Good Homes, Real Estate & Urban Renewal: Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development Unveils Latest Initiatives

The criteria for 'good homes' are safety, comfort, sustainability, and intelligence. The construction of 'good homes' will be advanced throughout the entire chain and lifecycle—from high standards, design, materials, construction, to operation and maintenance.

The latest version of the 'Residential Project Code' raises ceiling height from the previous 2.8 meters to 3 meters. In terms of residential amenities, elevators were previously required only in buildings 7 stories or higher; the new standard now mandates elevators in all buildings 4 stories and above. Additionally, to enhance child safety, the code uniformly increases guardrail heights at balconies, exterior corridors, and other open edges to no less than 1.2 meters.

New home construction focuses on two main areas: first, comprehensively upgrading quality across standards, design, materials, construction, and operation; second, promoting the application of smart construction, green construction, eco-friendly building materials, and modular building technologies to create 'good homes' that meet public expectations.

For example, some projects adopt 'separated piping technology,' where water, heating, and electrical systems are separated from the main structure, effectively avoiding wall drilling during future repairs or renovations and minimizing disturbance to neighbors. Some unit designs feature flexible, adaptable spaces that improve storage capacity and allow room for future modifications, meeting diverse needs such as multi-child families and aging-in-place requirements.

For old housing renovation, after inspection and assessment, two primary approaches are typically used: first, 'demolish and rebuild on-site,' especially for D-grade dangerous buildings, which must be demolished and rebuilt. This self-driven renewal has been piloted in multiple regions, producing mature models. Its advantage lies in minimal change in floor area but comprehensive upgrades in structure and function—effectively transforming old homes into new ones. Second, support is provided for renovation, repair, and localized improvements, including the promotion of prefabricated interior finishes and adoption of more practical, efficient technologies. At the same time, renovations integrate age-friendly and intelligent upgrades to meet evolving societal needs.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China will construct and renovate approximately 770,000 kilometers of urban underground pipelines, accelerate the improvement of drainage and flood prevention facilities, continue advancing the construction of urban lifeline safety systems, and steadily enhance resilience to disaster risks.

Urban underground pipelines include gas, water supply, drainage, sewage, heating lines, and integrated utility tunnels—often referred to as the city's 'blood vessels' and 'nervous system.' They are also a vital part of modern infrastructure networks. To achieve the pipeline upgrade goals, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development will implement four measures:

Focus on 'building well': Strengthen systematic advancement. Prioritize seamless integration between water, gas, heat pipelines and integrated utility tunnels. Coordinate the layout, sequencing, and standards of various pipelines. Promote synergistic linkage with five other major networks ('five network integrations') to enhance overall operational efficiency.

Focus on 'lasting long': Strictly manage quality and safety. Guide and urge local authorities to take strong responsibility, closely monitor critical stages such as planning, design, construction, and acceptance, strengthen full-process quality and safety management, and enforce accountability across all parties involved.

Focus on 'effective management': Establish long-term governance mechanisms. Accelerate the development of supporting policies, management systems, and operational frameworks. Collaborate across all stages—from engineering construction and project supervision to inter-departmental coordination and operations maintenance—to ensure balanced emphasis on construction and management, guaranteeing safe and orderly operation of underground pipelines throughout their lifecycle.

Focus on 'practical execution': Enhance coordinated implementation. Underground pipeline projects involve numerous departments and stakeholders, requiring joint efforts. Local housing and urban-rural development departments will strengthen regular communication and collaboration with relevant agencies, ensuring smooth coordination in elements security, administrative approvals, and collective action. Meanwhile, they will work with relevant departments to guide localities in jointly utilizing central and local funds, existing and new funds, and establish diversified investment mechanisms for pipeline construction and operation maintenance.

Officials from the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development stated that the share of secondary housing transactions rose from 27% in 2020 to 46% in 2025, reaching 52% in the first eight months of this year. Exceeding 50% marks China's official entry into the era of existing housing stock.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, the Ministry will actively respond to new trends and changes in the real estate sector, balancing risk prevention with transformation, while addressing people's livelihoods and economic stability. It aims to accelerate the establishment of a new model for real estate development, improve a housing system featuring multi-subject supply, multi-channel support, and equal emphasis on renting and purchasing, and promote high-quality real estate development.

In commercial housing sales, the government will fully implement the pre-sale-to-sales model, resolving the issue of 'paying first, receiving later' and achieving 'what you see is what you get,' fundamentally preventing delivery risks. The shift toward selling completed homes is already inevitable. National Bureau of Statistics data shows that the volume of completed home sales has continuously increased in recent years, accounting for an ever-growing share of total new home sales. New projects will prioritize the completion sale model, supported by coordinated land, financial, and tax policies. For projects still using pre-sales, enhanced supervision of pre-sale funds will be implemented to effectively protect buyers' rights and interests.