Home prices fall to 6.5-year low
Government data released on Tuesday showed that home prices fell to a six-and-a-half year low in October – the sixth consecutive monthly drop. An index for private flats fell by 2.2 percent month-to-month, to the lowest point since March 2017. But the decline was 0.2 percentage points smaller than the dip recorded in September.  For the first 10 months of the year, home prices fell by around 4 percent. Data from the Rating and Valuation Department showed that prices of small and medium-sized flats fell by 2.2 percent in October, and those of larger units by 1.9 percent. The rental index, meanwhile, rose for a ninth month in a row and was up 0.3 percent, reaching a four-year high. Over the first 10 months of the year, rents went up by around 6.2 percent.