Demand for rental properties in Shanghai has been on the rise since the city lifted Covid restrictions on June first. Some agencies are receiving even more clients compared to late March, when the city was closed off to contain an outbreak. Chen Tong reports. 

This property agency in Sanlin area of Shanghai's Pudong New Area has been quite busy since it resumed its business early this month. Agents say the number of walk-in clients is more than what they had before the city's recent outbreak in March.

CHAO WENXIU Real Estate Agent, Shanghai Lianjia "We arrange about five or six viewings a day, sometimes seven or eight. That's two viewings more compared to pre-outbreak times. You can barely find an agent at the office because they are all out working."

CHEN TONG Shanghai "The area is Sanlin is home to hundreds of residential communities with relatively cheap prices. So places like Sanlin have become attractive for renters ever since Shanghai lifted COVID restrictions on June 1st."

Zhang Di is a college graduate looking for jobs in Shanghai. Zhang has been sharing a flat, but now he is looking to find a place to live alone.

ZHANG DI Renter "I just want to find a new and better environment. I have been staying in my old apartment for more than two months."

Real estate consulting firm Cushman & Wakefield says most of the current rental demand comes from either renters looking to upgrade apartments, or college graduates. But with Shanghai gradually resuming business activities, demand is expected to be spurred among job seekers from other cities.

SHAUN BRODIE Head of Occupier Research, Cushman & Wakefield Greater China "Shanghai obviously is a city attracts a lot of people, attracts people around China and also attracts international workers as well. Simply Shanghai is an international city and cosmopolitan city as well. It offers a huge amount of opportunities for people to look for employment."

Other provinces in Yangtze River Delta such as Jiangsu and Zhejiang have loosened travel restrictions for people coming from Shanghai. And with travel taking pace, the real estate market in Shanghai is expected to recover even more rapidly in the following weeks. CHEN TONG, CGTN, SHANGHAI.