The 70 per cent ceiling on mortgage loans should be lifted, says a Liberal Party legislator. James Tien Pei-chun will sponsor a motion urging the relaxation at Legco's sitting on Wednesday. The ceiling should be dropped so 'banks may . . . process mortgage lendings flexibly'. Secretary for Housing Dominic Wong Shing-wah announced on Saturday the deposit for a home would be cut to five from 10 per cent on signing a preliminary purchase agreement. The Government has eased restrictions on private sales and scrapped the requirement to pay a minimum 20 per cent of flat prices on signing the final purchase agreements 14 days later. Mr Tien believed that apart from benefiting the ultimate home buyers, his proposal would give banks more flexibility on loans. He said the Government had decided in 1991 to cut the ceiling from 90 to 70 per cent to fight property speculation. 'Property prices have dropped by 50 per cent from last year's peak.' It was 'the best buying opportunity for those with no property' at a time when many of the workforce still had a job with an income 'which was the same or not much less' than last year.
