Hong Kong Property Market Proves Resilient as Crises Mount
Shawna Kwan
The Province
HONG KONG — A controversial security law that threatens to upend Hong Kong’s status as an Asian financial hub hasn’t slowed the world’s most expensive real-estate market.
Dozens of would-be buyers lined up in the rain last week for a chance to bid on 94 apartments in The Campton project in central Kowloon, with prices starting at US$872,400 for a one-bedroom condo.
All but one of the units were snapped up in eight hours, bringing in more than US$100 million for the developer, China Vanke Co.
On the surface, it doesn’t seem like the best time to buy a property in Hong Kong. The future of the former British colony is clouded by China’s introduction of the security bill, prompting the U.S. to threaten removal of Hong Kong’s special status.
The legislation is triggering concerns about capital outflow, sparking renewed pro-democracy protests and increasing tensions in a city trying to recover from the pandemic.
The economy is expected to see a record seven per cent contraction this year.
For some residents, the political and economic turmoil make real estate a better bet than other assets. Last month, Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd. sold 97 per cent of its 298 apartments worth almost US$450 million in one day, according to the developer.
Property prices have surged 230 per cent since 2000, data from Centaline Property Agency Ltd. show, bolstering the view of many Hong Kong residents that property will always be a haven.
Despite a contracting economy, existing home prices have risen 1.2 per cent this year, and are the highest since November, based on the Centaline index.
Even as prices and sales have dropped in many global markets such as London and Singapore, Hong Kong recorded 6,885 property deals in May, a 12-month high as the city eases pandemic measures.
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