In the first half of 2026, the outstanding housing loans of six major state-owned banks in China, including Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, decreased by 5082.84 billion yuan compared to the end of last year. This marks the 13th consecutive quarter where the year-on-year growth rate of individual housing loans on the mainland has been negative.
According to a report by “First Finance” on August 31, data released by the People’s Bank of China showed that in July, resident loans decreased by 460.3 billion yuan, a decrease of 29 billion yuan compared to the same period last year. Among them, medium to long-term loans, primarily housing loans, decreased by 120.2 billion yuan, a decrease of 10.2 billion yuan year-on-year. Additionally, the “2026 Second Quarter Statistics Report on Financial Institutions’ Loan Allocations” indicated that as of the end of June, the balance of individual housing loans was 36.29 trillion yuan, a decrease of 716.3 billion yuan in the first half of this year, accounting for 12.8% of the total loan balance. Overall, in the first seven months of this year, resident loans decreased by a total of 827.1 billion yuan, a decrease of 1.5 trillion yuan year-on-year.
It was mentioned in the report that the year-on-year growth rate of individual housing loan balances on the mainland has been negative for 13 consecutive quarters.
The semi-annual reports of the six major state-owned banks in China, including Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), China Construction Bank, Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China, Bank of Communications, and China Postal Savings Bank for 2026 showed that the total outstanding housing loans of the six major banks were approximately 24.63 trillion yuan, a decrease of 5082.84 billion yuan from the end of last year. In the entire previous year, the outstanding housing loans of the six major banks decreased by around 696.6 billion yuan, with the proportion of housing loans in the majority of large bank personal loans declining.
Specifically, by the end of the first half of the year, the outstanding housing loans of China Construction Bank had decreased by approximately 134.9 billion yuan compared to the end of last year, while ICBC had reduced its housing loans by about 135.2 billion yuan. The outstanding housing loans of Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China, Bank of Communications, and China Postal Savings Bank also decreased by approximately 88.2 billion yuan, 74.4 billion yuan, 39.9 billion yuan, and 35.8 billion yuan respectively in the first half of the year.
Industry experts generally believe that the decrease in outstanding housing loans indicates that the new housing loans issued in the market are less than the repayment amounts, with the core reason being a decrease in the number of people taking out loans to purchase homes.
The latest data reveals that due to a sluggish market, the price decline of second-hand homes in China’s top 100 cities in August continues to expand. Data released by the China Index Research Institute on September 1 showed that in August, the average price of second-hand residential homes in the top 100 cities was 12,527 yuan per square meter, a decrease of 0.45% month-on-month and 7.08% year-on-year. Looking at the number of cities, in August, only seven cities saw an increase in second-hand residential prices compared to the previous month, while 93 cities experienced a decline. Overall, in the first eight months of 2026, the average price of second-hand residential homes in the top 100 cities dropped by 3.76%, and the market still faces downward pressure.
It is generally believed in the industry that second-hand home prices often more accurately reflect the actual situation of the real estate market compared to new homes. New home prices are influenced by factors such as pricing strategies of developers, the introduction of high-priced quality projects to the market, and promotional discounts, while the pricing of second-hand homes is directly negotiated between buyers and sellers, making the prices more closely aligned with real supply and demand dynamics, as well as the actual purchasing power and market sentiment of buyers.
With the market in a downturn, life is also challenging for real estate enterprises. According to a report by “First Finance” on July 21, of the 70-plus A-share listed real estate companies that had already disclosed their semi-annual reports for 2026, over 70% (around 55 companies) reported losses, with a total loss ranging from 38.4 billion yuan to 50.2 billion yuan.
According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics of China, in the first half of 2026, real estate investment decreased by 18% year-on-year, new housing construction has fallen by over 23%, and new housing sales have declined by nearly 14%.