Cao Deming, the chief vice president of Meridian Mortgage Referral, believes that Hong Kong's property market will take time to recover, and it is expected that mortgage insurance figures will remain low in the first half of this year.
The Zhitong Finance App learned that according to the latest data from Meridian Mortgage Referral Research Division and Hong Kong Mortgage Securities Limited, the number and amount of new mortgage insurance cases and amounts have hit a new low in the past 4 years. In response to this, Meridian Mortgage Referral Chief Vice President Cho Deming believes that Hong Kong's property market will take time to recover, and it is expected that mortgage figures will remain low in the first half of this year.
According to data, the number and amount of new mortgage loans approved in Hong Kong in 2023 was 34,940 and $193.87 billion, a decrease of 7942 cases (18.5%) and $57.786 billion (23%) compared with 42882 and $251,657 billion in 2022, respectively. The number and amount of cases and amounts hit an annual low of nearly 4 years. The number and amount of new mortgage loans drawn down in 2023 was 14,941 and $83,096 billion, a decrease of 3678 cases (19.8%) and 24.058 billion yuan (22.5%), respectively, compared with 18619 and $107.154 billion in 2022. The number and amount of cases and amounts hit a new annual low in the past 4 years.
Cho Tak-ming said that in 2023, Hong Kong's economy did not fully recover, and market conditions continued to be sluggish. Coupled with the Hong Kong government easing the upper limit of bank mortgage ratios, banks alone can already borrow higher mortgage rates and reduce the demand for collateral insurance by some homebuyers, making the number and amount of newly approved and newly acquired mortgage loans all hit a four-year low. Cao Deming believes that Hong Kong's property market will take time to recover, and it is expected that mortgage insurance figures will remain low in the first half of this year.