Beijing office rents rise faster than rest of region
The average office rent in the Asia-Pacific region grew a mere 0.3 per cent quarter on quarter during the final quarter last year, property consultancy Colliers International said. But China's economic fundamentals remained strong in the same period, with sustained demand for office space causing a 7.89 per cent quarter-on-quarter rise in average rents in Beijing, for example, to 274.26 per square metre a month. With interest rates low, investment funds generally had appetite for quality investment opportunities, Colliers said. However, the company forecasts office demand in the region will continue to soften in the first half of this year. Paggie Leung
No holiday fireworks for second-hand-home loans
Hong Kong saw a record-low number of mortgage loans for second-hand private properties last month, Centaline Property Agency found. Senior associate research director Wong Leung-sing said February's figure of about 2,500 loans - down 14 per cent from January, and marking a fall for the ninth straight month - was even lower than the previous record of 2,700 cases during the severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) epidemic in 2003. He said it reflected the quiet property market around the Lunar New Year. Paggie Leung
