To implement the decisions and arrangements made by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the State Council on expediting the development of affordable rental housing and to step up related financial policy support, the People’s Bank of China (PBC) and China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) released the Notice on the Exclusion of Loans for Affordable Rental Housing from Real Estate Loan Concentration Management. The Notice clarified that loans for affordable rental housing projects shall be excluded from real estate loan concentration management. Banking institutions are encouraged to scale up support for affordable rental housing based on the principles of compliance with laws and regulations, sound risk management and commercial sustainability.
The policy is conducive to expanding credit supply to affordable rental housing projects by banking institutions, which will underpin the construction of a housing support system in China and the establishment of a housing system featuring diversified suppliers, multiple supporting channels, and dual emphasis on both purchase and rental. Going forward, the PBC and CBIRC will speed up the establishment and improvement of the financial regulatory framework for rental housing businesses, continue to reinforce financial support for the construction of affordable housing and the development of the long-term rental housing market, and foster a virtuous cycle and sound development of the real estate industry.