Over 50% see home prices to climb in coming year

The growing confidence could be triggered by the improving pandemic situation.

More than half of Hong Kongers, or 54%, expect property prices to increase in the coming year, up from only 33% in the previous quarter.

In its second-quarter Residential Property Ownership Survey, Citi Hong Kong found 35% of respondents expect prices to remain unchanged, whilst 12% hold bearish views, down from 20% in the first quarter.

“The survey results show a recovery of confidence in the property market in the second quarter of 2021,” Josephine Lee, head of Retail Bank at Citi Hong Kong, said.

The report noted the stronger confidence may also be driven by the significantly improving pandemic situation.

Lee, however, flagged that fewer respondents have surplus funds, which could be behind the reduced level of interest in buying a property.

Around 50% mentioned having higher household income than expenses, down from the close to 60% recorded in the previous quarter.

Some 36% of the respondents just managed to strike a balance between income and spending, compared with 14% who considered themselves to spend more than their household income.

“We recommend that interested homebuyers comprehensively assess their financial condition and seek an appropriate mortgage plan as part of the detailed planning necessary to fulfil their dream of homeownership," Lee said.

Citibank commissioned the University of Hong Kong Social Sciences Research Centre to conduct the survey, interviewing a random sample of more than 500 Hong Kong respondents by phone in June 2021.