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This photo taken on April 24, 2023 shows a night view of Luohu district in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong province. (Xinhua)

Guangzhou and Shenzhen, in South China's Guangdong province, have become the latest Chinese cities to ease the financial pressure for buying houses.

In a notice issued on May 28, the municipal government of Guangzhou said home buyers in the city will enjoy reduced down-payment ratios.

Non-Guangzhou residents will also be allowed to purchase two homes, the same as local residents, in six districts of Guangzhou, if they have a record of paying social insurance or income tax in the city for at least six months — down from two years as was previously required.

The six districts, including Yuexiu, Haizhu and Tianhe, previously allowed non-Guangzhou residents to purchase only one home.

Authorities in Shenzhen have also announced new moves to lower down-payment ratios and reduce the lower limit of interest rates on home loans based on the tenor of benchmark loan prime rate (LPR) on May 28. The minimum down-payment ratio for individual commercial housing mortgages has been lowered to 20 percent for first-home purchases and 30 percent for second-home purchases.

The new policies in both cities come into effect on May 29.

A number of Chinese cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou and Chengdu, have recently adjusted real estate policies, with measures such as eased purchase restrictions and trade-ins of commercial housing.

On May 27, the eastern metropolis of Shanghai unveiled a set of measures to support home buyers, including further easing home-purchase restrictions for non-Shanghai residents and allowing families with two or more children to purchase an additional home.