Homebuyers give their collective cold shoulder to new flats in Tuen Mun, Tai Po as persistent protest rallies weigh on sentiments
- A quarter of 442 new flats on offer in Tuen Mun and Tai Po were sold, with tepid sales also being reported elsewhere around the city
- The weekend’s sale was the biggest since an estimated 1 million protestors took to the streets on June 9 to voice their opposition to a controversial extradition bill
Hong Kong’s property buyers gave their collective cold shoulder to the biggest sale of new homes in a month, picking up just over 30 per cent the 442 new flats on offer, as sentiments stayed downbeat amid protest rallies that have persisted since early June.
Wing Tai Properties sold 23 of the 110 flats at its OMA OMA project in Tuen Mun as of 9pm, according to sales agents. China Overseas Land & Investment sold 111 of 332 units on offer at The Regent in Tai Po, with a total contracted sales value of HK$1.03 billion (US$131.6 million).
Tepid sales were also reported in previously launch projects that were trying to clear their unsold apartments. K. Wah International sold two of 15 Solaria units in Tai Po, New World Development sold four of six Fleur Pavilia flats on offer in North Point, while Sun Hung Kai Properties sold six of the 10 apartments on offer at Mount Regency in Tuen Mun.
“The sales were not great,” said Sammy Po, chief executive at property agency Midland Realty's residential department. “It's reasonable and expected. The units on offer are mainly the last batch of units [that were already launched weeks ago] and people just lost interest in them.”
Hong Kong’s developers have slowed their sales launches amid concerns of a new battlefront in technology between the world’s two largest economies, which would hurt the city’s business prospects, spilling over to shrinking corporate profits, a weak stock market, and job losses.
Sentiments had been further dampened since June 9, when an estimated 1 million protesters took to the city’s streets to demonstrate their opposition against a controversial extradition bill, kicking off several weeks of sporadic protest rallies around the city.
Following a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the G20 summit in Osaka in June, Washington delayed plans to add tariffs on some US$300 billion of Chinese-made products and resume trade talks, but 25 per cent levies remained in place on US$250 billion of products.
Another analyst reckons the downbeat sentiments would be temporary, adding that discounts offered by developers could help in selling their stock.
“After a relay of different protests over the weekends, we have witnessed quieter economic activities in Hong Kong in July,” said Hannah Jeong, head of valuation and advisory services at Colliers International Hong Kong. “As long as developers are more reasonable in their sales prices, they will be able to clear up the stocks quickly.”
In June, Wing Tai said it would sell flats at OMA OMA at an average price of HK$12,463 per square foot. One of the units at The Regent’s website was listed for HK$7.226 million (US$923,570), making it the cheapest by area at HK$13,114 per square foot. Developers kept the prices of the units unchanged.
