Real-estate transactions in four of the nation’s five major municipalities plunged by 20 percent last month from a year earlier, though Taipei staged a rebound after emerging from Ghost Month disruptions, local government data showed yesterday.
The figures affirmed a sluggish market in the lead-up to the nine-in-one elections next month, analysts said.
Property deals dropped 20 percent year-on-year to 2,502 units in Taipei last month, even though they translated into an 8.5 percent increase from one month earlier, according to the city’s statistics.
ALL-ROUND DECLINE
The rebound is seen as a sign that the worst may have been over for the city’s housing market one month after the lunar Ghost Month — which fell mostly in August this year — broker Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房屋) said.
The decline was 24 percent year-on-year in New Taipei City, with transactions shrinking to 4,796 units last month compared with a year earlier, New Taipei City Government data showed.
The result marked a 2.8 percent decrease from one month earlier.
The retreat is evident in districts with heavy supply such as Linkou (林口) and Sijhih (汐止), the data showed.
SOME OPTIMISM
Property transfers fell 23 percent in Taoyuan County to 3,373 last month, but increased 7.9 percent from August, as the county moves closer to special municipality status in December.
The market appeared relatively stable in Greater Tainan, where transfers contracted a mild 3 percent to 1,545 units from a year earlier, Greater Tainan Government data showed. The results indicated a 1.8 percent retreat from the August level.
RECOVERY PROSPECTS
The overall market is unlikely to show a solid recovery until policy uncertainty settles, Sinyi Realty Inc (信義房屋) said.
The government plans to raise tax burdens significantly on property transactions based on real trading prices, rather than much-lower assessed values for tax purposes at present.
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