HONG KONG: Ray Yuen waited for months for someone to buy his Hong Kong home so he could upgrade to a bigger one for his family. But there were barely any offers, and the ones he received were ridiculously low.
By: Bloomberg, FMTTransactions in the city’s top 10 estates surged to their highest level in over a year, with a pickup in interest in the second-hand market. Ray Yuen waited for months for someone to buy his Hong Kong home so he could upgrade to a bigger one for his family. But there were barely any offers, and the ones he received were ridiculously low.
Yuen’s experience epitomises the dramatic rebound in sales in Hong Kong’s residential market. Buyers who had been waiting on the sidelines, deterred by high borrowing costs, rushed in on the expectation that prices will rebound after the policy change.Hong Kong’s new-home sales surged 10 times in the first five days after the government removed the cooling measures compared with two months ago, according to Midland Realty.
Foreign buyers and existing-home owners no longer have to pay the respective 15% and 7.5% levies on transactions. Instead, everyone is subject to the regular rate capped at 4.25%. Locals familiar with the market aren’t the only eager buyers. Demand is also coming from non-residents, now that they are no longer subject to additional taxes.