, and revitalize existing commercial housing and land resources." Han Wenxiu, deputy director of the Central Finance Office in charge of daily work and director of the Central Rural Work Office, said at a press conference held by the CPC Central Committee on July 19 that the next step is to implement the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, accelerate the construction of a new model for real estate development, eliminate the drawbacks of the past "high debt, high leverage, and high turnover" model, build "good houses" that meet the new expectations of the people, better meet rigid and improved housing needs, and establish corresponding basic systems such as financing, finance, taxation, land, and sales. "It should be pointed out that my country's new urbanization is still continuing to advance, and there is still considerable room for high-quality development of real estate." Han Wenxiu said. (Economic Daily reporter Guo Ziyuan)