Exclusive | Is the correction in Hong Kong’s home prices over? More than half of market observers think so
- Some 57 per cent of respondents interviewed by the Post expect property prices to rise by up to 15 per cent this year, while the rest see prices falling by as much as 5 per cent
- Prices rose for the first time in January after falling for five months since August
More than half of market observers believe that the correction in Hong Kong’s home prices is over, according to a straw poll conducted by the Post.
Thirteen out of the 23 respondents including developers, lawyers, economists and veteran investors interviewed between March 22 and 25, said they expect prices of new homes to rise by up to 15 per cent on the back of pent-up demand. The rest however expect prices to fall further by as much as 5 per cent because of the uncertain global economic outlook.
The survey results show why Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor felt compelled to warn about the spectre of rising home prices last week, as affordability was one of the priorities of her administration.
Hong Kong’s home prices rose in January, after a 28-month bull month stumbled last August. Since then, property analysts have been divided as to the direction of the prices. DBS said prices will fall by 10 per cent, while Citibank said prices will rise by 10 per cent.
“Unless we have another economic shock, prices are going to go up by 15 per cent before the end of this year,” said Nicole Wong, regional head of property research at CLSA.