On August 25th, a new real estate policy was introduced in Chengdu. The Chengdu Housing Provident Fund policy will implement “lower down payment + interest subsidy” to encourage various districts and counties to support housing consumption through methods such as issuing housing subsidies and consumption vouchers.
According to the official announcement from Chengdu titled “Notice on Further Optimizing Policies and Measures to Promote Stable and Healthy Development of the Real Estate Market,” from the date of implementation of the notice until December 31, 2026, for those purchasing new commercial housing in Chengdu and applying for housing provident fund loans, the minimum down payment ratio will be reduced to 15% and they will receive a one-year, 20% loan interest subsidy, with a maximum subsidy of up to 25,000 yuan per transaction.
Furthermore, for the purchase of new commercial housing meeting the one-star green building standard and above, the maximum housing provident fund loan amount can be increased by 20% based on the current basis.
In addition, the notice specifies that Chengdu’s various districts and counties can, on the basis of existing policies, issue subsidies or consumption vouchers for group purchases, parking space purchases, replacements, etc.
The reduction of the provident fund down payment ratio to 15% and the addition of the loan interest subsidy have become a focus of market attention in this policy.
According to a report by First Financial, Huang Xue, general manager of Zhongzhi Research Institute Sichuan Company, stated that compared with the policy combinations of other cities nationwide, Chengdu’s “15% down payment + interest subsidy” is a new policy paradigm this time.
She pointed out that most cities previously mainly adopted methods such as deed tax subsidies and overall housing price subsidies. Chengdu’s direct subsidy to the interest end, which incurs the highest capital cost, makes the policy more precise and has stronger predictability.
Huang Xue believed that in terms of policy weight, this combination is at the forefront among second-tier cities.
Currently, the national first-home housing provident fund loan interest rate for over 5 years has dropped to a historically low of 2.6%. Chengdu’s addition of a 20% interest subsidy is equivalent to simultaneously reducing the housing purchase threshold in terms of “lower down payment” and “lower financing cost.”
In Huang Xue’s view, this double benefit of “lower down payment + lower cost” might provide more direct market stimulus for the rigid demand group, especially young individuals and first-time homebuyers.
However, behind the intensified policy measures, Chengdu’s real estate market still faces certain transaction and inventory pressure throughout this year.
Data from CRIC shows that from January to July 2026, Chengdu’s residential properties have accumulated around 36,400 transactions, with a transaction value of approximately 89.8 billion yuan, and an average transaction price of around 18,700 yuan per square meter.
Looking at the monthly performance, Chengdu’s residential property transactions hit a low point in February and gradually picked up, reaching around 6,074 transactions in July. Although the market transactions have shown some recovery from the beginning of the year, it is still in a phase of overall low-level recovery.
At the same time, the differentiation within Chengdu’s real estate market is intensifying. Some core areas, as well as high-quality projects, still hold strong market appeal, while ordinary projects face greater inventory pressure.
In recent years, China’s real estate market has entered a downturn. Data from CRIC shows that from January to July this year, Chengdu’s second-hand residential properties had around 135,500 transactions, a decrease of 4.83% year-on-year, with a transaction area of about 12.93 million square meters, down 5.2% year-on-year.
In July, the prices of second-hand residential properties in Chengdu decreased by 0.75% monthly and by 5.99% year-on-year. The national market is also facing price adjustment pressure.
According to the China Real Estate Index System, in July 2026, the average price of second-hand homes in one hundred cities dropped by 0.44% monthly and by 7.37% year-on-year. The average price of second-hand residential properties in the top ten cities dropped by 0.36% monthly and by 7.26% year-on-year.
In Huang Xue’s opinion, Chengdu’s new policy is expected to lower the home purchase threshold in the short term. However, looking at the medium term, the key to whether the policy truly alleviates the major inventory pressure in the new housing market lies in the smooth operation of the “selling old to buy new” chain.
She pointed out that currently, Chengdu’s new home market has an inventory clearance cycle of over 25 months. Therefore, the policy’s effectiveness in truly improving inventory pressure depends on the progress of home acquisitions for rent protection, the rhythm of financial subsidies, and whether the bargaining space in the second-hand housing market can gradually narrow.
If the “selling old to buy new” chain operates smoothly, the inventory clearance of new homes is expected to accelerate. Conversely, the policy effect might mainly focus on the activity in the second-hand housing market, while the marginal drive of new housing inventory might be discounted.
This is also an important distinction between Chengdu’s policy this time and the previous simple “lower down payment” policies.
Apart from stimulating new home purchase demand, Chengdu’s policy this time also supports residents in “selling old to buy new” and explores market entities acquiring second-hand homes to be used as secure rental housing.
However, compared to the positive evaluation of the policy by professional institutions, some voices in the market are not very optimistic.
A Weibo member with 120,000 followers, “Rongcheng Pumpkin,” stated that Chengdu’s new real estate policy this time has a “moderate” impact.
One significant reason behind this perspective is that the current national real estate market is still undergoing an adjustment phase, and simply reducing the home purchase threshold may not be enough to change buyers’ expectations regarding house price trends.
If buyers still believe that future house prices have downward potential, some potential buyers may choose to wait and see despite the decrease in down payment ratio and the subsidy on loan interest.
Therefore, for Chengdu, the real observation needed after this policy is not whether market sentiment quickly warms up after the policy is announced, but whether transaction volume can continue to rise and whether the recovery in transactions can further transmit to prices and inventory.
Indeed, Chengdu’s increased real estate policy this time is not an isolated event.
Recently, cities like Beijing and Shanghai have successively introduced policy measures to optimize real estate development. While specific policies vary between different cities, there are some common characteristics in policy direction.
Yan Yuejin, deputy director of the E-House China R&D Institute, stated that by integrating the recent policies of Beijing, Shanghai, and Chengdu, three incremental features can be observed in the current real estate policy:
– Increase in support from provident funds
– A supply of housing products more in line with market demand
– Revitalization of existing stock, optimization of the housing consumption chain, and measures for acquiring existing housing stock.
From this perspective, Chengdu’s policy this time is no longer merely stimulating “buying houses.”
From reducing down payments, providing loan interest subsidies, to encouraging district counties to issue housing purchase subsidies, supporting “selling old to buy new,” reactivating second-hand houses, and promoting the construction of “good houses,” policies are transitioning from simple demand stimulation to reducing home purchase costs, improving housing supply, smoothing the replacement chain, and revitalizing existing markets.
For Chengdu’s real estate market, this policy undoubtedly further reduces the financial threshold for homebuyers.
For a new house with a total price of 2 million yuan, if calculated at the minimum 15% down payment ratio, the theoretical minimum down payment for buyers will be reduced from the original 400,000 yuan to 300,000 yuan, reducing the upfront financial pressure by 100,000 yuan. In addition, eligible provident fund loans can also enjoy a 20% interest subsidy, with a maximum of 25,000 yuan per transaction.
However, whether the policy can truly drive the market’s revival still depends on buyer confidence, the price trend of second-hand homes, the new home inventory, and the actual effects of the “selling old to buy new” policy.
Huang Xue believed that Chengdu’s average new home price is relatively high among second-tier cities, and this policy mainly focuses on “lowering thresholds, promoting circulation, and optimizing supply,” without directly adopting significant price reduction incentives. With the coordination of controlling land listing rhythms on the supply side, Chengdu’s new home prices are expected to remain stable overall.
In other words, the primary goal of this policy round might not be to push Chengdu’s real estate market back into a rising cycle but rather to stabilize transactions, stabilize expectations, and reduce resistance for homebuyers and property exchanges.
As for whether Chengdu’s real estate market can truly move out of the adjustment period, the upcoming “Golden September and Silver October” period will be an important observation window.