“In Baoding, multiple projects have seen prices rise by up to 10% in the past week; in Zhuozhou, some completed homes have been snapped up; in Yanjiao, individual projects exceed 15,000 yuan per square meter...” The specific plan for Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei integration has not yet been released, but the housing market around Beijing is already “excited.” Experts point out that we should be alert to signs and trends of “real estateization” in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei integration.

 

　　Baoding Projects

 

　　Two Days of Sales Equal Past Two Months

 

　　Although the specific plan for Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei integration has not yet been released and related measures have not been formulated, the housing markets in areas around Beijing such as Yanjiao, Zhuozhou, and Gu'an continue to “heat up.”

 

　　During interviews at two hot-selling projects adjacent to each other in a certain area of Baoding, the reporter found that although it was not the weekend, the sales office was crowded. Ms. Hao, a sales consultant for one project, told the reporter: “Last weekend, we sold nearly 50 units in two days, equivalent to the sales volume of the past two months. The average price of mid-rise apartments in another project reached 7,200 yuan per square meter, up about 1,000 yuan from before the Spring Festival. Next week, it will rise another 300 yuan.”

 

　　According to data from the Baoding Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau in Hebei Province, in 2013, a total of 14,786 commercial housing pre-sale contract registrations were processed locally, while from March 1 to 24 this year, 3,474 were processed. The number of registrations in less than a month is equivalent to nearly a quarter of last year's total.

 

　　Project Marketing

 

　　Hyping the “Integration” Concept

 

　　As soon as the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei coordinated development strategy was proposed, some businesses launched a marketing war. Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei integration has become the most important promotional theme for major projects around Beijing.

 

　　Whether on Beijing's buses and subways or on highways just outside Beijing, advertisements for projects in surrounding areas are everywhere. On these flyers, large fonts such as “Buying property in western Beijing welcomes the best historical opportunity” and “Commercial real estate welcomes explosive growth” are very eye-catching; phrases such as “500 units sold in one hour” and “Buy now and profit” stimulate buyers' nerves.

 

　　Hu Jinghui, vice president of 5i5j Group, believes that most of the current market speculation about the detailed plan for Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei integration comes from developers and stakeholders spreading and disseminating information. The sensitive reaction of the real estate market to rumors carries the risk of overdrawing market expectations.

 

　　“In the past, many local projects sold no more than 10 units a week, but now projects with a good reputation can sell dozens of units a day. Developers are all taking the opportunity to boost sales and clear inventory that has been backlogged for years,” admitted a staff member of the Baoding Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau.

 

　　Interpretation

 

　　Integration Cannot Be Achieved Overnight

 

　　Recently, Hebei Province issued the “Opinions of the Hebei Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government on Promoting New Urbanization,” which made relevant statements on Baoding and other areas undertaking some functions of the capital, and on industrial planning in areas around Beijing. The introduction of the opinions has once again caused “restlessness” in real estate and other fields.

 

　　“Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei integration cannot be achieved overnight,” said Yi Peng, director of the Urbanization Research Center of the International Finance Forum. Local governments should hype concepts less and introduce more practical measures.

 

　　Authoritative sources pointed out that from tackling environmental pollution to alleviating pressure on population and resources, and to promoting industrial transformation and upgrading... the current Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei integration focuses more on overall coordination in functional positioning, industrial division of labor, supporting facilities, and transportation systems, rather than emphasizing rapid development of a certain place. If explosive growth of real estate is driven solely by locational advantages, the effect of coordinated development will be greatly reduced.

 

　　“As a systematic grand strategy, scientific economic development and industrial collaboration are fundamental, and the implementation of related plans requires a relatively long cycle,” said Hu Jinghui.

 

　　Voices

 

　　“Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei integration is the general trend of new urbanization development, and there is no doubt that areas around Beijing will gain new development opportunities. Policy requires a process from top-level design to specific measures and then to practice, and the development priorities and methods of different regions are not yet certain. Blind ‘house grabbing’ leading to false prosperity may blow up a short-term bubble.” — Zhu Zhongyi, vice president of the China Real Estate Association