SHENZHEN’S home rent recorded a decline in April, the first monthly drop this year, as the rental market became sluggish with supply exceeding demand, the Shenzhen Economic Daily reported yesterday.

    According to Centaline Property, the city’s average monthly rent in April fell to 75.4 yuan (US$11.52) per square meter. The average rent of each apartment dropped from 5,949 yuan per month in March to 5,735 yuan last month.

    Centaline’s data showed over 30 percent of tenants lived in Longgang District, where the average rent dropped by 1.5 percent in April compared with a month ago, with the average rent of each apartment hovering around 3,500 yuan per month.

    Around 17 percent of tenants live in Futian, and decreasing demand has led to the decline of housing rent in some areas. In the Gangsha area, the average rent of each apartment decreased from 7,756 yuan per month in March to 7,061 yuan in April, while the rent in the Huanggang area saw a month-on-month decline of 468 yuan.

    In Yantian District, the average monthly rent dropped by 4.2 percent to 47 yuan per square meter in April. The housing rent in Longhua New Area, Bao’an and Futian districts saw a month-on-month growth of less than 1 percent.

    Many people moved to suburban areas for lower rent and bigger apartments. Statistics from Midland Realty and 58.com showed that over 70 percent of tenants have considered moving to suburban areas if the rent difference is 300 to 700 yuan, according to the report.

    Centaline Property’s research center said the supply of rental apartments increased by 70 percent after the Spring Festival.

    The sales volume of apartments plunged 49.32 percent last week from the previous week, or 76.15 percent from the same period last year, as potential homebuyers took a wait-and-see attitude after the government tightened home-buying rules in a bid to bring a runaway market under control.

    (Zhang Yang)