Opinion | Little hope that latest cooling measures will ease property costs
Home prices have been hit before with policies like those announced in recent days only to eventually resume their relentless rise
These days, mainlanders and Hongkongers may not see eye to eye on many things - political developments in Hong Kong and even the number of baby formula tins that may be bought, to name two examples.
Shortly after the Hong Kong government announced tough measures to curb property speculation in late February, the central government rolled out its latest set of guiding principles for cooling an overheated property market.
The March 1 announcement set yesterday as the deadline for local governments to release detailed implementation measures.
On Saturday, Beijing, Shanghai, and Chongqing released specific rules, including a 20 per cent capital gains tax on second-hand property transactions, bigger down payments for second-home buyers and more curbs on foreigners and other non-residents seeking to buy properties. The three cities followed Guangdong which took the lead in responding to the order last Monday.
Predictably, the central government announcement's on March 1 triggered a wave of panic among buyers and sellers across the country as they tried to close transactions before the deadline.
The property analysts now expect the latest measures to bring a respite in property transactions after rapid rises in property prices over the past nine months.