China’s 2018 Government Work Report flags the inclusion of the country’s huge migrant worker population within the scope of affordable housing coverage.
The latest Government Work Report says that support for public rental housing will be expanded in order to better cater to low-income households, with migrant workers as well as newly employed professionals now qualifying for the program.
According to the report low-income households that find it difficult to obtain housing should enjoy “protection to the extent necessary.”
“The expansion of groups that qualify for public rental housing will be of benefit to proper implementation of housing protections,” said one member of industry to Economic Information Daily.
While the Chinese government has long advocated the inclusion of internal migrant populations within the scope of public rental housing, concrete measures have rarely been implemented by local authorities.
“Yet this group of people are truly a low-income demographic that find it difficult to obtain housing – their clear inclusion in the government work report will be of benefit to actual implementation.”
With regard to the housing sector, China’s 2018 Government Work Report also advocates “accelerating the establishment of a residential housing system with multi-party supply, multi-channel guarantees, in which leasing and purchasing are given equal play, to enable the vast masses of the people to live in security and comfort,” as well as reiterates Beijing’s stance that “houses are for occupation, not speculation.”
