"We will definitely strengthen our presence in Beijing by acquiring more projects from other players this year," said the Zhang Xin, CEO of Hong Kong-listed SOHO China.

At the end of May, the cash-rich SOHO acquired local firm Kaiheng, which owns a commercial and residential project in Beijing, for 5.5 billion yuan.

SOHO China's decision to buy Beijing Kaiheng also reflects a more general trend: China's larger, wealthier developers are actively acquiring and merging with the smaller, cash-starved ones to gain access to new markets and greater land holdings.

This is largely a result of government policies aimed at limiting speculation in the residential property market, tighter monetary policy and the plummeting stock market this year, experts said.

"It is more difficult for developers to obtain bank loans, and new regulations have impeded some previous financing strategies such as utilizing the pre-sale of units to finance land payment and the latter stages of actual construction," said Ben Christensen, head of research for Jones Lang LaSalle Beijing.

He said this trend is likely to continue and is an indication that the Chinese property market is becoming more sophisticated and competitive.

Initial public offerings by fast-growing Chinese property firms have been hugely popular in the last couple of years, but have suffered recently as stock markets plunged and the global credit crunch put property securities out of favor.

The turning point came in January, when Chinese developer Evergrande failed to sell its shares. Several developers have since postponed planned listings.