Sinyi Realty Inc (信義房屋), the nation’s only listed broker, yesterday said business has been better this quarter on the back of high seasonal demand, after it recorded a steep decline in profit last quarter which it attributed to unfavorable government policies and political uncertainty.
Sinyi saw revenue of NT$730 million (US$23.73 million) last month, which is a 9.6 percent decrease from the same period last year, but a 15 percent rise from September, company data showed.
Despite the uptick, “housing transactions are likely to drop to a 10-year low for the year as government agencies team up to cool the property market” ahead of the nine-in-one elections later this month, Sinyi researcher Tseng Chin-der (曾敬德) told an online investors’ conference.
Sinyi saw its net income dive 78.6 percent year-on-year to NT$126.17 million between July and September, or earnings per share of NT$0.21.
For the first three quarters of this year, net income totaled NT$671.18 million, down 65 percent from a year earlier, with earnings per share of NT$1.09.
Sinyi has 427 outlets in the nation, with 61 percent of them in Greater Taipei, the company said, adding that the number would remain about the same for the rest of the year, unlike smaller peers that have chosen to close down outlets amid sluggish trading.
The nation’s property market is still lackluster after the government rolled out several policy initiatives aimed at curbing climbing prices over the past two to three years.
The 30 day sell-through rate for new developments dropped to 12 percent last quarter from 19 percent recorded a year earlier, with aggregate new project volumes showing little change from last year, according to a quarterly report released by Cathay Real Estate Development Co (國泰建設) on Nov. 2.
The report showed that third-quarter new project volume contracted by 21.7 percent from a year earlier to NT$64.8 billion in Taipei and by 8.5 percent annually to NT$148 billion in New Taipei City.
However, as a broker, Sinyi does not assign much importance to price corrections because it is more interested in turnover.
“The company is seeking to facilitate transactions by strengthening services to both sellers and buyers,” Tseng said.
Soaring real-estate prices in Taipei make transactions difficult in the absence of price adjustments, especially for houses in sought-after locations, Tsai said.
The market for houses in central districts in New Taipei City is relatively stable, while the city’s second-tier areas are trying to lure first-time buyers with relatively affordable homes, Tseng said.
Policy disruptions might come to an end later this year, allowing the market some relief next year, he said.
However, political uncertainty might weigh again on the market in the second half as presidential candidates could launch campaigns with rhetoric aimed at addressing the issue of unaffordable housing, he added.
In related news, some floors of an office building in Dunhau S Road are to be put on the market for a second time, after failing to secure a buyer in the previous auction last week, bidding organizer Savills Taiwan Ltd (第一太平洋戴維斯) said.
At issue are partial floors of the upscale CTCI (中鼎工程) building, which represent the remaining underlying assets of the Gallop No. 1 real-estate investment trust (REIT) fund issued by Mega International Commercial Bank (兆豐銀行) in 2007.
The property measures 3,751 ping (12,400m2), including 20 parking spaces, and has an asking price of NT$800,000 per ping, Savills Taiwan said, adding the auction is set for Dec. 11.
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