IN a response to misinterpretations by media outlets of Shenzhen’s plan to legalize some illegal buildings, an expert from the city’s real estate research center said there are no houses with limited property rights in Shenzhen. The clarification aims to dispel rumors that illegal buildings in Shenzhen will all be legalized after their owners pay a certain sum to the government.

A draft of management rules for illegal buildings was released by Shenzhen’s planning and land commission along with the legislative affairs office Friday. The authorities are currently seeking public opinions on the rules.

According to the draft, illegal buildings built for industrial use before June 2, 2009 can become legal commercial properties after their owners pay half of the land’s market price to the government. The move aims to free up more land for the city’s development.

Some media publications misunderstood the draft and claimed that houses with limited property rights could also become legal housing.

However, Wang Feng, head of Shenzhen Real Estate Research Center, clarified that the term, “houses with limited property rights,” refers to residential buildings on land that collectively belongs to villagers.

In fact, Shenzhen went through two rounds of urbanization in 1993 and 2004, during which all collective land previously owned by villages had become State-owned. Therefore, the illegal buildings used for housing in Shenzhen were not those with limited property rights.

Thus, those illegal buildings used for residential purposes will not be legalized, according to Wang. The expert also said that the draft does not address illegal residential buildings and the authorities would continue to crack down on the construction and trade of such buildings.

The draft also calls for the demolition of buildings constructed on farmland or in water-source protection areas, as well as those obstructing the construction of roads, parks and other public facilities.

Reports in early 2016 said illegal buildings in Shenzhen, which covered 428 million square meters at the end of 2015, accounted for about 43 percent of the city’s total construction area.   (Zhang Qian)