September Hong Kong private residential property price index rises 0.19% month-on-month; Colliers: maintains full-year property price growth forecast of 8% to 10%

The Hong Kong Rating and Valuation Department announced today that the private residential property price index for the whole territory rebounded to 320.8 in September, up 0.19% month-on-month, rising for two consecutive months, and up 9.34% year-on-year; it has accumulated a rise of 7.1% in the first nine months. The rental index for the same period stood at 212.2 points, up 0.5% month-on-month and up 6.2% year-on-year. Leung Chun-fung, Senior Director of Project Development and Planning at Colliers Hong Kong, said that the overall atmosphere in the residential market has continued to improve recently, with the primary market maintaining a certain sales momentum, reflecting a gradual recovery in buyers' confidence to enter the market. The earlier performance of the land market also sent positive signals, with developers willing to actively participate in bidding for quality sites, reflecting that the industry remains confident in the medium- to long-term outlook and development value of the residential market. The firm expects the recovery trend in the residential market to continue, maintaining its forecast of an 8% to 10% increase in property prices for the full year this year, and expects property prices to rise further by 3% to 6% in 2027. However, next year's upward momentum is expected to be milder than this year's, and the market still needs to watch for changes in the external environment, including the trajectory of US interest rates and Hong Kong's interest rate environment, as well as geopolitical tensions and volatility in global financial markets, all of which may affect buyers' pace of entering the market and investment sentiment. Overall, the firm believes that the supporting factors for the current property market have increased compared with before. As long as the primary market maintains sales momentum, developers keep pricing close to the market's absorption capacity, and sustained rental demand and rental performance also help enhance the relative attractiveness of buying property, residential property prices still have a foundation for moderate upward movement.