Office real estate falls to all-time low in 2021: RCA

Office property investment in Hong Kong only brought in $2.3b in 2021.

The latest Asia Pacific Capital Trends report from Real Capital Analytics showed commercial real estate investment in the Asia Pacific surpassed the US$200b mark to US$205.4b (HK$1.6t) in 2021.

Specifically for Hong Kong, RCA said it turned in a strong recovery from 2020 with the help of robust retail and industrial investment. However, office investment declined further, sinking to a historical low, and prices reached levels last seen before the investment boom in 2017 to 2018. Overall activity remains less than half of where the market was in 2018.

"Investors have shifted their sectoral allocations dramatically in Hong Kong, with both industrial and retail investment overtaking offices for the first time. Confidence in the industrial sector has been especially high, with steady cross-border interest. Office investment, meanwhile, fell to a historical low of just US$2.3b ($17.93b) for the whole year," added Head of real estate research Benjamin Chow.

Offices remained the dominant property type traded in 2021 and despite concerns about occupancy in certain markets, pricing held up.

(US$1 = HK$7.79)