A night view of Nansha, South China's Guangdong Province Photo: VCG

Affordable public housing in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province can now be purchased by key talent in the region - including people from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and Macao SAR, according to a report by cctv.com on Sunday.

It's the first such move by Guangzhou to attract talent, as well as the first time for the city to allow residents of Hong Kong and Macao to acquire affordable housing.

Most of the 347 apartments have three bedrooms, with an area of 101 to 142 square meters. Located at the Nansha Pilot Free Trade Zone (FTZ) in Guangzhou, the first batch of common property housing will be open to young people who are experts in fields where Nansha has shortages. The home prices haven't been announced.

The purchaser's share of the property rights will be determined based on his/her actual capital contribution to the house. In principle, the share of the property rights of the purchaser should be more than 50 percent but less than 80 percent.

Nansha intends to become a cooperation demonstration zone linking Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao, according to a Greater Bay Area development plan that the State Council, China's cabinet, unveiled in February.

The new bay area is home to 71.16 million people, and it had a total GDP of $1.6 trillion in 2018.

The FTZ also aims to provide new space for the industrial transformation and upgrading of Hong Kong and Macao, as well as jobs for people from the SARs. 

The move follows months of social unrest in Hong Kong. Insiders have said this partly arises from built-up social problems, from housing to employment, that also require urgent attention and cooperation with the Chinese mainland. Housing is one of the most prevalent and challenging problems that many Hong Kong residents face, from low-income earners to young professionals.

In what is widely believed to be part of an effort to ease a housing shortage in the city, Hong Kong authorities recently announced plans to offer monthly allowances of up to HK$3,585 ($457.46) for those over 65 years old who choose to move to Guangdong or East China's Fujian Province to spend their retirements.

The amount of the allowance will be adjusted annually according to the established mechanism.