Hong Kong’s property market rebound is bittersweet pill for homebuyers as attainability measures seen weakening
- A rebound in demand and home prices could delay ownership target for those who are still saving up to buy their first homes
- Attainability measures improved slightly last year amid a property market slump, compared with levels in Singapore, according to Urban Land Institute
The government’s move in February to ease financing and raise mortgage limits for home purchases will boost demand and prices, making it harder or longer for those saving up money to attain home ownership, according to the 2024 Asia-Pacific Home Attainability Index it published on Tuesday.
“The government is trying to stimulate the housing market by reducing the cost of home purchases,” said Ken Rhee, CEO of Huhan Advisory and co-author of the report. “By the removal of stamp duties, it will attract many people from outside to purchase homes in Hong Kong in the coming years.”
The Hong Kong-based institute measures home attainability by two yardsticks: median home price to median annual household income, ideally less than 5 times, and median monthly rent to median monthly household income, ideally less than 30 per cent.
Hong Kong’s situation improved to 25 times and 45 per cent in 2023, versus 26.5 times and 46 per cent in 2022, the report showed. In Singapore, the trend was steady at 13.5 times and 36 per cent, versus 13.7 times and 35 per cent in 2022.
Home prices in Hong Kong have declined since they peaked in September 2021, as the Covid-19 pandemic and a recession brought the median down by 7.3 per cent to US$18,331 per square metre in 2023. In contrast, the median in Singapore rose by 9.7 per cent to US$11,749, fuelled by demand from expatriates who shunned Hong Kong’s tough Covid-19 curbs.
