Property buyers in Hong Kong are seeking discounts from sellers after many foreign Cathay Pacific employees leave the city after mass trimming, media reports said.
It is reported that most of the foreign employees of the airline company resided in places such as Tung Chung, Tsing Yi and Discovery Bay. However, sellers in these places are compelled to give 3 to 5 percent discounts on properties in the wake of the mass lay-offs by the Cathay Pacific.
Furthermore, rents and prices in those places are likely to go down in the future as Cathay Pacific is unlikely to resume operations until a vaccine for the Covid-19 virus is rolled out. The sellers expect a 10 percent slump in the property prices in the next six months.
Simon Choi, district sales manager at Centaline Property Agency, told the media, “The government’s Employment Support Scheme about to end, many more sectors might start laying off employees, cut salaries or adjust employment terms, which might further affect the housing market. As the social sentiment is not very good, homeowners’ will not be too assertive and will be open to negotiations or even price cuts. The prices in Tsing Yi could fall by around 10 per cent in the next two to four months, with sellers in older estates such as Tsing Yi Garden and Greenfield Garden likely to offer larger discounts.”
The pandemic has not only affected Hong Kong but other places as well. However, some places have seen a rebound in the housing market and some have not.