BEIJING - More than five million affordable housing units have been built in China in the first ten months of 2012, surpassing the annual target, the country's housing authorities said Thursday.

In total, 5.05 million affordable units were built between January and October, surpassing the five million annual target two months ahead of schedule.

The country started construction of 7.22 million government-subsidized housing units during the ten-month period, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development said.

China planned to start building more than seven million units this year as part of its five-year plan to construct 36 million such homes by 2015 in a bid to make housing accessible to low-income families.

In the first ten months, 1.08 trillion yuan ($171.4 billion) has been invested in building affordable housing units, the ministry said.

The Chinese government has increased efforts in building affordable housing in recent years amid sky-rocketing property prices.