SHANGHAI, Aug. 13 -- CHINA pledged to improve its low-rent housing system and would offer more cheap apartments to low-income urban families by 2010 as housing prices in the country continue to soar, the State Council said in a new policy framework.

The government aimed to help some 10 million low-income urban families with housing difficulties by the end of 2010 under the improved system, according to the framework passed at a meeting presided over by Premier Wen Jiabao on August 1.

Low-rent apartments are essential to housing security. They are either built or commissioned by the government and provided to poor urban families at discounted rents.

The latest official figures show that the mechanism has so far covered about 291 cities at or above prefecture level as of December 20, 2006. It is expected to be extended to all cities and towns by the end of this year.

The council also decided that more low-rent housing should be provided through construction, purchase, renovation and other means.

The state councilors agreed that funding for low-rent housing provisions should be brought under the control of the annual central fiscal budget, that land should be appropriated for construction, and housing supply regulations should be improved.

The central government will grant special financial support to central and western regions under the policy.

Overall supervision and management of the low rent housing projects will be enhanced to prevent projects from being altered and people from making illicit gains by abusing power, the council said.

Housing prices in 70 major cities surged an average of 7.1 percent in June from a year earlier, led by strong gains in Beijing and Shenzhen, according to the National Development and Reform Commission's report released on July 22.

Property prices in Beijing rose 9.5 percent in June from a year earlier while Shenzhen's housing price jumped 15.9 percent in the period.