HK home transactions seen headed for 20-year low

Hong Kong

HONG Kong's existing-home transactions probably fell to the lowest level in almost 20 years in October as prospective buyers are waiting for prices to drop and sellers refrain from settling for less money, according to Ricacorp Properties Ltd.

Derek Chan, head of research at Ricacorp, said on Wednesday that the number of transactions in the secondary market may fall to about 2,000, the lowest level since at least 1996 when the property agent started collecting the data. That would be lower than the 2,200 to 2,500 monthly transactions recorded in 2003, when the city was in the grip of the severe acute respiratory syndrome, known as Sars.