Hong Kong’s Mortgage Market Sees Uptick in November 2024

The
Hong
Kong
Monetary
Authority
(HKMA)
has
released
its
residential
mortgage
survey
results
for
November
2024,
revealing
significant
shifts
in
the
city’s
mortgage
landscape.
The
number
of
mortgage
applications
rose
by
9.7%
from
the
previous
month,
totaling
7,995
applications,
according
to
the

Hong
Kong
Monetary
Authority.

Mortgage
Loans
Surge

In
November,
the
total
value
of
approved
mortgage
loans
surged
by
27.7%
compared
to
October,
reaching
HK$24.2
billion.
This
increase
was
driven
by
substantial
growth
in
loans
for
both
primary
and
secondary
market
transactions.
Mortgage
loans
for
primary
market
transactions
climbed
by
an
impressive
46.2%
to
HK$7.9
billion,
while
those
for
secondary
market
transactions
rose
by
20.3%
to
HK$13.7
billion.
Additionally,
loans
for
refinancing
experienced
a
20.1%
growth,
amounting
to
HK$2.6
billion.

Loan
Drawdowns
and
Pricing
Trends

Despite
the
uptick
in
approvals,
mortgage
loans
drawn
down
in
November
decreased
by
5.2%
from
October,
totaling
HK$10.6
billion.
A
notable
trend
was
observed
in
the
pricing
of
new
mortgage
loans.
The
proportion
of
loans
priced
with
reference
to
the
Hong
Kong
Interbank
Offered
Rate
(HIBOR)
increased
from
89.2%
in
October
to
92.2%
in
November.
Conversely,
loans
priced
with
reference
to
best
lending
rates
saw
a
decline
from
3.6%
to
2.6%
over
the
same
period.

Outstanding
Loans
and
Delinquency

The
total
outstanding
value
of
mortgage
loans
experienced
a
slight
decline
of
0.1%,
ending
November
at
HK$1,871
billion.
The
mortgage
delinquency
ratio
remained
low
at
0.11%,
while
the
rescheduled
loan
ratio
stayed
nearly
unchanged
at
0%.

The
HKMA’s
report
indicates
a
robust
performance
in
Hong
Kong’s
mortgage
market
despite
a
minor
dip
in
loan
drawdowns,
reflecting
ongoing
confidence
in
the
city’s
real
estate
sector.

Image
source:
Shutterstock