No plans to further relax cooling measures, says FS
The Financial Secretary Paul Chan has dismissed suggestions that the government should further relax property market cooling measures. He made the comment a day after the Monetary Authority raised the cap on loan-to-value ratios for properties under 30 million dollars, meaning self-use home buyers now need less money for a down payment on a flat. Speaking to reporters after returning from a trip to Shanghai, Chan said the move was targeted in nature and didn't imply there would be other changes going forward. "We have no intention of adjusting measures that manage demand for residential property - like having locals, who own flats, and non-locals paying more stamp duty when buying residential property in Hong Kong," he said. "The aim of relaxing the mortgage rules was clear and targeted; which, I repeat, is to let self-use home buyers pay less for down payments and mortgage insurance, and to provide more property choices for those moving home." Chan said it was not appropriate to adjust cooling measures when home prices were still relatively high and the supply of flats tight.  He said home prices had rebounded in the first quarter, as Hong Kong's economy recovered from Covid; while, over the last few months the number of transactions had increased to around 90 percent of pre-pandemic levels. Chan had been in Shanghai for a conference on artificial intelligence.