Multiple cities' real estate markets are experiencing a "small spring" trend, with hot projects selling out immediately at launch.

Source: Securities Daily   Author: Chen Xiao

Since March, in housing markets across various regions, a “small spring” momentum has gradually become visible. Many hot projects have achieved “selling out right after opening,” and market sentiment has improved noticeably compared with the start of the year. Real estate developers have clearly accelerated their project launch schedules, aiming to seize the window period to speed up inventory sell-through and collections.

Looking at specifics, Beijing’s new-home market was the first to bring warmth. On March 22, the Jiatang Jingyue project, jointly developed by Beijing Construction Engineering Group Co., Ltd. and multiple partners, opened for sale. It sold 266 units on the day.

A real estate agent from Lianjia told Securities Daily reporters that the project introduced about 400 units. Before opening, the number of reservations for the front rows had already exceeded 500 groups. “The smaller units of around 100 square meters sell through faster, and buyers’ enthusiasm for entering the market has increased clearly.”

On March 20, Securities Daily reporters saw at the CCCC·Guoxianfu PARK project site that before the project had opened, the sales office was packed with people, and the negotiation area was also full. There were even people waiting in line to enter the model units. “The project is preparing to open. Recently, the volume of visits has increased significantly, and even on weekdays it’s very busy.” A sales staff member at the site told reporters.

Shenzhen’s high-end market also continues its strong performance. In March, the Shenzhen Bay Zhenxi project, jointly developed by China Resources Land Limited and China Overseas Enterprises Development Group Co., Ltd., held its second round of opening for sale and once again saw strong sales. In the four months since the project entered the market, its cumulative sales amount has already exceeded 23.9 billion yuan.

The Shanghai market also has no shortage of highlights. In mid-March, CCCC Yipin·Bund Yuangjing held a second round of opening and achieved sales of 900 million yuan, resetting the record for sales of “property appearance-category” products within 48 hours. Meanwhile, the second batch of units for the Linghu Island project was sold out immediately upon opening.

From the data side, market heat is gradually rising. Data from the China Index Academy shows that in the 12th week of 2026 (March 15—March 21), among 30 cities, the area of new-home transactions was 2.48 million square meters, up 15.9% month over month. Among them, Beijing’s new-home transaction area rose 31.7% month over month, the highest among first-tier cities. The transaction area in second-tier representative cities was 1.47 million square meters, up 30.1% month over month; cities such as Chengdu, Hangzhou, and Suzhou saw clear increases in volume.

Looking across a longer time dimension, the market-warming trend is even clearer. Since March (March 1—March 21), among 30 cities, the area of new-home transactions rose 101.4% month over month, achieving a doubling growth, with market heat showing an upward trend.

Signals of a rebound in the existing-home market are also evident. Data from the China Index Academy shows that in the 12th week of 2026, among 20 cities, existing-home transactions were 36,003 units, up 11.3% month over month. Among them, in Beijing, existing-home units rose 19.7% month over month, and up 13.7% year over year. Overall, since March, among the 20 cities, existing-home transaction unit volume rose 90.3% month over month, and activity has improved significantly.

At the same time, inventory pressure in key cities has eased somewhat. Monitoring data from the China Index Academy shows that Shenzhen’s newly available-for-sale area fell 3.5% month over month, and the pace of sell-through ranks near the top among first-tier cities. Some second-tier cities also saw decreases in inventory, and the market’s ability to absorb supply has strengthened.

On the policy front, signals to stabilize the real estate market continue to be released. For example, Shanghai lowered the down payment ratio for commercial properties to 30%. Nanjing provides interest-subsidy support for housing consumption under a “trade-in of the old for the new.” Cities including Shenzhen and Shenyang, by optimizing public housing fund policies, have taken multiple measures to promote demand release.

Overall, since March, the real estate market has shown the characteristics of “transaction recovery and accelerated project launches.” Yan Yujin, deputy director of the Shanghai E-house China Real Estate Research Institute, told Securities Daily reporters that as policies continue to exert efforts and high-quality projects are concentrated in entering the market, market heat in core cities is expected to continue. However, the divergence among different cities and different projects will also persist, and full industry repair will still take time.

(Editor: Wen Jing)

Keywords:

                                                            Housing market