Slide in Land Sales Persists as China’s Property Developers Pushed to the Brink
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As of December 29, land sales in 300 Chinese cities totaled only 1.38 billion square meters, a 16% year-on-year drop
Land sales across China have fallen to their lowest levels in years, with a nearly 20% decline in 2024, underscoring the persistent struggles in the property market that are crippling the ability of developers to expand.
As of December 29, land sales in 300 Chinese cities totaled only 1.38 billion square meters, a 16% year-on-year drop, according to property data provider China Index Academy.
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- Land sales across China have declined by nearly 20% in 2024, with developers struggling to expand due to a liquidity crisis and falling property sales.
- In 2023, property sales totaled 1.1 billion square meters, down from 1.8 billion in 2021, while local governments are pushing land sales to meet targets, notably in Wuhan.
- Despite some stabilization in new home prices, land sale revenues in key cities have decreased by 30-40% in 2024, with significant undeveloped land remaining idle.
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Who’s Who
- China Index Academy
- China Index Academy is a property data provider mentioned in the article for tracking land sales in Chinese cities. It reported a 16% year-on-year drop in land sales across 300 cities in 2024, totaling 1.38 billion square meters. The Academy also noted a significant surge in Wuhan's land sales in December, highlighting that sales surpassed the combined total from the previous 11 months.
- China Real Estate Information Corp.
- China Real Estate Information Corp. (CRIC) projected a 17% drop in annual land sales for 2024, estimating total sales at 1.1 billion square meters. By December 20, only 1.03 billion square meters had been sold. CRIC highlighted that before 2021, land transactions consistently exceeded 2 billion square meters annually, but an escalating liquidity crisis since Q3 2021 has severely affected the market.
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What Happened When
- Before 2021：
- Annual land transactions in China consistently exceeded 2 billion square meters.
- 2021：
- Property sales reached a record high of 1.8 billion square meters.
- Since Q3 2021：
- Escalating liquidity crisis and plunging property sales pushed developers to the brink, scaling back investments and land purchases.
- 2022：
- Property sales declined to 1.4 billion square meters.
- 2023：
- Property sales totaled 1.1 billion square meters.
- 2023 to Mid-2024：
- The overall construction startup rate for residential land in 30 major cities was only 47%.
- After September 2024：
- Central and local authorities stepped up supportive policies to shore up the housing market.
- Late November to Early December 2024：
- Beijing and Shenzhen broke local records by selling two parcels of land at record prices.
- December 20, 2024：
- 1.03 billion square meters of land sold according to CRIC.
- December 26, 2024：
- A CRIC report suggests that land transactions in 2024 are nearing the level of new home sales in 2023.
- December 29, 2024：
- Land sales in 300 Chinese cities totaled 1.38 billion square meters.
- By the End of 2024：
- Several cities, including Wuhan, saw a surge in land sales.
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