China unveils biggest property plan, cuts mortgage rates on $5.3 trillion market

Posted on September 24, 2024   |  

China has launched its largest support plan for the struggling property market, cutting borrowing costs on up to $5.3 trillion in mortgages and reducing down-payment requirements.

The People's Bank of China is lowering mortgage rates for current borrowers by an average of 0.5 percentage points.

The down-payment requirement for second home purchases has been reduced to 15%, down from 25%, marking a new low.

Economists from major banks like UBS, JPMorgan, and Bank of America predict China will miss its growth target this year.

Current mortgage rates are around 4%, while new loans are at 3.2% for first homes and 3.5% for second homes.

The new measures are expected to help 150 million people, saving them about 150 billion yuan annually in interest.

Chinese banks have been lowering deposit rates to balance out the effects of reduced loan rates, with profits rising only 0.4% in the first half of the year—the slowest pace since 2020.

Net interest margins at China’s banks hit a record low of 1.54% by June, below the 1.8% needed for healthy profitability.