China’s property bubble has grown so huge that 85pc of Chinese living in cities can no longer afford to buy a home, according to an influential Chinese government think tank. The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) said that a typical Chinese property now costs 8.8 years of average earnings. In addition, house prices are still rising far in excess of wages, putting property beyond the reach of average Chinese. CASS estimated that Chinese property prices had risen by 15pc this year, although the rises in some cities have been far steeper. “House prices have risen steadily for years,” said Zhou Linhua, co-author of the report. “This has inflated investor expectations of a high return, which has brought more money flooding into the market.”