Comprehensively "remove spicy" opportunities to enter the market, seize the opportunity, mainland customers purchase consultation team... Walking on the streets of Hong Kong, many real estate agency stores have posted huge slogans to attract customers.
After many years, Hong Kong's property market has returned to the era of "zero hot tricks". The sharp drop in home purchase costs has instantly "ignited" the local property market.
Up to now, it has been more than half a month since the Hong Kong property market "removed from the heat", and the transaction volume of both new and second-hand houses has rebounded rapidly.
However, behind the excitement, many home buyers are still rational.
Trading volume rebounded significantly
When the Financial Secretary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, Paul Chan Mo-po, announced the 2024/2025 fiscal year budget at the end of last month, he announced the cancellation of all property market "hot tricks", that is, all residential property transactions will no longer need to pay additional stamp duty, buyer's stamp duty and new stamp duty. Residential Stamp Duty.
According to a local real estate agency manager in Hong Kong, taking a property with a total price of HK$10 million as an example, non-Hong Kong permanent residents need to pay at least HK$3 million in taxes before the withdrawal, which will be reduced to HK$370,000 after the withdrawal. .
"I didn't expect that although the second-hand houses in Hong Kong are relatively old, the houses are well maintained inside and out, and the property management level is relatively high. It is completely invisible that the houses are more than 30 years old." Li Hong (pseudonym) recently added She has joined many Hong Kong real estate WeChat groups and is searching for investment targets for her spare money.
She looked at several second-hand houses in Sheung Shui Garden in Hong Kong. "It is very close to Shenzhen, just one subway station away. I looked at a two-bedroom unit of more than 300 feet (about 32 square meters). It is currently selling for 480 Ten thousand Hong Kong dollars, the monthly rent is more than 10,000 Hong Kong dollars, it looks pretty good.”
Taking the Sheung Shui area of Hong Kong as an example, reporters found that the current average price per square foot of second-hand housing in the area is around HK$11,000.
During local interviews, many local real estate agency managers said that although the Sheung Shui and Fanling areas belong to the north of Hong Kong, they are also located in the planned northern metropolitan area, so many mainland buyers come to inquire.
Since the "removal of hot property", nearly 40 to 50 second-hand houses have been sold in Sheung Shui and Fanling areas.
Some real estate agency managers said that after the "spicy" withdrawal, the market transactions became significantly more active. At the peak, it was equivalent to "doing a month's business in four days."
Lai Zuozhi, deputy regional sales manager of Centaline Real Estate Sheung Shui Longfeng Branch, said that after the Hong Kong property market "removed from the heat", the transaction volume at least doubled compared with the same period before the "removal from the heat", and most of the home buyers were mainland buyers.
"Most mainland buyers either live in Hong Kong or have families in Hong Kong. After this 'removal', the transaction tax rate has been reduced from about 30 points before to just a few points now. Customers will feel I save a lot of money, so I can make decisions faster.”
Buyers from Shenzhen and Hong Kong “go in both directions”
However, during interviews in Sheung Shui, Sham Shui Po and other places in Hong Kong, reporters found that many real estate agency managers and local Hong Kong citizens reported that Hong Kong’s second-hand housing prices have generally fallen by about 10% to 20% from the highs of previous years. The price increase of property owners is also not obvious.
In addition, the vast majority of developers have not raised the price of new homes due to the "removal of spicy goods".
Country Garden Long Beach, located in Kowloon City, has welcomed a large number of mainland buyers after it completely "removed the spiciness".
According to data provided by Longbi, since this project went on sale in 2022, about 30% of the buyers have been new arrivals to Hong Kong, and after the overall "removal of spicy food", this proportion has increased to 70%.
The relevant person in charge said that project pricing has always been reasonable. The total price of the recently launched units ranges from HK$4.842 million to HK$5.556 million, which is in line with the purchasing power of the public. Future pricing will also refer to market conditions to achieve the goal of normal sales.
Data from Hong Kong Centaline Real Estate shows that since March, more than 2,000 first-hand new homes have been transacted in Hong Kong. It is expected that 4,000 to 5,000 units will be transacted in March, which is expected to hit a new high since November 1998.
Among them, the number of inquiries from mainland buyers about buying properties in Hong Kong has increased 40 to 50 times, and many of them come through channels such as the "Talent Scheme".
Hong Kong developers are not idle these days. In addition to increasing publicity and promotion efforts in Hong Kong, they have begun to promote properties to mainland buyers, and multiple roadshows for mainland buyers have been launched simultaneously.
Recently, Centaline Real Estate and a new housing project under Cheung Kong Holdings launched a road show, aiming to attract mainland buyers.
The relevant person in charge said that a series of dedicated services will be provided to mainland customers, such as legal consultation, bank loans, etc.
Coincidentally, the reporter saw at Shenzhen Luohu Port that a new real estate project in Foshan had set up an exhibition point to provide free pick-up and drop-off service for house inspections by high-speed rail, and Hong Kong customers also received additional discounts on house purchase fees.
The promotional materials of the exhibition site show that "the high-speed rail can reach West Kowloon in Hong Kong in 45 minutes at the fastest, and the subway station is just downstairs (the subway station is just downstairs)."
Chen Yongjie, vice chairman of Centaline Real Estate Asia Pacific and president of the residential department, told reporters that from the perspective of results, market transactions have improved significantly after the Hong Kong property market "removed from the heat", and mainland buyers have become more enthusiastic about buying properties in Hong Kong.
In the short term, it may siphon off part of the purchasing power of Shenzhen, Guangzhou and other Greater Bay Area cities, but the scale will not be too large.
If the Hong Kong property market can become popular as a result, it may in turn lead to the stabilization and recovery of the property market in the Greater Bay Area.
Buying a house in Hong Kong still requires rationality
In Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong, a mainland agency manager who is familiar with the Hong Kong market said, "Judging from the current situation, most mainland buyers will consider houses with a price of less than HK$8 million. This part of the demand is half-owner-occupied and half-investment, which is a bit worrying. After this wave of customers is digested, the transaction volume of the entire market may cool down again. In addition, although the Hong Kong property market is at a low level, some mainland buyers are still worried after taking into account the holding costs."
In addition, a local new home sales manager in Hong Kong said that for mainland buyers, banks can provide loans if the relevant conditions are met. Generally, the loan percentage is around 70%. However, currently large amounts of foreign exchange are still subject to regulatory restrictions. , for the down payment and other house payments, buyers can only "find ways to find channels" on their own.
Further interviews by the reporter revealed that the so-called "channels" of the sales manager were actually "back channels" for funds, illegally transferring funds out of Hong Kong through "ant moving", underground banks and other methods.
Among them, the most common one is through "Ant Moving", which transfers funds from mainland accounts to Hong Kong accounts through multiple people and in batches.
However, there are many risks in transferring these funds through "back channels".
He Qianru, director of Midland Realty National Research Center, said that for mainland buyers, they must first consider whether they want to live in the property or invest.
If it is an investment behavior, it is recommended that buyers consider whether a balance can be achieved between the cost of the property purchased and their own future income.
"We understand that the rental return rate of many residential properties in Hong Kong is still good. The general rental return rate is between 2% and 3%, and it may reach 4% if it is high. But it is worth noting that renting out a house in Hong Kong will generate some Taxes and fees, such as the 'rates' that we hear a lot about, are calculated based on the Hong Kong SAR government's annual rental valuation of houses, multiplied by a 5% rate, and the owners have to pay this 'difference' every year. Rates' fees. Secondly, the property management fees or property maintenance fees for renting out a house in Hong Kong are all paid by the owner. These two items add up to a large amount of expenses. Another example is bank loans. Hong Kong's policies are different from those in the Mainland. The relevant policies are different, and buyers must prepare funds first. It is best to also pay attention to the exchange rate of the Hong Kong dollar. The exchange rate difference will also affect the final income of the property.”
After learning about it, Li Hong was still hesitant, "Although a large amount of tax has been reduced, the long-term holding cost of buying a house in Hong Kong is not low. There are various fees and charges. In addition, the interest rate in Hong Kong is already higher than that in the mainland. Therefore, I would still consider carefully when buying a house in Hong Kong.”
(Securities Times)