Hong Kong Sees Surge in Property Deposit Defaults
Jan 22, 2025

Hong Kong Sees Surge in Property Deposit Defaults

Deposit defaults on new homes in Hong Kong surged by 75% last year, as 449 homebuyers abandoned their initial payments. A report from Centaline, a leading property agency, highlighted this trend, raising concerns about the city's property market.

Property experts predict this trend of defaulting will persist through 2025, influenced by high interest rates and market uncertainty. According to Centaline's data, the last quarter of the year alone accounted for 104 default cases, almost tripling from the 40 incidents reported in the previous quarter.

Typically, the initial deposit for these properties stands at HK$100,000 (US$12,844), but the agency did not specify the total value lost due to these forfeits. Market observers attribute these defaults to either an inability of buyers to proceed with purchases or anticipations of procuring better bargains as developers roll out discounts post-Lunar New Year.

Yeung Ming-yee, a senior associate director at Centaline, remarked, "As the market will be busy after Lunar New Year, and developers will be offering discounts, we expect the number of defaults on new property units to remain high. There will be around 100 such cases in the first quarter of 2025." This prediction aligns with data from the IndexBox platform, which has also mapped similar trends in the real estate market.

While short-term defaults are expected to remain elevated, analysts foresee a reduction in the long term, owing to relaxed mortgage requirements introduced by the government for unfinished flats at the close of last year. The current forfeiture trend suggests financial or strategic decision-making challenges among buyers as they navigate an unpredictable market landscape.

Source: IndexBox Market Intelligence Platform

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  12. LIST OF TABLES

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    9. Exports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
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  13. LIST OF FIGURES

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    10. Production Volume And Growth
    11. Exports And Growth
    12. Export Prices And Growth
    13. Market Size And Growth
    14. Per Capita Consumption
    15. Imports And Growth
    16. Import Prices
    17. Production, In Physical Terms, 2012–2024
    18. Production, In Value Terms, 2012–2024
    19. Production, By Country, 2024
    20. Production, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    21. Imports, In Physical Terms, 2012–2024
    22. Imports, In Value Terms, 2012–2024
    23. Imports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2024
    24. Imports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    25. Imports, In Value Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    26. Import Prices, By Country, 2012–2024
    27. Exports, In Physical Terms, 2012–2024
    28. Exports, In Value Terms, 2012–2024
    29. Exports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2024
    30. Exports, In Physical Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    31. Exports, In Value Terms, By Country, 2012–2024
    32. Export Prices, 2012–2024

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