Hong Kong policy address 2023: property market may roar again if stamp duty eases, but will first-time buyers and some locals be squeezed out?

City leader John Lee is set to unveil plans to revive sluggish property market in policy address, which experts say can spur economy and lure foreign talent

But they warn local first-time buyers may suffer, as authorities consider changing policies such as 15 per cent tax for owners purchasing another home

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Published: 8:30am, 20 Oct 2023

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu is expected to unveil measures to revive the flagging property market in his second policy address on October 25. In the second of a three-part series, Edith Lin looks at how the government can walk a fine line between stimulating the market, and therefore the economy, without reducing affordability for first-time homebuyers.

Serial property investor Joseph Ng Goon-lau flipped numerous private flats over four decades until the Hong Kong government raised the tax for owners who buy more homes.

When stamp duty was raised to 15 per cent of the transacted price at the end of 2016, his interest cooled.

“The stamp duty made me feel hesitant,” he said, describing how the tax shrank the profit he could have made.

Now in his seventies, Ng bought and sold 200 flats over the years and is holding on to fewer than 20. He was delighted when Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po hinted last month that the city might ease its property cooling measures soon.

Property investor Joseph Ng has bought and sold 200 flats over the years and is holding on to fewer than 20. Photo: Jonathan Wong

“It will help even if the government lowers the rate to 10 or 5 per cent,” he said.

SCMP Series

City leader John Lee’s 2023 policy address

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