Title:Hong Kong's Property Market Since 2024: Structural Improvement in Transaction Volume Amid Persistent Inventory Pressure

In 2024, the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as Hong Kong) introduced a number of policies to support the property market. Its key measures are as follows: First, it has removed all property cooling measures, specifically, the Buyer's Stamp Duty (BSD) rate applicable to non-local buyers was reduced from a maximum of 30% to approximately 4.25%. Second, it has relaxed mortgage policies: the maximum loan-to-value (LTV) ratio for all residential properties will be set at 70% (restoring to the pre-2009 level), while the requirements of the mortgage stress test have been eased. Third, it has enhanced the Capital Investment Entrant Scheme: the scheme allows investment in residential properties, provided that the transaction price of a single property must be HK$50 million or above, and the total investment amount in real estate that counts toward fulfilling the minimum investment threshold is subject to an aggregate cap of HK$10 million.

Driven by these policies, property market transaction volume has picked up. In 2024, the number of private residential transactions reached 50,661, up by 25% year-on-year, with a total transaction value of HK$450.8 billion, representing an 18% year-on-year increase. Both transaction volume and value marked their highest levels in the past three years (2022-2024), indicating signs of bottoming out and recovery. Within this, transactions in the primary private residential market reached 16,869 units, up 58% year-on-year, while secondary private residential transactions totaled 33,792 units, up 14% year-on-year.