Property transactions in Hong Kong fell in December amid a slump that has thinned the city’s ranks of licensed property agents to a seven-year low.
Hong Kong recorded 5,510 property transactions in December, including new and second-hand homes, parking spaces, shops, industrial facilities and offices, according to Land Registry data released on Friday. This represents a 28.3 per cent drop from November but a 46.4 per cent improvement from a year earlier. The total value amounted to HK$42.8 billion (US$5.5 billion), down 33.3 per cent from November but up 27.4 per cent year on year.
Home transactions fell 35 per cent from November to 4,103 after a rebound in the previous two months, although this represented a 40 per cent jump year on year. Residential sales totalled HK$32.6 billion.
A total of 67,979 deals were recorded in 2024, up 17 per cent from 58,035 in 2023 and the highest since 96,133 in 2021, the data showed. Residential sales for the year surged 23.5 per cent to 53,099.
“The growth [in residential property transactions] was mainly contributed by primary sales, thanks to the removal of property curbs and the start of rate cut cycle,” said Eddie Kwok, executive director of valuation and advisory services at CBRE Hong Kong.
Further easing in the effective mortgage rate led to a continuous inflow of buyers into the residential property sector, he said, adding that the drop in December was mainly attributable to seasonal factors.
“We expect transaction volume to remain at a similar level in January,” Kwok said. “The situation is likely to improve after [Lunar] New Year, when we expect developers to debut more new projects.”
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