"Thanks to the implementation of the policies and the improvement of the market environment, confidence has been restored to some extent, and some homebuyers with demand for first or improved housing have entered the market, driving a rebound in transaction volumes."

　　The positive momentum continued in April. Official figures revealed that in Beijing, 4,444 new homes were sold in the first 18 days of the month — exceeding the March total.

　　In Shanghai, 5,311 new homes were sold in the first 18 days of April, a stronger increase than that of the same period in March, according to the Shanghai Real Estate Trading Center.

　　The pre-owned home market also maintained strong momentum, with 9,916 existing homes changing hands in Beijing in the first 18 days of April, rising from 9,783 in the same period of March, while Shanghai recorded a total of 16,503 home transactions in the secondary market.

　　Normally a peak season, the five-day May Day holiday provides homebuyers time for viewings, typically leading to an increase in transactions, said Brodie.

　　"We anticipate that the real estate markets in first — and second-tier cities are expected to continue the recovery momentum during the May Day holiday, with both new and existing home transaction volumes projected to maintain moderate growth," he added.

　　"Cities with strong fundamentals are gradually bottoming out, becoming bellwethers and helping improve sentiment for more cities to follow suit," said Lu Wenxi, an analyst at Centaline Shanghai.

　　Lu said he has full confidence that the upcoming holiday and the whole month of May will outperform the same period last year, placing the residential property market on a steady recovery track.