Hong Kong listings: more choice, but is the usable stock actually improving?

X

XaviReed

Property investor
Established
I need to decide soon whether to approach older Hong Kong listings or wait for another wave of stock. The trade-off is that there is more choice on screen, yet little of it looks suitable enough to buy.

My sample is mainly serviced apartments asking between HK$3,338,000 and HK$5,008,000, with a typical visible period of 83 days. I have been giving service charges considerable weight when two similar-looking units move at different speeds, but financing, condition and broad neighbourhood boundaries may be distorting that impression.

Would you first compare completed sales within the same building or street, then use new-listing volume to judge whether waiting is worthwhile? I am also interested in whether older listings are actually attracting price cuts or simply being withdrawn and relisted.
 
To clarify, I’m not treating 83 days as a clean measure of seller resistance. Withdrawals and relistings could distort it. I’m mainly deciding whether to wait for better new stock or start approaching owners of older listings, so price-cut timing and seller motivation matter more to me than the raw listing count.
 
I think you’re giving service charges too much explanatory power. They affect the real monthly cost, but condition, financing and the seller’s reason for listing can separate two otherwise similar units.

Which neighbourhoods are included? In Hong Kong, a broad search boundary can make the price bracket look more consistent than it really is. I’d compare recent completed sales within the same building before approaching stale listings.
 
Also, “mostly serviced apartments” may be the bigger sampling issue. Even at similar asking prices, buyers may not treat those properties as substitutes for ordinary flats.

I’d split the list by building and property condition, then record new listings, withdrawals and reductions separately. A unit sitting for 83 days without a cut tells a different story from one that has already been reduced twice.
 
More advertised choice can coexist with very little genuinely competitive stock. Fresh, well-presented units at credible prices may disappear while compromised or optimistic listings accumulate.

I would not assume every withdrawal became a sale, either. For your decision, ask for recent completed transactions and the full recurring charges for each shortlisted building. That should test your theory better than portal age alone.
 
Hana’s point about withdrawals is important. I’d use a simple table: first-seen date, current ask, previous ask if known, condition, recurring charges, financing uncertainty, and whether the listing disappears or returns. Keep neighbourhood boundaries tight.

Then contact older listings only where the total cost works before negotiation. Otherwise a large discount can still leave you with the wrong property.
 
One caveat on seller motivation: a long marketing period or delayed price cut does not necessarily mean the owner will negotiate. Some may simply be willing to wait. I’d approach both one stale listing and one credible new listing, using comparable completed sales rather than days advertised as the basis. Their responses should reveal more than another month of watching headline inventory.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top