Lawmakers should prioritize building a comprehensive legal framework for property management to reduce inconsistencies and improve coordination in tackling sector challenges, experts said.

While welcoming ongoing revisions to property management regulations, they stressed the need to align changes with existing laws — including the Civil Code, the Construction Law and the Personal Information Protection Law — to ensure legal coherence, promote high-quality development and strengthen community governance.

The recommendations were made at a recent forum jointly organized by the Beijing Property Law Research Society, the Beijing Property Management Association, the College of Humanities and Development Studies at China Agricultural University, and the Beijing Shengting Law Firm.

Participants highlighted key challenges in the sector and urged legislators to address them through timely regulatory revisions.

Lou Jianbo, a law professor at Peking University, said disputes over property fees remain a major issue. Some homeowners withhold payments to express dissatisfaction, leading to a large number of related lawsuits.

He cited the Civil Code, which took effect in 2021, noting that property management companies are prohibited from cutting off essential services such as water, electricity or heating to collect overdue fees.

Wang Shuai, director of the law committee of the Beijing Property Management Association, called for a comprehensive review of current regulations to identify inconsistencies with the code and make necessary amendments.

In recent years, national lawmakers and political advisers have also pushed for revising the regulation or enacting a dedicated law, saying the current version, implemented in 2009, is outdated and sometimes conflicts with higher-level laws, contributing to frequent disputes.

Gao Huarui, a deputy to the National People's Congress from Jiangsu province, proposed establishing a property management law to clarify procedures and legal responsibilities of homeowners' committees and strengthen oversight of property companies.

At the end of last year, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress called for prompt revisions, emphasizing that property management issues affect the fundamental interests of all citizens.