Think tank advises buying property in the US

Investing in China's real estate market will not be as profitable as buying property in the US, mainly due to China's property curbs and the US housing market recovery, a top Chinese government think tank said in a report released Wednesday.

Property prices in China will be relatively stable in 2013 and there is limited room for further rises, given the country's regulation of the property market, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences said in the report.

But US property prices fell to their lowest point last year since 2008. They have begun to rise again and will continue the upward trend in the next five to seven years, the report said, given US quantitative easing policies and a relaxed environment for real estate financing.

Wang Shi, chairman of China Vanke Co, the country's largest property developer, also suggested it is a good time to invest in US property. The market is seeing a revival and the appreciation of the Chinese currency also helps, he said on the sidelines of a forum held Saturday at Harvard University.

However, experts said investing in the US property market also has potential risks.

"The recovery in the US property market has been mainly boosted by low interest rates and the inflow of short-term speculative capital. If the US tightens mortgage lending rules, the market will face a downturn," Xie Yifeng, head of the Asia-Pacific Real Estate Association, told the Global Times Wednesday.