Property market sentiment has improved as home viewing appointments rebound while the latest two sites to be tendered fetched higher than expected prices.However, the government's recent cooling measures continue to weigh on the sector.
In Ma On Shan, few homesellers raised their asking prices and some even took their flats off the market, shortly after Cheung Kong Holdings (0001) won a tender for a plot in the same neighborhood for HK$2.9 billion - 16 percent higher than earlier estimates.
But in one case, HK$200,000 was added to the asking price of a 1,113-square-foot three-bedroom flat at Harbour Place in Ma On Shan. The owner is now seeking HK$7.2 million.
Centaline marketing manager Marco Fung Tai-ling said home viewing appointments made for this weekend are up 10 percent on last weekend.
The number of appointments made in Tseung Kwan O for this weekend has jumped 40 to 50 percent, said Ken Lee Yuk-cheung, Centaline senior regional sales director. This follows the purchase by Sun Hung Kai Properties (0016) of a Tseung Kwan O site at a slightly higher than expected price of HK$2.55 billion.
Overall, Midland Realty expects home rents to rise 3 percent by the year- end and rental transactions to gain 20 percent. It said secondary home prices have eased 3-5 percent in the past two weeks, with deals down 50 percent. KAREN CHIU
