HONG KONG, April 24 (China Daily/ANN) - Hong Kong's home prices are falling at an accelerated pace amid the novel coronavirus pandemic in the world’s least-affordable city to live in.
The private domestic unit price index of the Rating and Valuation Department slipped 2.1 percent to 370.7 in February this year — the lowest level in a year — while the gauge dived 6.6 percent from its record high seen in May 2019.
Buying sentiment had just begun to pick up as 2020 kicked off, when the coronavirus pandemic sent fresh shock waves through the market beginning in February. Although it’s widely believed the outbreak could be contained by the second half of this year, it’s unlikely the economy will see an immediate recovery. More shop and business closures are on the cards as the economic outlook remains muted, which does not bode well for the residential market in the mid-to-long term,” he said.
Hong Kong’s home prices in the past decade had been propelled by a combination of stringent government regulations on property development, low interest rates due to the city’s currency peg to the US dollar, and a severe shortage of land and housing.
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