Rise in Hong Kong home sales brings little cheer to agents
While weekend deals see increase, property agents say volumes evoke Sars era
Sales of second-hand homes last month saw a rebound from March but property agents find little cheer in the poor overall numbers.
"Sales rose week on week and month on month in terms of percentage, but the actual numbers are still around the levels we saw during the Sars (severe acute respiratory syndrome) days in 2003," said Louis Chan Wing-kit, managing director for home sales at Centaline Property Agency.
Property agents including Centaline reported a significant increase in sales of second-hand homes in 10 major housing estates over the weekend.
Midland Realty reported 24 transactions at 10 major housing estates it tracks - a 50 per cent jump week on week and the highest weekly sales in 10 months.
Hong Kong Property Services (Agency) estimates sales of new and second-hand homes last month may have risen to 5,035 from 3,141 in March.
"In the past 12 months, average monthly sales have been similar to the Sars levels. And thanks to the government's policy, the market is unlikely to recover," Chan said.