Speculation swirls over easing of home purchase restrictions: The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (MOHURD) says it is investigating and looking into a report claiming that "multiple MOHURD officials confirmed that cities other than Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen can adjust their purchase restriction policies on their own," which has drawn intense attention.
　　On the back of this news, shares of some listed real estate companies with large land reserves in second- and third-tier cities surged yesterday afternoon. Langfang Development hit the daily limit yesterday, and China Fortune Land Development also jumped more than 7%.
　　On the morning of May 23, a reporter also called relevant MOHURD officials to learn more. "We are also looking into the situation and do not know the source of the report."
　　A person close to MOHURD also told the reporter by phone, "As far as I understand, the ministry is now observing, looking into and studying the current market conditions. How could it be seen as a direct statement? Adjustments to real estate policy at the national level need to be decided by the State Council, and at the city level they need to be finalized by the provincial authorities. MOHURD can only play the role of investigating, understanding, reporting and then implementing."
　　"Besides, MOHURD has a new Party secretary, and the new secretary is currently at the stage of listening to reports and getting acquainted with the situation," the person further said.
　　On May 23, Wang Juelin, former deputy director of the MOHURD Policy Research Center, also said in an interview that he was very surprised. "Either the interpretation is wrong or the statement is wrong. From the perspective of rescuing the market, we have not yet reached the stage where cities other than first-tier ones can interpret purchase restrictions on their own."
　　"From a market perspective, in the first four months, commercial housing sales area was 277 million square meters, better than 2011 and 2012 but worse than 2013, and far from the historical low," Wang Juelin said. The current period is indeed one of wait-and-see, with great uncertainty ahead, and there is no possibility of an immediate statement on rescuing the market.
　　According to Wang Juelin's understanding, MOHURD has repeatedly emphasized two-way regulation, which is fundamentally based on market conditions rather than a simple one-size-fits-all approach dividing first-tier and other cities.
　　In addition, Wang Juelin said that at this critical period for the market, the initiative for adjusting policies such as purchase restrictions lies with local authorities, and MOHURD cannot say who should do what and who should not. Zhang Dawei, director of the market research department at Beijing Centaline Property, also felt the statement was not entirely accurate. Zhang Dawei said, "The main reason this policy has attracted enormous attention is also that it comes during a period of market and policy wait-and-see."