REUTERS
Hong Kong residential home sales plunged 70% in February from a year earlier to a 25-year low, as falling prices and economic uncertainty deterred buyers, Bloomberg reported.
Last month, 1,807 homes were sold in Hong Kong, compared with 6,027 a year earlier, according to government statistics. Home sales fell from 2,045 in January, the data show, Bloomberg said.
"The newspapers keep on saying the market is going down and buyers think they can get a cheaper house half-a-year later or one year later, and so are waiting," said Thomas Fok, a property agent at Centaline Property Agency in Hong Kong, according to the report.
Property prices have declined 10% from their September highs amid uncertainty over the economy at home and in China, possible interest-rate increases and plans by the government to boost housing supply in the next five years. Senior Hong Kong government officials have ruled out relaxing property curbs, which include extra stamp duties and caps on mortgage levels, according to Bloomberg.
The decline is seen as an opportunity by some developers. The high end of the market still looks attractive to Pan Sutong, chairman of Goldin Financial Holdings Ltd., which earlier this month won over other bidders vying for a land site in one of Hong Kong's upscale neighborhoods for HK$6.38 billion ($821 million). While mass-market prices and those in less sought-after areas may fall as much as 20%, Pan said he doesn't expect a decline in values in places with a limited housing supply.
"Of course a lot of people think property prices will fall, but developers want to play on the market sentiment today and want to buy cheap, so I bid slightly higher," Pan said in an interview, according to Bloomberg.