Over the past weekend, the top ten housing estates continue to see lackluster sales due to high mortgage rates and the competition posed by the secondary market. Only a few transactions were reported by each agency. Centaline recorded 4 transactions, down by 1 from last week; Midland Realty reported 6 transactions, down by 1; Ricacorp recorded 5 transactions, a decrease of 1; and Hong Kong Property recorded only 2 transactions, a decrease of 2.
Centaline Property’s Chief Executive of the Residential Department, Chan Wing Kit, mentioned that with the continuous high mortgage rates and a market lacking positive factors, confidence among buyers is weak. Developers are persistently launching projects at lower prices than the secondary market, shifting purchasing power towards new developments. The first round of sales for the third phase of Tuen Mun’s NOVO LAND, which offered properties at low prices, was met with high demand last Saturday, showing that new developments have strong appeal. It is believed that the primary market will continue to dominate the property market in the short term, while transactions in the secondary market remain subdued.
The Executive Director of Residential Department at Midland Realty, Paul Po, indicated that purchasing power in the market continues to be focused on primary market properties. With developers actively promoting their projects and attracting substantial funding, the secondary market is further under pressure. The recent launch of Tuen Mun’s new project, NOVO LAND Phase 3B, over the weekend attracted many potential buyers, particularly affecting the resale market in the New Territories. Due to the unclear trend in mortgage rates and ample supply of new properties, it is expected that the pricing trend in the secondary market will remain soft. On the other hand, with the peak rental season approaching and an influx of professionals and mainland students coming to Hong Kong, the rental market is expected to remain strong.
Ricacorp Properties’ CEO, Leo Liao, noted that the market sentiment continues to be unfavorable, with property price indices showing a downward trend in recent days. Alongside the high mortgage rates and no signs of interest rate cuts from the US and Hong Kong, potential buyers are adopting a wait-and-see attitude, resulting in weak market confidence. Moreover, developers actively launching new projects have significantly squeezed the secondary market, leading to sluggish transactions in the top ten housing estates.
Hong Kong Property’s CEO, Martin Ma, remarked that new projects frequently entering the market at low prices have become the focal point, with Tuen Mun’s large-scale new project launching its first round of sales over the weekend, selling over 130 units on the first day and attracting a large portion of the buying power from the resale market. Despite some secondary sellers accepting the reality by lowering prices, the strong competitiveness of new projects has led to continued low transaction volumes in the secondary housing estates over the weekend.
In terms of regional analysis, on Hong Kong Island, Taikoo Shing and Ap Lei Chau each recorded 1 transaction over the weekend. Centaline Property’s Regional Director for the upscale area in Taikoo Shing, Michael Cheung, mentioned that a unit at Yann King Court, a high-rise apartment in Taikoo Shing, was sold for 98.8 million Hong Kong dollars, marking a 69% increase in value from its purchase price of 5.85 million Hong Kong dollars in January 1998.
As for the Kowloon district, Ricacorp Properties’ Senior Joint Director at La Costa Park Milestone’s A Group, Kwok Wing Fung, stated that there were 2 transactions in Mei Foo Sun Chuen over the past weekend, with one mid-level unit sold for around 5.5 million Hong Kong dollars.
In the New Territories region, Centaline Property’s Deputy Regional Director for Tin Shui Wai, Ng Yiu Cho, mentioned that amidst the official sales launch of the attention-grabbing new project NOVO LAND Phase 3B in Tuen Mun last Saturday, which attracted a large number of buyers due to its affordability, the secondary housing estates faced pressure with Jupiters Terrace not recording any transactions over the weekend.