Hong Kong’s April lived-in home prices gain as cut in stamp duty spurred deals

Hong Kong’s lived-in home prices rose in April, halting a four-month losing streak, after a cut in stamp duty helped lift sentiment and transactions with experts forecasting a sustained momentum following a drop in borrowing costs.

An index measuring home prices gained 0.35 per cent gain from a month earlier, the Rating and Valuation Department said in a report on Wednesday. Prices declined by a cumulative 2.33 per cent from November to March.

Transactions in both primary and secondary home markets jumped last month with developers and owners completing the sale of 5,694 units in April, the highest monthly tally since November’s 6,298 units. They increased by 6.1 per cent versus 5,367 units in March, according to Land Registry records.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po reduced the stamp duty on homes priced up to HK$4 million (US$510,000) to HK$100 from HK$60,000 in his budget in February to revive the market. Before the budget, the HK$100 incentive was only extended to homes priced up to HK$3 million.

Homes worth up to HK$4 million accounted for a quarter of residential sales in 2024, according to CBRE. The cut in the stamp duty was likely to increase the share of this segment to 30 per cent of residential transactions, the property consultancy said.