(Taipei Times, December 1, 2017) House prices in Hong Kong, the world’s most expensive real-estate market, could cool next year if the US Federal Reserve delivers the rate hikes it has projected, the IMF said.

The outlook comes as Hong Kong’s red-hot property sector shows few signs of a slowdown with price gains of 11 percent this year, even after the government pushed through new taxes and mortgage curbs.The Fed could slow that momentum, IMF mission chief for Hong Kong Sonali Jain-Chandra said.

"If the Federal Reserve’s plans to increase interest rates during the next year materialize, as expected, we should expect a moderate slowdown of house prices in Hong Kong," Jain-Chandra said in e-mailed remarks.

Fed officials are scheduled to meet on Dec. 12 to 13 in Washington, with economists forecasting that they are to raise the benchmark interest rate. The US central bank has lifted rates just four times in two years and put its US$4.5 trillion balance sheet on a very gradual path of slimming down, but further tightening is expected next year.

Because Hong Kong’s currency is pegged to the US dollar, it effectively imports US monetary policy. Higher borrowing costs in the US and elsewhere in the world would increase Hong Kong’s debt burden and suck capital away from the finance hub.

However, authorities have tools to respond.

If there was a housing slump, very tight macro-prudential policies and punitive stamp-duty taxes could be reversed, Jain-Chandra said.

"If a large and disorderly correction were to happen, the authorities could reverse their current policies to support the housing market," she said.

US economic growth could cushion the effect of any tightening by the Fed or other central banks around the world, Jain-Chandra said, adding that during past periods of Fed rate hikes, Hong Kong’s growth and exports rose.

(The Standard, December 1, 2017) Private home prices in October rose 0.53 percent from September, according to an index compiled by the Rating and Valuation Department and released yesterday.

The index climbed 12.5 percent year-on-year. The government also revised September's growth from the previous month up to 0.35 percent from 0.27 percent.

The government data released yesterday also showed rents hit historic highs for an eighth consecutive month, adding pressure to public housing supply, which already has a backlog of more than 150,000 applicants with an average waiting time of 4.6 years.

Thomas Lam, a senior director at property consultancy Knight Frank, said: "Property prices are high. It's unaffordable for most ordinary people. This poses a certain risk to the residential property market."

Lam predicts that developers will offer about 20,000 new units a year from 2018 to 2022, in which 58 percent will be in the New Territories.

Despite the International Monetary Fund saying that house prices in Hong Kong could cool next year if the Federal Reserve delivers rate increases, Knight Frank forecasts Hong Kong mass residential prices will see a five-percent growth next year, while luxury residential prices will increase by seven percent.

Between 2017 and 2020, the city could see an additional 2,100 "nano flats," defined as units smaller than 200 square feet, said property consultancy JLL.

Mortgage loans financing primary market transactions decreased by 4.5 percent to HK$6 billion and those financing secondary market transactions increased by 3.6 percent to HK$14.4 billion, according to statistics by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority.

Mortgage loans for refinancing decreased by 7.4 percent to HK$8.6 billion. Mortgage loans drawn down during October decreased by 22 percent compared with September to HK$21.6 billion. The ratio of new mortgage loans priced with reference to the Hong Kong Interbank Rate decreased from 93.4 percent in September to 93.1 percent in October.

(China Daily, November 30, 2017) Hong Kong people used to admire and lionize the real-estate tycoons as models of success and ingenuity. Stories of their exploits in business and in private had helped sell dozens of gossip magazines which were staple reading material for the young and not-so-young.

But, the public’s view of this group of developers who have amassed vast and fabulous fortunes changed rapidly for the worse in the big property market crash after the outbreak of the Asian financial crisis in 1997. Their public image has taken another dive in the past two years as property prices surged to levels fewer and fewer people could afford.

Now, these tycoons are reviled as a group of selfish profiteers taking advantage of the public through their stranglehold on the supply of apartments. Indeed, they are taking a big share of the blame for worsening the housing shortage problem that has become a major source of public discontent.

Perhaps, they can all use a lesson on community mindedness. In fact, there is a master course at Columbia University in New York that teaches just that. Course director Patrice Derrington told the BBC what we all knew too well. “Property developers have a terrible reputation,” he said.

It’s not a course for the idealists. In fact, the course has produced some of New York’s leading real-estate developers among students. Each year, about 100 students took the course which focuses on the needs of the community rather than profit maximization.

Contrary to popular belief, the most important voice in a building project should belong to the local community around the site, argued Derrington. “Today, a successful developer needs to be patient and listen to the community,” he added.

In their rush to make a fast buck by tearing down entire neighborhoods and destroying community lifestyles in the name of urban renewal, developers in Hong Kong don’t have anyone to blame, but themselves, for running into stiffening political roadblocks.

(Asian Post, November 30, 2017) Growth momentum expected to ease in near term after prices for secondary homes rise for a 19th month amid supply-demand imbalance

Hong Kong's secondary home prices rose for a 19th month in October, led by gains in large flats, government figures showed.

The home price index edged 0.53 per cent higher to 342.4, according to data released by the Rating and Valuation Department yesterday. That compared with a gain of 0.35 per cent in September.

"Growth momentum will turn slower in coming months," said Thomas Lam, a senior director at Knight Frank, although he noted that prices could still increase by up to 12 per cent next year.

Macquarie forecast home price could grow 10 per cent as demand continued to outstrip supply.

The price of homes measuring 753 to 1,075 sq ft increased 0.89 per cent in October, the biggest gain among all categories, while flats larger than 1,722 sq ft saw prices decline 0.16 per cent.

Among the 50 housing estates monitored by Ricacorp Properties, only Tai Hing Gardens in Tuen Mun and Kingswood Villas in Tin Shui Wai had flats priced below HK$10,000 per square foot during the period.

"That compared with six in January. This type of flats may disappear from the market if prices continue to rise," said Derek Chan, the head of research at Ricacorp.

Midland Realty said the average price for used homes stood at HK$12,000 per square foot last month.

The market was stoked a fortnight ago when a residential site in Cheung Sha Wan was sold for a

(The Standard, November 29, 2017) The private domestic Property Price Index has shown an upward trend for 18 consecutive months up to the end of September, hitting a historical high thanks to robust growth in Hong Kong property prices.

Among the various types of units, smaller flats with saleable area of 431 square feet or less outperformed the overall market, rising about 26 percent cumulatively.

The average price per square foot of small units situated in the New Territories jumped 27.3 percent in the 18-month period to HK$11,351 as at September 30, from HK$8,914 in March last year, leading the market momentum.

Overall prices climbed 25.3 percent in the period, according to the Rating and Valuation Department.Small to medium-sized flats ranging in size from 432 to 752 sq ft rose 25 percent in price, while medium to large flats of between 753 and 1,075 sq ft increased 20.4 percent, and those between 1,076 and 1,721 sq ft gained 15.8 percent. The average price per square foot of small units located in Kowloon climbed by an average of 26.9 percent in the 18-month period to HK$12,227 from HK$9,635, while similar flats in Hong Kong Island went up 25.2 percent to HK$14,857 from HK$11,864.

A market watcher said most of the newly launched residential projects in the past few years were situated in the New Territories and dominated by small units, which boosted prices.

However, prices in the New Territories still lag behind Kowloon and Hong Kong Island."First-time homebuyers tend to make their homebuying plans earlier, owing to the red-hot property market, as well as a number of parents who want to help their children acquire flats at a relatively cheaper price," said economist Andy Kwan Cheuk-chiu.