Mega homes project ready in Beijing (3)

The process of equipment testing has been completed and now they are working hard to fix any problems to satisfy the checks from the government, Wang said.

During the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15) period, the Beijing government plans to build more than 1 million affordable houses, including these public rental units.

The project in Jingyuan Lu started on March 30 last year.

The project is a trial program which has done away with the stipulation that only residents of Shijingshan district may apply to live in the subsidized housing in that area. Eligible applicants from other districts or counties in Beijing are able to apply to rent the houses, said a publicity official of Beijing Municipal Bureau of Housing and Urban-Rural Development.

Low and middle-income earners, new employees and those who are not permanent residents but have worked in the city for a certain number of years, are eligible to apply for public rental housing in Beijing, according to a regulation that took effect in December 2011.

The rental price will be 40 yuan ($6.40) per square meter.