Sept 20 — Qingdao Municipal Housing Provident Fund announced one-time
withdrawals from provident fund accounts may be used for home renovations for
households owning self-occupied property in the city. Withdrawal amounts are
calculated at a renovation unit price of 1,500 yuan per sq m, capped at 200,000
yuan per household; each household may withdraw against only one self-occupied
property. Qualified families purchasing a second property will be treated as
first-home buyers for fund purposes. Loan quotas for new city residents and
young borrowers will be calculated at 25 times their account balance.