Hong Kong property prices set to surge 15 per cent in 2024, still below 2021 peak

Hong Kong's residential property market is on track to post a 15 per cent price increase by the end of 2024 compared to a year earlier, though values will remain 16 per cent below the 2021 peak, according to local property agency Midland Realty.

The agency's executives said the city's banks were unlikely to mirror any US interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve should they materialise this year, providing a key foundation for the optimistic outlook. Dave Ma Tai-yeung, CEO of Midland (Residential), told a press conference that the market was gradually absorbing geopolitical and external economic uncertainties.

Developers accelerate new launches

Ma said new property launches were picking up pace as buyers returned to the market, and that improved sentiment would prompt developers to accelerate the rollout of fresh projects, pushing the residential market toward further recovery.

First-hand residential property transactions dropped for two consecutive months, falling to just over 800 units in both June and July, but recovered to 1,100 units in August, Midland's data showed. Second-hand residential transactions were also stabilising gradually during the same period.

Fourth-quarter transaction surge expected

Ma forecast that first-hand property transactions in the final quarter would climb 50 per cent quarter on quarter to reach 5,100 units, while secondary market transactions would rise 10 per cent to 12,700 units.

He pointed to residential rents, which have been hitting successive new highs, as evidence that property prices have room to catch up. The combination of returning buyer confidence, accelerated new supply and a rental market at record levels suggests the city's housing sector is entering a sustained recovery phase despite remaining well below its earlier peak.

Source: South China Morning Post