Asia (China) Long-term Rental Apartment Development Report, April 2026

April Review of the Long - term Rental Apartment Market in Asia (China)

01 Global Apartment Market Development Trends

In April, according to the monitoring data of the Asia Tourism and Accommodation Big Data Research Institute, the global rental market showed a trend of recovery and differentiation. After experiencing a supply peak, the rental prices in the European and American markets stabilized after a decline, with a moderate rebound in major cities. Asia showed differentiation, with overall rents remaining stable but on the weak side, while core cities remained strong.

In the United States, the market is in a digestion period of "inventory backlog". Tenants have more bargaining power in southern and mountainous cities, while the market remains tight in the Northeast and along the Pacific coast. The average national rent is about $1,730, a month - on - month increase of 0.2% and a year - on - year increase of only 0.5%. This reflects that although the market has entered the peak season, a large amount of new supply has limited the room for rent increases. San Francisco and Boston still lead in high rents. In San Francisco, rents soared by 1.0% month - on - month in April, with an annual increase of up to 7.3%, showing the strong market resilience of the technology center. In Austin and Denver, affected by over - development in the past two years, rents in these once - booming cities have continued to decline. Austin's rent decreased by 4.1% year - on - year, becoming a typical tenant's market.

In Italy, the market is experiencing "selective growth", with funds concentrating on high - quality, modern real estate that meets ESG standards, while the rent growth of old apartments is relatively weak. The overall rent level increased steadily in April. Due to the decline in mortgage interest rates, some tenants have turned to buying homes, but the rental demand in the core areas still far exceeds the supply, and the annual rent growth rate remains between 2% and 4%. In Milan, as the most expensive city in Italy, the rent for a one - bedroom apartment in the city center has risen to €1,500 - €2,200. The report shows that in Milan, rent may account for 72% of net salary, indicating a very high cost of living. Rome and Bologna also face a shortage of supply. Due to the recovery of the tourism industry and the squeeze of short - term rentals, the inventory of the long - term rental market is at a historical low.

In the UK, the rental market is in a "highly regionalized" state. The average rent across the UK (including London) reached £1,325, a month - on - month increase of 1.1% and a year - on - year increase of 2.1%. April was extremely active, mainly affected by the "Renters' Rights Act" to be implemented in May. Both landlords and tenants are accelerating adjustments before the new regulations come into effect. In London, rents rebounded strongly in April, with the average monthly rent rising to £2,259, a month - on - month increase of 3%. Despite the high cost of living, London's international appeal still makes housing in short supply. In Scotland, the performance was the most radical, with the average rent increasing by 3.9% in April. In contrast, there was a 2 - 3% correction in some parts of Wales and northern England.

02 Asia - Pacific Rental Market Development Trends

In Australia, due to high construction costs, the completion volume of new houses is far lower than the demand brought by the growth of immigrants, and the rent level has continued to reach new highs. The average rent across Australia has maintained a strong upward trend. According to the Q1 2026 rental report of Cotality (formerly CoreLogic), the national rent increased by 5.7% year - on - year, and tenants' housing expenditure has accounted for 33.1% of pre - tax household income, reaching a historical high. In Sydney, it remains the most expensive market in Australia. In April, the average weekly rent for apartments reached A$750, and the weekly rent for single - family houses was approaching A$800. In Brisbane, the performance was radical. From the first quarter to April, Brisbane led the rent increase in Australia. Tenants described the market competition as a "Hunger Games", and low - price listings of A$400 per week have completely disappeared.

In Singapore, after several years of sky - rocketing growth, the rental market in Singapore has shown relatively moderate performance and is transitioning from a "landlord's market" to a "balanced market". April data shows that the annual growth rate of private residential rents has slowed to 2% - 3%, and the growth rate of HDB flats has remained between 1% - 3%. In the Core Central Region (CCR), high - quality assets in prime locations and with modern specifications have shown strong performance. The rent of high - quality retail and residential spaces in the Marina Centre and City Hall areas still increased by about 4.6% year - on - year. In the Outside Central Region (OCR), the rent trend has become stable, and the average rent remains at about S$6.15 per square foot. For weaker listings, rent concessions or increased incentives are starting to appear to attract tenants. The market shows obvious "polarization" - "green buildings" with convenient transportation and modern facilities are still in high demand, while old and remote assets are facing pressure of declining occupancy rates.

In South Korea, the main characteristics of the rental market are the continuous cooling of the traditional "Jeonse" system and the expansion of the monthly rent (Wolse) market in scale and price increase. Affected by the shadow of "Jeonse fraud" in the past two years and the high - interest - rate environment, tenants' willingness to pay large deposits has decreased, and more funds have flowed into the monthly rent market. This has directly pushed up the monthly rent level across South Korea, and the monthly rent index has steadily climbed year - on - year in April. As the core, Seoul still has strong rental demand. Since the supply of new buildings reached a phased low in 2026, the monthly rent in the central area of Seoul has accelerated its increase in April, especially for one - bedroom apartments and high - quality apartments (Apartment). According to the official website of Realtor, the monthly rent of ordinary apartments is about 1.5 million won or more. In Gyeonggi - do, affected by the high rents in Seoul, the population has continued to flow out to the areas around Seoul, driving up the rental activity in surrounding commuter cities, and rents have risen accordingly.

03 China's Rental Market Development Trends

In April, among the top 10 key monitored cities, rents increased in 4 cities and decreased in 6 cities month - on - month. According to the data from the China Housing Price Market Network, the national median rent was 1,700 yuan per month, remaining unchanged month - on - month. In April, among the top 10 cities, the city with the largest month - on - month decline was Nyingchi, with a decline of 4.16%, and the city with the largest increase was Tianjin, with an increase of 6.87%.

04 Opening Dynamics of Rental Enterprises

The Jiufa Zhiyu · Datang project in Sanshui, Foshan officially opened. On April 1st, the Jiufa Zhiyu · Datang project, which was invested, constructed and operated by Foshan Anju Real Estate Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Foshan Construction and Development Group Co., Ltd., officially opened. This is the first comprehensive community of affordable rental housing integrating residential, apartment, commercial and hotel in Datang Town, Sanshui District. The total construction area of the project is about 78,000 square meters, providing a total of 782 rental units, equipped with 451 parking spaces for motor vehicles. The unit types cover single rooms, one - bedroom and one - living - room to four - bedroom and two - living - room, with an area ranging from 36 to 119 square meters, and the monthly rent starts from 499 yuan.

The Ascott Jimei Serviced Residence in Xiamen opened. On April 3rd, the Ascott Jimei Serviced Residence in Xiamen, jointly built by Xiamen Metro TOD and The Ascott Limited, officially opened. The Jimei Software Park TOD is the first industrial TOD fully self - owned and operated by Xiamen Metro TOD. It is located in the Jimei Software Park area, with a total construction area of about 279,000 square meters, forming a comprehensive complex above the subway integrating commerce, hotel, office and apartment. The Ascott Jimei Serviced Residence has a total of 289 guest rooms, covering a variety of room types, suitable for long - term residents in the park, business travelers and other diverse customer groups. It is also equipped with a restaurant, gym, meeting room and other full - dimensional facilities, and at the same time incorporates the design elements of the "Jia Geng style" in southern Fujian.

The first Mixiaoting Smart Community Talent Apartment in the country opened in Bengbu. On April 7th, the first Mixiaoting Smart Community Talent Apartment in the country officially opened in Bengbu. As an important supporting facility of the China Sensor Valley, this project is the first full - system implementation practice of the Xiaomi ecosystem in the field of smart living. Relying on 6 newly - built buildings, the apartment has built nearly 2,000 high - end talent apartments and set up a variety of room types to fully meet the housing needs of different levels of talents. The interior of the apartment is equipped with smart door locks, voice hubs and a full set of Xiaomi household appliances, fully realizing the interconnection of all things.

The Yujian Anju · Hanlongyuan in Shenzhen officially opened. On April 8th, the Yujian Anju · Hanlongyuan project in Longgang District, Shenzhen officially opened, supplying 392 rental housing units. The project offers two unit types: a 69 - square - meter two - bedroom and an 88 - square - meter three - bedroom. The rooms are delivered in a modern, simple and warm standard full - decoration, with all furniture and household appliances available, allowing for move - in immediately.

The Woqu Guangzhou Window Nanzhou Apartment officially opened. On April 17th, the Woqu Guangzhou Window Nanzhou Apartment officially opened. The company is located in the prime area of Haizhu District, and there is also the Sanjiao Village Bus Station nearby, with multiple bus routes making travel more flexible. The apartment offers three high - quality unit types, and the rooms are fully equipped. In addition, the public facilities of the apartment include an office area, a leisure area, an audio - visual area, a fitness area and a reading area, which can meet the diverse needs of different tenants.

The Ascott Xinzhancheng Serviced Residence in Shanghai opened. On April 22nd, the Ascott Xinzhancheng Serviced Residence in Shanghai opened in Pudong. The serviced residence is located at Gaojian North Road, Pudong New Area, in the hinterland of the Shanghai Free Trade Pilot Zone. Adhering to the concept of "low - carbon living", the apartment has built 207 rooms, covering luxury single rooms to two - bedroom executive suites.

The Tulip Lodj Hotel and Serviced Apartment signed an agreement to enter the Huai'an Financial Center in Jiangsu. On April 8th, the Tulip Lodj Hotel and Serviced Apartment (TULIP LODJ), a joint - venture brand of Jinjiang Hotels (China) and The Ascott China, officially signed an agreement to enter the Huai'an Financial Center in Jiangsu. The Tulip brand is about to enter the D area of the financial center built by Huai'an Guolian Group. It is only 500 meters away from the first Wanda Mall in northern Jiangsu that has opened, and is connected with Wanda Plaza, Gemdale Mall, an open - style theme block, Boji Mountain Park, etc., with many office buildings around.

Anju Ningchao signed an agreement for two affordable rental housing projects in Hangzhou. On April 16th, Anju Ningchao Company reached a cooperation with Hangzhou Urban Construction and Development Group on the revitalization of a total of 120 existing houses in Building 5 of Sanlitinyuan Community Phase IV and the comprehensive building of Daguanxisan Community. The housing units will be included in the management of affordable rental housing. These housing units are located in Zhalongkou Street, Shangcheng District and Daguan Street, Gongshu District respectively, in the core area of Hangzhou, with significant location advantages and mature surrounding living facilities. They are mainly small - sized units of 40 - 60 square meters.

05 Market Entry Dynamics of Affordable Rental Housing and Talent Apartments

In April, the market entry dynamics of affordable rental housing reflected the characteristics of scale, diversification and policy - orientation. It not only met the needs of people's livelihood security but also explored the market - oriented operation model, promoting the optimization of the rental market structure.

The second batch of affordable rental housing in Zhengzhou was rented out online on April 2nd. On April 2nd, the second batch of affordable rental housing in Zhengzhou was officially launched for online rental. The whole process was carried out online. Applicants can log in to the "Zheng Haoban" APP, the "Zheng Haozhu · Affordable Rental Housing" module to apply, select a house, sign a contract and withdraw. This batch of rental housing units totals 102 sets (206 rooms), including 2 sets (3 rooms) in Zhengdong New Area, 49 sets (103 rooms) in Erqi District and 51 sets (100 rooms) in Jinshui District. The water and electricity fees of the housing units are all in accordance with the civilian standards. They are delivered in full - decoration, equipped with furniture and household appliances, allowing for move - in immediately. The subsequent housing units will be rented out successively according to the decoration progress.

Weilingdi in Shanghai Jiading launched 2,206 units of affordable rental housing. On April 7th, the New Hongqiao Lake Weilingdi Youth Community in Nanxiang Town, Jiading District, Shanghai started trial operation. The project is planned to have a total of 2,206 units of affordable rental housing, with an area ranging from 18 square meters to 35 square meters, and the rent starts from 2,288 yuan per month. The project is built by Weilingdi Group, targeting new urban residents and young people. It is planned to have two L - shaped buildings, offering a variety of unit types such as C, D and E. Among them, there are 684 rooms of Type C and 1,037 rooms of Type D, suitable for single - person living; 163 rooms of Type E are equipped with independent small dining tables, which can meet the living needs of two people.

The first affordable rental housing project "Anyi Jiayu" at Shenzhen Airport was officially launched. On April 8th, the first affordable rental housing project "Anyi Jiayu" at Shenzhen Airport was officially launched, aiming to build a high - quality, smart youth housing community in the "Greater Qianhai" area. As of now, the first batch of customers of the T3 Station - front Apartment project have completed signing contracts. The project includes the T3 Station - front Apartment and the Shenzhen Airport Education Base Apartment, with a total construction area of over 100,000 square meters, providing a total of over 2,300 fully - decorated housing units, covering 5 unit types such as studio apartments and one - bedroom and one - living - room. The T3 Station - front Apartment is 500 meters away from the T3 Terminal on foot and is equipped with 6,000 square meters of public space, including commercial and catering facilities; the Education Base Apartment is adjacent to Subway Lines 1 and 12, with mature surrounding facilities.

The Xinyue Yangguangcheng affordable rental housing project in Shanghai Minhang has been fully put into operation. In April, the large - scale affordable rental community - Xinyue Yangguangcheng Phases I, II and III in Xinzhuang Industrial Zone, Minhang, Shanghai has been fully put into operation. The project has built a multi - level housing supply system of "a single bed, a single room, a set of rooms", aiming to provide a liv