More Hong Kong expats buy property in their home countries, offshore markets as they eye leaving city for good
- The number of employees whose parent firms are located outside Hong Kong has fallen to 473,000 this year, down 4 per cent from the peak of 493,000 in 2019
- Low-interest rates are helping fuel sales in France, with the number of registered French citizens in Hong Kong steadily declining since last year
More Hong Kong-based expats are buying properties in their home countries or other overseas markets, boosting the number of transactions by 30 to 40 per cent this year, according to agents and bankers.
If the trend holds, Hong Kong’s population of expatriates – who account for a large portion of the home leasing market in the city, particularly the high-end segment – will decline, likely impacting the overall rental market, analysts said.
The number of persons employed by companies whose parent firms are located outside Hong Kong has fallen to 473,000 this year, down 4 per cent from the peak of 493,000 in 2019, the latest figures from the government showed, suggesting fewer foreign-born residents in the Asian financial hub.
“[We have] had a very busy year with transactions from Hong Kong based expatriates,” said John Treacy, director at One Global Expat, which handles expat clients of Singapore-based property agency One Global Property Services.
“Over 150 expatriates have purchased with us in 2021, which is up 40 per cent from last year.”
Treacy, whose clients are mostly British, followed by Australians and other Europeans, said most of the transactions have been in the UK, with most buying purely for investment.
