New | It’s a buyers’ market as Hong Kong flat owners slash prices to secure sales

Plagued by weakening market sentiment, rising interest rates and a slowing economy, flat owners in Hong Kong are feeling compelled to slash prices to attract buyers, pushing secondary home prices down for four straight months.

Home prices at 50 housing estates monitored by property agent Ricacorp Properties fell 1.8 per cent in December.

The secondary home prices, which were peaked in August last year, have seen an accumulated decline of 4.9 per cent between September and December, said Ricacorp Properties’ director Willy Liu.

“Prices will continue to drop another 1.5 to 2 per cent in January, bringing a total decrease of 10 per cent this year,” said Liu.

In one example, an owner of a three-bedroom unit at Nan Fung Sun Chuen in Quarry Bay sold his flat at HK$6.42 million after cutting the asking price by HK$1 million. The price is now back to levels seen in early 2014.

A 375 sq ft unit at Westlands Court also in Quarry Bay was recently sold for HK$4.9 million, or HK$12,312 sq ft, back to the price level in June 2014.