China has urged local governments to reserve at least 70 percent of the land designated for residential construction for low-rent units or smaller, cheaper commercial homes.

Local governments should fully implement the state's macro-control policies and accelerate the establishment of a housing security system, said Qi Ji, Vice Minister of Construction, at a meeting on Wednesday in Qingdao City, in east China's Shandong Province.

He stressed that land used to build houses for low-income families, whether low-rent units or low-cost commercial flats with size and price ceilings, should comprise at least 70 percent of the total land used for residential construction in the next two years.

Housing price inflation in China hit a new monthly high of 9.5 percent in October, 0.6 percentage point higher than in September, despite government efforts to cool the boom.

The government has been trying to curb soaring real estate prices and guarantee adequate h...

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