Stewart Leung Chi-kin, the chair of the executive committee of the Real Estate Developers Association, said levies on property purchases should be axed in one go, as multiple agencies were set to gather today to put forward proposals.
If the government decides to abolish the stamp duties, it should do so decisively and comprehensively, rather than in incremental steps, to prevent further declines in the property market, according to Leung.
In Hong Kong, 1.3 million private property owners, especially those who entered the market in the last decade, often haven’t fully settled their mortgages.
Leung said the situation could become severe if homeowners with existing mortgages turn into negative assets due to ongoing declines in property prices – highlighting that the consequences following the banks’ reclaiming of the differences could be significant.
Experts from various real estate agencies including Centaline Property and Midland Realty convene today to collaborate and provide recommendations for stimulating the property market.
Meanwhile, all Hong Kong dollar interest settlement rates dropped, with the mortgage-related one-month rate falling below 5 percent to an over-three-week low.
And the total consideration for sale and purchase agreements for residential units plunged 21.7 percent year-on-year to HK$22.8 billion last month, data from the Land Registry showed.
During the period, residential property sale and purchase contracts totaled 2,862, reflecting a yearly decline of 26.1 percent.
Knight Frank anticipates that the decline in property prices in Hong Kong will widen in the third quarter, with a potential year-on-year drop of up to 10 percent.
The high interest rates in Hong Kong restrained commercial property investment, with only HK$25.2 billion recorded in the first three quarters. CBRE anticipates the annual investment volume to reach HK$32 billion, a decrease of over 50 percent compared to the previous year.
Elsewhere, CSI Properties’ (0497) luxury project Cadenza in Sheung Shui introduced House C for public viewing yesterday. The four-bedroom home has an area of 6,940 square feet and a garden spanning 4,857 sq ft.
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