After a tough 2014, analysts say high-end home sales are picking up again in the Chinese commercial capital, spurred on by government policies, including a relaxation of property regulations and interest-rate cuts. Shanghai’s sales more than doubled in the first quarter of this year, with the sale of 353 luxury properties, defined as those priced above 65,000 yuan ($10,480) per-square-meter, or $974 a square foot, compared with 159 during the same period in 2014, according to real-estate consultancy Knight Frank. “The government’s policies (to ease property restrictions) are the major driver for the broader market and the luxury segment,” said Regina Yang, Knight Frank Shanghai’s head of research and consultancy. Luxury home sales took a hit in China last year as economic growth slowed to its weakest pace in more than two decades, and the government cracked down on corruption and extravagant spending. New home prices in the broader Chinese market have been falling for months, as they are still reeling from the government’s previous moves aimed at reining in the overheating property sector. The sustained slump in prices prompted government efforts to revitalize the real-estate market, a main pillar of China’s economy. The measures included a surprise interest rate cut in November. A deal in November last year underscored the real-estate market’s growing momentum. A 485-square-meter duplex penthouse at Tomson Riviera in the business district of Lujiazui, the home of hundreds of futuristic skyscrapers overlooking Shanghai’s famed Huangpu River, sold for a record 117.5 million yuan ($19 million), according to brokerage Savills. It was the highest ever per-square-meter price for an apartment in Shanghai. Sentiment was buoyed after China announced further easing measures in early April, lowering down-payment requirements for second-home buyers and relaxing rules on transaction taxes. Knight Frank’s Yang said she predicted prime residential prices would gain about 8% this year on the back of the stimulus measures and improving sentiment. However, Jones Lang LaSalle head of research for Eastern China, Joe Zhou, said he didn’t believe the increase in Shanghai prime residential prices would be drastic, as average prices for high-end apartments have remained flat at around $1,155 a square foot compared with a year ago. “Sales prices for luxury properties will increase moderately in 2015,” he told Mansion Global. Some developers have reportedly raised prices for new luxury projects in China amid the improving sentiment. Some 1,200 new luxury home units are expected to be launched across the city this year, according to Knight Frank. Shanghai has been a favorite property investment destination. Its status as China’s commercial capital attracts young professionals, especially those who work in the finance and tech industries. The majority of the luxury homebuyers are Chinese; foreign buyers account for only about one-tenth of the market. Foreigners who have been a legal resident in China for at least one year are eligible to buy a property, although they are limited to one home and it must be for their own personal use.