Hong Kong secondary home sales fall due to holiday, launch of new flats

Secondary home sales in Hong Kong have slowed in the past few days due to launches of new projects and the long holiday.

Sales dropped by about 10 per cent on a week ago, Hong Kong Property senior executive director Jeffrey Ng Chong-yip said. He blamed the long Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday and launches of new flats at Sun Hung Kai Properties' Century Gateway in Tuen Mun and Henderson Land Development-led Double Cove in Ma On Shan.

"Fewer people booked for secondary flat viewings over the weekend and the two projects have been selling some small two-bedroom units … which are quite popular, so we see fewer transactions," Ng said.

More than 240 flats sold at Century Gateway between Saturday and Monday, and about 45 at Double Cove. Ricacorp Properties chief executive Willy Liu Wai-keung said about 10 per cent of the sales involved mainland buyers, but he had not seen large numbers of mainland buyers inspecting flats during the holiday.

"The secondary home market is quieter also because many owners have revised up the asking prices … by 3 to 5 per cent after the US announced the third round of quantitative easing (QE3)," Liu said. "But home seekers think homes are becoming too expensive so they are hesitating. Therefore, secondary home sales have fallen."

He expected owners to continue to be aggressive on prices. Buyers would need time to digest the news and impact of QE3 before returning to the market.