Written in China for China Professionals by China Professionals

China Studies Proposal to Tax Real Estate Based on Market Value

Jul. 27 – China is weighing a proposal that would tax commercial property based on its market value in an effort to reform its tax system and discourage speculative buying.

Commercial property tax is currently based on the original purchase price. Taxpayers who use commercial property for their own use are charged a 1.2 percent tax annually. Read the rest of this entry »



Beijing Municipal Gov’t Clarifies Housing Loan Procedures

Jul. 20 – Beijing municipal government recently clarified the standard procedures in commercial loans to individual house buyers looking for a second house.

Jingjianfa [2010] No. 406, issued on July 15, stipulates that borrowers apply for housing loans should fill out the “family has separated flat declaratory form” to declare their housing situation. The commercial lender should then interview the buyer(home visits when necessary), check the housing transactions or use other means to determine the implementing standard of the differential housing credit policy. Read the rest of this entry »



SAT Issues Notice on Land Appreciation Tax Settlements

Jun. 7 – The State Administration of Taxation released a circular last month that aims to better manage the collection of land appreciation tax. Guoshuihan [2010] No. 220, issued on May 19, clarifies revenue recognition issues related to land appreciation tax (LAT).

In cases where sales invoices have been issued, the circular states that the revenue recognized should be the total amount shown in the sales invoice. For cases where the sales invoices have not yet been issued or have only been partially issued, the revenue recognized should be the total amount shown in the sales contract. For cases with adjusted sales amounts due to differences in sales contracts and the actual measurement conducted by the relevant authorities, the basis of the LAT calculation will also be adjusted. Read the rest of this entry »



Beijing Bans Unapproved Property Deposit Taking

BEIJING, Apr. 22 – In additional moves to quell the rampant increases in China’s property market, Beijing has banned the taking of any deposits for properties unless they are officially approved prior to the application.

The move to tighten pre-sale rules bans developers from taking deposits from prospective buyers of uncompleted homes until the developer obtains official approval to do so. The new rules dictate that developers must first obtain government approval to take deposits, and then publish the price of each unit within 10 days. The aim is to restrict developers from pushing up prices prior to the official sale of a property. Read the rest of this entry »



China Property Outlook and Strategy

Mar. 16 – China’s economy reported strong recovery in the second half of 2009, following unprecedented levels of coordinated stimulus measures by the government. Financial markets have largely mended while liquidity has started to flow. Domestic consumption was a key driver, backed by relatively healthy household balance sheets and generous fiscal boosts.

China’s economic momentum is building thanks to a cyclical turnaround in exports and investment, with the added advantage of growing domestic consumption. The latter has been aided by structural advantages of lower debt (at both the national level and household levels) and favorable demographics. Read the rest of this entry »



Morgan Stanley Divests Assets as Mainland Property Growth Rises 16%

Mar. 9 – Morgan Stanley is divesting its mainland China property assets and has sold off US$700 million worth of assets in the past year, the latest being its 50 percent holding in a Foshan residential project, which it has sold back to the developer for US$25million.

Other sales that have taken or are taking place include Infinity Plaza, the Xujiahui Shama serviced apartment block, and Nanjing Road’s Exchange mall, all in Shanghai. This comes as mainland property growth rose 16.1 percent, with sales increasing 42.1 percent year on year. Over 930 million square meters of property were sold last year. Read the rest of this entry »



China Briefing Partners with China Daily and IBISWorld to Provide China Industry Reports

Mar. 2 – China Briefing has partnered with China Daily and the market research firms All China Marketing Research and IBISWorld to provide a series of industry reports covering a number of sectors

Written by dedicated researchers from China Daily and ACMR-IBISWorld, these reports are listed on the Asia Briefing Bookstore and include the following titles:

China Daily
AutoChina
China Banking
China Energy Read the rest of this entry »



Beijing City Releases New Real Estate Policies

BEIJING, Feb. 25 – New real estate policies released yesterday attempts to rein in ballooning housing prices and property speculation in China’s capital city.

The Implementing Opinions for Promoting the Steady and Healthy Development of the Real Estate Market in Beijing (Implementing Opinions), asserts adherence to a 40 percent initial housing loan payment for second properties and single land leases of commercial housing should not exceed 20 hectares. Read the rest of this entry »



Sanya Residential Property Skyrockets

Photo: xiaojiecha/FlickrFeb. 9 – Crispins Property Investment Management (CPIM) has released a bulletin examining the property market in the tropical South China Sea island of Hainan and the resort city of Sanya.

Sanya has long been regarded as “China’s Hawaii” and with its beaches, coconut palms and great sea food it has developed into a popular destination for Chinese and expatriate tourists. The latest bulletin provides details of pricing, availability, and why Sanya is bucking the trend when it comes to purchasing residential units in China. Read the rest of this entry »



Corporate Tax for Construction Companies Clarified

Feb. 4 – The State Administration of Taxation has released a circular explaining applied corporate income tax for construction companies.

The circular instructs trans-regional construction enterprises implementing the head office and branch office systems to calculate and pay for CIT tax following the provisions stated in Guoshuifa [2008] Document No. 28 issued in 2008 and detailing CIT implications. Read the rest of this entry »