The median private home price in Hong Kong fell by 8.7% in 2022, making the SAR the second-most expensive city in Asia to buy a private residence, according to the Urban Land Institute’s 2023 Asia Pacific Home Attainability Index. The median home price in the SAR is now HK$9 million (US$ 1.16 million), returning to 2017 levels.
The report provides an overview of the extent to which housing is attainable in 45 cities across nine Asia-Pacific countries: Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, and Vietnam. Singapore is now the most expensive private housing market in the region, with a median private home price of HK$9.4 million (US$1.2 million).
The study attributes the drop in Hong Kong prices to “a significant increase in mortgage interest rates in line with the US interest rate increase, a net outflow of population, and a less optimistic view on the local property market.”
The price rises in Singapore during 2022 were driven by factors such as the influx of immigrants to the city, the increasing trend of young professionals moving out of their family homes for more space and freedom, and Covid-related construction delays.
However, Hong Kong still has the most expensive housing in the region in terms of square metres, at HK$154,819 (US$19,768) per square metre. Shenzhen comes second at HK$85,179 (US$10,876) per square metre, followed by Singapore at HK$83,917 (US$10,715).
Hong Kong also topped the list of the world’s most unaffordable housing markets for the 13th year in a row. However, the city’s affordability ratio – calculated by dividing a city’s median house price by the median annual household income – fell because of factors such as Covid-19, the resulting economic slump, and rising interest rates.
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