THE number of pre-owned home sales in some of Hong Kong s biggest private housing estates jumped 90 percent over the weekend, defying government measures to curb prices that have surged almost 50 percent since early last year.
There were 116 deals recorded Oct. 16 and 17 at projects including Tai Koo Shing in the Island East district and Mei Foo Sun Chuen in Kowloon, Centaline Property Agency Ltd., the city s biggest privately held real estate broker, said Sunday. The increase was from the previous weekend.
The government would stop offering residency to foreigners who buy properties in the city and would begin a rent-to-buy program for first-time buyers, Chief Executive Donald Tsang said in his annual policy address Oct. 13. The latest curbs follow a series of measures announced this year to rein in home prices that have surged on the back of record-low mortgage rates and an influx of mainland buyers.
The market appears to have digested the new set of measures, said Lee Wee Liat, Hong Kong-based analyst at Samsung Securities Ltd. If prices go crazy again there may be further tightening measures. But at this point we don t think this is likely.
Lee forecasts home price growth to moderate to about 15 percent over the next 12 months.
A housing bubble poses the biggest threat to financial stability in Asia, Hong Kong Monetary Authority Chief Executive Norman Chan said in a transcript of a speech to be given in Shanghai yesterday.
The policy address has calmed buyers worries that we re heading for a major home price correction, said Louis Chan, managing director for residential properties at Centaline. A weak Hong Kong dollar also helps as people want to use property investment to hedge against inflation.
(SD-Agencies)
