China's megacity of Tianjin lifts home buying restrictions

TIANJIN - North China's Tianjin municipality abolished restrictive measures on buying home properties on Wednesday, marking another major Chinese city that has adjusted housing purchase policies to stabilize the real estate market.

The city lifted restrictions on purchasing and transferring new and second-hand homes as well as price caps on new commodity housing sales, according to a circular jointly issued by six government departments of Tianjin, including the municipal housing and urban-rural construction commission.

To align with national financial support policies, the circular said that Tianjin has standardized the minimum down payment ratio for personal housing loans at 15 percent, regardless of whether the purchase is for a first or second home.

The circular took effect on Wednesday.

Located near Beijing, Tianjin has a population of more than 13 million.

In late September, a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee underlined the need for efforts to reverse the real estate market downturn and stabilize the market.

Following the meeting, the Chinese capital of Beijing and the megacities of Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen have adjusted their real estate policies, introducing a slew of measures to boost their local property markets.