In Depth: Does Zhengzhou Hold the Answer to China’s Millions of Unsold Houses?

As China strives to kickstart its sluggish real estate sector, one of the government’s first priorities is what to do with the millions of homes that have been built but have yet to find a buyer.

At a policy briefing on May 17, the State Council, China’s cabinet, announced that local state-owned enterprises (SOEs) would be encouraged to buy properties from developers and turn them into affordable housing. A series of meetings of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and the central bank have since been held to discuss how this can be implemented.