HONG KONG S sales of used homes fell 83 percent over the weekend from the previous week on latest government curbing measures, according to data from Centaline Property Agency Ltd.
Financial Secretary John Tsang on Friday raised stamp duty and increased deposits, the toughest measures yet to rein in home values that soared 50 percent since January 2009.
The changes mean homes sold within six months of purchase incur a 15 percent stamp duty, while down payments will rise to 50 percent for properties costing HK$12 million or more, and to 40 percent for those between HK$8 million and HK$12 million.
The measures will likely have the biggest and most lasting impact on property prices seen to date, Donna Kwok, a Hong Kong-based economist at HSBC Holdings Plc., said. Hong Kong has jumped onto the bandwagon of Asian central banks and is erecting its own defenses to fend off the flood of capital from the U.S. easing, she said.
The number of transactions at some of Hong Kong s biggest private housing estates fell to 10 Saturday and Sunday, Centaline, the city s biggest privately held real-estate broker, said in a statement Sunday. There were 59 deals the previous weekend.
We re expecting transactions to drop between 10 and 20 percent for this quarter and prices will probably go down by about 5 percent at least, said Wong Leung-sing, associate director of research at Centaline. (SD-Agencies)
