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China mortgage rate cut, lower down payment requirements could save homebuyers 10 per cent in monthly instalments, revive home sales

  • Rate cut ‘will help buyers save at least 10 per cent in mortgage instalments per month’, CGS-CIMB analyst says
  • Those who want to sell ‘will have to lower prices’, says would-be homebuyer in Shanghai

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A file photo of the Covid-19 lockdown in Shanghai from May 9. The economic hardship caused by the lockdown may benefit first-time buyers, says a prospective homebuyer. Photo: EPA-EFE
Sandy LiandDaniel Ren
A recent cut in mortgage rates, coupled with lower down payment requirements for first-time buyers, could revive Chinese home sales, analysts said.
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The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) announced a 15 basis points cut in the five-year loan prime rate (LPR) to 4.45 per cent on May 20. The LPR is used by banks to price mortgage loans. And this rate cut came a week after the PBOC said the mortgage rate floor for first-time buyers would be lowered by 20 basis points below the five-year LPR.

The home loan rate could be as low as 4.25 per cent, from 5.2 per cent in April, for first-time buyers, according to CGS-CIMB Securities. And coupled with other easing measures such as lower down payment requirements, reduced from 30 to 40 per cent to 20 to 30 per cent of a flat’s price, this should stimulate buying desire, said Raymond Cheng, head of China and Hong Kong research at CGS-CIMB.

“It will help buyers save at least 10 per cent in mortgage instalments per month,” he said, adding that Friday’s rate cut was a surprise move that suggests the central government’s stance on housing had changed totally to being very supportive.

The rate cuts and lower down payment requirements came after Shanghai reported zero growth in home prices for the first time in April since November 2020. In March, they grew by 0.3 per cent. But these easing measures could spur home sales.
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Home sales were expected to increase in 100 cities in May, rising by 9 per cent to 19.6 million square metres from April, according to Shanghai-based E-house China Research and Development Institute. This estimate was, however, 58 per cent lower than the same period a year ago, it added.

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