Downtown is now proving the popular upmarket location

Developments such as The Bund House project, built by Greentown Holdings Ltd, are proving extremely popular.

Units there went for a record price of 380,000 yuan per sq m because of their stunning views across the Huangpu river and luxury shopping stores. The average price of properties in the Bund area is around 90,000 yuan per sq m.

"Upmarket properties are expensive for a variety reasons," Shang Xiaowei, manager of The Bund House project, said. "For the super rich, the prices are still very affordable, and they are based in a central location. This is what buyers are looking for."

But compared with other major global cities, such as London, New York and Hong Kong, Shanghai's upmarket property prices are still relatively low.

"The market still has great potential, which will bring higher yields for buyers and investors," James McDonald, head of China Research at Savills, the global real estate services provider, said.