Chinese hospital outbids Vanke to secure most expensive land in Shanxi’s capital city

In a rare move, a hospital backed by the local government outbid property giant China Vanke to buy the most expensive residential land ever sold in Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi province.

Shanxi Provincial People’s Hospital, the biggest medical centre in the province, agreed to pay 440 million yuan for a site in central Taiyuan, close to the hospital, setting a record for the city. The average floor price works out at 8,075 yuan per square metre.

China’s largest developer Vanke bid for six rounds during the public auction on Wednesday but failed to win the plot.

Analysts said the site would likely be used for housing for the hospital staff.

Cooperative housing, a traditional form of welfare housing for civil servants and state-owned enterprise employees in China since the 1950s, was still common in Taiyuan, said Chen Sheng, dean of the China Real Estate Data Academy.

In the past, land for welfare housing was allocated by the government.