Signals of the bottom for "old, shabby and small" properties have emerged.

The "old, shabby, and small" properties that have become highly cost - effective have finally started to stabilize.

The second - hand housing market heat assessment report released by the Puri Data Intelligence Research Center shows that the proportion of second - hand housing transactions with a total price of less than 3 million yuan in Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Beijing has been continuously rising. Among them, the average transaction prices of low - total - price housing units in Shanghai and Hangzhou have stopped falling and stabilized for several consecutive months.

Against the background of a still weakly recovering and highly differentiated overall second - hand housing market, the "old, shabby, and small" properties with low total prices, small floor areas, and located in core areas have taken the lead in showing signs of stabilization.

01

During the "small spring" in March and April, the second - hand housing transactions in cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, and Hangzhou have significantly recovered, and the proportion of transactions of small - area and low - total - price housing units has continued to rise.

After Shanghai's second - hand housing transactions reached 28,492 units in March, hitting a new high in the past four years, the number of transactions in April was 25,985 units, still a 25% year - on - year increase. Among them, 18,312 units of second - hand housing with a total price of less than 3 million yuan were transacted, a 45% year - on - year increase. In terms of the proportion of transactions, the proportions of housing units with an area of less than 90 square meters and a total price of less than 3 million yuan reached 67% and 70% respectively. The proportion of housing units with a total price of less than 2 million yuan increased from 35% in January 2025 to 50%.

In Beijing, the second - hand housing transactions exceeded 18,000 units for two consecutive months from March to April, a 9% year - on - year increase. In April, the number of transactions of housing units with a total price of less than 3 million yuan increased by 29% year - on - year. In terms of proportion, the proportion of housing units with a total price of less than 3 million yuan reached 78%, which was only 65% at the beginning of 2023. Among them, the proportion of housing units with a total price of less than 2 million yuan increased to 60%.

The second - hand residential transactions in Hangzhou have exceeded 9,000 units for two consecutive months, with two consecutive month - on - month increases. Among them, 6,865 units of second - hand housing with a total price of less than 3 million yuan were transacted in April, showing both year - on - year and month - on - month increases. The proportion of transactions of housing units with a total price of less than 2 million yuan reached 49%, and the proportion of housing units with a total price of less than 1.5 million yuan soared from the lowest 14% in 2023 to 32%.

The customer groups for second - hand housing in core cities are still mainly composed of self - occupied homebuyers with a preference for low - total - price properties. As the prices of "old, shabby, and small" housing units have become highly cost - effective, the previously pent - up demand from on - the - fence homebuyers has been continuously released, becoming the core driving force for the recovery of the second - hand housing market.

02

The current second - hand housing market is still trading volume for price, and the overall second - hand housing prices are still on a downward trend. However, signs of structural stabilization of "old, shabby, and small" properties have emerged.

Specifically, the prices of "old, shabby, and small" properties with a total price of less than 3 million yuan in Shanghai have stopped falling and even slightly rebounded for 3 - 6 consecutive months. The prices of housing units with an area of less than 70 square meters have slightly increased by 2.4% compared to the low point in November 2025. After the rapid digestion of low - total - price housing units, the bargaining space for the remaining housing units in the market has narrowed. In contrast, the average transaction prices of housing units in each price segment above 3 million yuan are still falling.

In Hangzhou, the lowest point of the average transaction price of low - total - price housing units below 3 million yuan appeared in December last year. As of April this year, the prices have stopped falling for 4 consecutive months. Among them, the average prices of housing units in the price segments of less than 1.5 million yuan, 1.5 - 2 million yuan, and 2 - 3 million yuan have slightly increased by 1.7%, 3.3%, and 2.5% respectively compared to the low points. In contrast, the average transaction prices of housing units in the price segment above 3 million yuan have continued to hit new lows, and the adjustment of improved - type housing units is still ongoing.

2026 is a year for confirming the bottom of the real estate market, and the price bottom of "old, shabby, and small" properties needs to be confirmed. Currently, the transaction prices of low - total - price "old, shabby, and small" properties in Shanghai and Hangzhou have stopped falling for several consecutive months, indicating the bottom. However, overall, the current recovery of the second - hand housing market is mainly due to the phased release of the pent - up demand from on - the - fence homebuyers after continuous price drops. The pattern of "trading volume for price" has not changed, and this trend will continue in the short term.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Ding Zuyu's Review of the Real Estate Market". Author: Editorial Department, Puri Research. Republished by 36Kr with authorization.