Sales of pre-owned homes in Hong Kong surge to eight-year high as panicked buyers rush to beat rising prices

Rise fuelled by flurry of activity in established housing estates where flats sold for record prices

‘Buyers are afraid that if they don’t buy now, they will miss the boat once prices rise further,’ said Sammy Po of Midland Realty

2-MIN READ2-MIN

Sales of pre-owned Hong Kong apartments surged to an eight-year high of HK$40.3 billion in April. Photo: AFP

Published: 9:00am, 3 May 2019Updated: 10:08am, 3 May 2019

Panic buying of Hong Kong property has extended to the secondary market, with sales of pre-owned apartments surging to an eight-year high of HK$40.3 billion in April.

The rise was fuelled by a flurry of activity in established housing estates where flats sold for record prices as buyers scrambled to strike before prices go up any further, according to property analysts.

“The strong buying sentiment in the primary market has spilled over to the secondary market. We have seen many transactions in different housing estates changing hands at record prices,” said Louis Chan Wing-kit, Asia-Pacific vice-chairman for residential at Centaline Property.

In one noteworthy example, a 916 square foot unit at the 20-year-old Tierra Verde above Tsing Yi Station was sold for HK$30 million, or HK$32,751 per sq ft, on Wednesday, a new record for the area, according to agents.

Prices jumped 17.9 per cent to an average HK$17,488 per sq ft in the first four months of this year at South Horizons in Ap Lei Chau. Photo: SCMP Handout

In a survey requested by the Post to identify the five best performing housing estates, Midland Realty said the 24-year-old South Horizons in Ap Lei Chau topped the chart as its prices jumped 17.9 per cent to an average HK$17,488 per sq ft in the first four months of this year.

Whampoa Garden, which was completed in 1991 in Hung Hom, moved up 16 per cent to an average of HK$17,370 per sq ft, followed by a 14.4 per cent price increase at the 28-year-old Kingswood Villas in Tin Shui Wai.