Shenzhen, Shanghai home sales plunge after rules tightened

Hong Kong

HOME sales in the red-hot property markets of Shanghai and Shenzhen tumbled sharply in the week after the authorities made it tougher to buy homes in the cities to prevent a property bubble, surveys by a major Chinese realtor show.

After Shenzhen and Shanghai property prices jumped 57 per cent and 20.6 per cent in February from a year earlier, local governments tightened down-payment requirements for second homes and raised the eligibility bar for non-residents to buy in the cities.