2011-03-22 17:55

BEIJING - China's top economic planner announced a new regulation Tuesday, demanding property developers to sell homes at marked prices from May 1 this year.

The regulation is aimed to tackle public complaints over a lack of transparency in commercial property pricing, the National Development and Reform Commission said in a statement on its website.

The regulation requires home sellers to make public the sale price of their properties on the market and the number of apartments available for sale within a certain time frame. It did not specify the time frame, however.

The rules apply to property developers that sell completed apartments and those that have obtained approval to conduct pre-sales as well as real estate agents which deal with second-hand apartments.

Under the regulation, home sellers are also required to state relative charges before the property transaction, such as commission fee and property management fee, and factors that would affect home prices.

The measures are part of the government's efforts to reign in soaring housing prices.

According to statistics announced by the commission, home prices in most major Chinese cities continued to rise month on month in February, defying government efforts to cool the property market.