REAL ESTATE: Property transactions drop by 44 pct, prices unlikely to decrease

2014-4-1

From：Macau Daily Times

The number of transactions in the real estate market has dropped by 44 percent compared to last February, according to figures released yesterday by the Financial Services Bureau. The average price per square meter, however, rose by 28 percent when compared to the same month last year.
According to the head of residential sales at Jones Lang LaSalle Macau, Mr Jeff Wong, property prices are unlikely to drop in the near future. “Transactions and prices are two different indicators,” he explained, adding that the price “is another story.” “Since the demand [for properties] is still strong and the economy in Macau is also vigorous, prices will continue to increase, although in a slighter way,” he told the Times.
The real estate market has seen a significant drop in the amount of transactions over recent months. Figures provided by the Financial Services Bureau show that 457 residential housing units were transacted in February – representing an approximate 44 percent drop year-on-year.
The drop month-on-month is also significant, as it decreased by 40 percent. In January, 758 apartments had been traded.
According to Jeff Wong, the drop in February is comparatively higher due to government measures implemented a few years ago, such as lowering the valuation of the land (related to the Land Value Tax – LVT) and the special stamp duty.
In 2011, the government had launched a special stamp duty tax, trying to avoid speculation on the real estate market. This measure imposed a 20 percent increase in the transaction of a housing unit, in case it is sold one year after it was bought.
The head of residential sales at Jones Lang LaSalle believes that the decrease in property transactions for the whole year will not be as significant as the one verified in February.
“We believe that for the year [2014] as a whole transactions [in the property market] will decrease 25 percent when compared to 2013,” said Mr Jeff Wong.
When it comes to real estate prices the forecast is slightly different, so are the figures provided by the Financial Services Bureau, that confirm a rise of 28 percent in the average price per square meter.
This February, the average price per square meter was MOP90,407, representing an increase of MOP20,000 more than in February 2013. This increase was also recorded month-on-month. In January, the average price per square meter was MOP84,156, with this amount rising by over seven percent in February. CP

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