Monthly Rent In China = How Many Big Macs?

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But how much is their rent? Recently, Southern Economic Think Tank of Nanfang Media Group, Newsgd.com, Nanfang Plus and China Construction Bank (Guangdong branch) has released the Big Mac Index 2018 of rent in Guangzhou, which measures the average monthly rental per square in Big Macs. 

The Big Mac Index 2018

The Big Mac Index 2018 is a statistical analysis based on the rental transaction date (from January to July) of the houses within 1 kilometre of metro stations of 16 lines(number includes those still under construction) in Guangzhou, see below↓↓↓

From the figures above, it is clear that Tianhe District ranks as the most expensive in terms of rent per square meter.

The overall monthly rental price

According to the big data, as of July this year the cost of renting new properties in Haizhu, Tianhe and Baiyun Districts had risen by 9.7%, 4.2% and 1.9% year on year.

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When it comes to previously rented properties or second-hand housing market, the overall monthly rental price is 48.7 yuan per square (equivalent of 2.9 Big Macs), demonstrating a slight month-on-month decline of 1%. 

The average monthly rent

Compared to last year, the average monthly rent per capita has risen to 2201.1 yuan (129 Big Macs), implying that wage earners are pursuing better living quality in general.

© Image | 歪果仁在中国

However, that is still markedly cheaper than the other 3 first-tier cities, with Beijing at 3213.6 yuan (189 Big Macs-a whopping increase of 60 on Guangzhou!), Shanghai 2881.8 yuan (170 Big Macs) and Shenzhen at 2509.1 yuan (148 Big Macs).