Tech & Sci
17:03, 12-Aug-2017
Alibaba to build smart house rental system in China
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Hangzhou-based Chinese tech giant Alibaba has signed an agreement with its home city government to use the company's technology to create an online system for house rentals.
The system will cover apartments put up for rent from all sources including the government, individuals, real estate developers and agents, according to the agreement signed earlier this week.
Alibaba has signed an agreement with government to use the company's technology to create an online system for house rentals. /AFP Photo
Alibaba has signed an agreement with government to use the company's technology to create an online system for house rentals. /AFP Photo
People hunting for a house to rent in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, will be able to use the application and website created by the tech giant for every stage of the process, from searching for apartments to signing contracts and payment.
Information about apartments, user reviews, and credibility ratings of landlords, tenants and agents will all be shared, said Han Junqing, director of the Hangzhou Real Estate Registration Center.
The smart house renting system, as it is called, will be supported by Alibaba's big data, online payment technology, and commerce credit system and can prevent fraudulent deals, sources with the government and Alibaba said.
China's housing rental market in major cities has been dominated by real estate agents, and fraud and disputes are not unusual. /AFP Photo
China's housing rental market in major cities has been dominated by real estate agents, and fraud and disputes are not unusual. /AFP Photo
China's housing rental market in major cities has been dominated by real estate agents, and fraud cases and disputes are not unusual.
Though some big property companies already have apps, the information they have is not shared with others. Apartment seekers have to repeatedly compare offers from different apps, and these companies lack a mature credit system comparable to Zhima Credit from Alibaba's subsidiary Ant Financial.
The Chinese government is prioritizing the development of its rental market to rein in runaway home prices in the country's big cities. Hangzhou is among the first 12 cities chosen by the central government to take bold reforms to boost the rental market.
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Source(s): Xinhua News Agency