Measures should be in place to accelerate the development of affordable rental homes for better access to housing in China’s big cities, according to a circular released by the General Office of the State Council on July 2.

Affordable rental homes should mainly target migrant workers, college graduates, young people and other groups that meet eligibility criteria, and most of them should be no more than 70 square meters, with rent lower than for existing units of similar quality and within the same area.

While providing policy support, governments should tap into market mechanisms to attract multiple investors for related housing projects and increase the sources of supply.

Among the policies are improving land availability for building affordable rental homes and streamlining approval procedures, the circular said.

It also stressed allocating subsidies from the central budget, reducing tax and fee burdens, and enhancing credit support from banking institutions to facilitate that effort.

Municipal governments should establish and improve service platforms to strengthen whole-process oversight of construction, leasing and operations, as well as supervision over engineering quality and safety, the circular added.