Real Estate Group Founder Expects HK Property Prices to Fall 20 Percent in 2022

Emigration, interest rate rise, lack of foreign investment see surge in negative asset sales

Shih Wing-ching, founder of Centaline Group, said in a document on Nov. 22 that the decline in the HK property market has intensified and can fall by 20 percent in 2022. This picture shows one HK real estate branch office posted an advertisement for urgent emigrant sales at HK$13.8 million (US$1.76 million), slashed by HK$3 million (US$D380k) from HK$16.8 million (US$2.15 million). Adrain Yu/The Epoch Times

With increasing supply of properties due to more Hongkongers emigrating overseas, property prices plummet and are getting worse rapidly.

According to the Centa-City Leading Index, since the beginning of 2022, HK property prices have fallen by more than 12 percent. The trend is also not too optimistic, as, in just the past 18 weeks, the decline has exceeded 10 percent. Another survey also shows more than half of the respondents believe that property prices will continue to fall in the next 12 months. The founder of a real estate group predicts that the HK property market can drop by as much as 20 percent throughout the year.

Bottomless Freefall of HK Property Prices from Increased Emigrants Selling Even at a Loss

The “Centa-City Leading Index,” which for a long time has reflected the price changes in the secondary real estate market in Hong Kong. was 162.31 At its latest release, it was sitting at 162.31, returning to the level in Nov. 2017, down 1.5 percent on a week-on-week basis. Within 2022, the overall property price decline to date is negative 12.05 percent, the largest decline recorded in 14 years since the 2008 financial tsunami. This is also down 15.17 percent from the index’s all-time high in Aug. 2021.