Hong Kong property deals hit three-month high in January, could rise again this month, as mainland Chinese visitor numbers grow

The total number of property transactions – including deals for residential, commercial and industrial property and parking spaces – reached 4,427 last month, 24.2 per cent higher than the 3,565 transactions recorded in December, the latest data from the Land Registry shows. The total value of transactions also increased 25.6 per cent to about HK$32.5 billion (US$4.1 billion), a five-month high.

The property market’s upwards trajectory is expected to continue, given positive factors such as the border reopening and the stabilisation of interest rates, Centaline Property Agency said.

“With the gradual relaxation of [the Hong Kong] government’s anti-epidemic measures in December last year, as well as the slowdown in interest-rate hikes in the United States and [further] border reopening, and other positive factors, the atmosphere in the property market improved significantly during the Christmas period, stimulating an increase in transactions,” said Wong Leung-sing, a senior associate director of research at Centaline.

Beijing’s abandonment of its strict zero-Covid policy has given Hong Kong’s battered property industry hope for a gradual recovery. Easier travel between the mainland and Hong Kong is likely to boost property demand in the city, as buyers can now freely inspect units and traders can make plans for business expansion, analysts said.

Transactions are likely to rise in February as well, Wong said, after the US Federal Reserve delivered a much tempered rate hike of 0.25 per cent and Hong Kong’s banks kept their interest rates unchanged. “The news is positive and the boom will continue,” he added.