The Hong Kong government is not selling any residential or commercial land plots in the first quarter of the year, as weak market sentiment dampens developer demand.
“In recent months, we have witnessed that the market is not too keen in tendering for residential sites,” Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn said in a press conference. There were failed tenders and the recent successful tender had only one bid, she added.
There will be a supply of 11,530 new homes in the financial year ending in March, close to the government’s annual target, Linn said. It’s the first time in recent years for the government to not sell any residential plots, according to Linn.
The government is also not auctioning commercial sites, continuing the same decision made in the previous quarter, as office vacancies remains high. The city saw a record 16.4 per cent of empty office space at the end of last year, according to CBRE Group.
Hong Kong only sold one-third of land plots in public tenders in the first 11 months, a record for failed bids. The six sites left unsold were mostly residential plots.
High interest rates and rising construction costs have deterred builders from acquiring land.
