>>> Click into related special: the 98th Canton Fair

Visitors to the 98th Chinese Export Commodities Fair were forced to rent apartments or even buy properties near the fair venue, due to steep hotel rates.

The number of visitors exceeded 500,000 this year, and the city of Guangzhou, with 1,400 hotels and a total of 92,000 rooms didn't possess the necessary hotel accommodation. Suites priced each at US$360 a night were hard to come by, driving the desperate fair attendees to other alternatives, such as renting apartments nearby or buying houses for future fair visits.

A group of four from a porcelain company rented a three-bedroom apartment for 8,000 yuan a month, though they needed it just for 15 days, the Yangcheng Evening News reported.

Some real-estate agents showed the visitors expensive houses, the report said.

The daily rent for a 100-square-meter house was generally 500 yuan, with the monthly rent 3,000 yuan.

Liu, a businessman from Jiangxi Province, said his company had sent 30 people to the fair, and said it was impossible to accommodate so many people in one apartment.

According to Chinese law, the property manager must register foreign tenants with the local police station within 24 hours after they move in.

The newspaper investigation found many foreign visitors and real-estate agents weren't aware of such a rule.

A Ningbo businessman surnamed Liu said his friend, a household appliance exporter, bought eight apartments, one for him to live in, and others to display his products.

Editor: Yan