Homeowners in small Chinese cities are battling a rare property market downdraft as buyers keep away, eroding the wealth of millions in a blow to already brittle consumer confidence in the world¡¯s second-largest economy.

Smaller cities have been hammered by falling home prices for seven months since September, the latest tally of 70 major cities by China¡¯s statistics bureau shows.

Yet this contraction is just the tip of the iceberg.