(Yicai Global) May 10 -- Chinese TikTok competitor Kuaishou intends to establish a property business center this year to help users buy and sell apartments, according to an insider.

The short-video platform is exploring high-value offline transactions through the plan, a person close to the Beijing-based company's e-commerce unit said to Yicai Global, confirming a rumor circulating online. The center's chief would report directly to Xiao Gu, the boss of the e-commerce unit, the person added.

The idea is not totally new. In 2019, Kuaishou began to explore a model in which livestreamers advertise houses for sale. In February 2020, the company launched a channel called Kuaishou Ideal Home for property marketing. However, the alleged upcoming service would expand that idea to include transactions.

Short-video platforms can attract visitors for property projects, expand developers' customer acquisition channels and lower their marketing costs so many developers have expressed the intentions to cooperate with Kuaishou, said the same source.

Diving deeper into the real estate sector could provide Kuaishou with high transactions. In the first half of 2021, Kuaishou Ideal Home sold almost 260 houses worth CNY285 million (USD42.3 million). During the 2022 Labour Day holiday, nearly 40 new houses exchanged hands through the platform, resulting in sales of CNY35 million (USD5.2 million).

The new service would involve closer collaboration with property firms. Video professionals would visit houses for sale to promote them amongst their followers, according to the insider. Kuaishou would sign deals with livestreamers focusing on real estate to train them, the person added.

When choosing the cities where to start the business, Kuaishou takes into consideration market opportunities in terms of urban property and user stats, said the e-commerce professional.

Chinese internet companies, including TikTok owner ByteDance, Alibaba Group Holding, and JD.Com, have all dipped their toes into the property sector, making use of their online user traffic. But different stakeholders should be explored to turn online traffic into purchases in the field that tends to have low-frequency but high-value transactions, property consultancy China Real Estate Information wrote in a research note.

Editors: Zhang Yushuo, Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi