The Chinese high-income group intends to make investment in terms of property purchase, according to a report on living conditions in China jointly released by a research institute affiliated to China's State Statistics Bureau and MasterCard Organization.

 

The survey defines high-income group as persons with an annual salary higher than 110,000 yuan (US$13,750). It shows that 40 percent of them own two or more apartments, 22 percent of them planning to buy another within a year.

 

A total of 5,126 consumers in 10 big cities, including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, responded to the survey. The average annual income of the interviewees' families was 218,000 yuan., while the average annual income of the individual was 117,000 yuan.

 

According to the survey, 95 percent of those interviewed had their own houses, whom among them, 87 percent bought the houses by themselves, 33 percent owned two apartments and 10 percent had three or more apartments.

 

The average floor area of the dwellings was 113 square meters.

 

The survey shows the high-end group purchased properties with the aim of transfering from consuming to investing. Among those who owned one or two apartments, 21 percent said they planned for further buying, while among those having three or more apartments, the number was as high as 34 percent.

 

From the current situation of the market, the real estate industry is still the sector with high returns and low risks, stimulating the high-end group's investments.

 

(Chinanews.cn July 6, 2006)