About 60 percent of people expect housing prices to pick up next quarter, and many believe it wise to enter the market this year as tightened measures are driving out speculators, a survey by Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房屋) found yesterday.
The number of people with an optimistic view of the property market gained 1 percentage point from three months earlier, even though the central bank hardened mortgage terms twice and the Ministry of Finance has proposed redefining short-term property ownership by extending the duration of ownership from two to five years.
“People welcome stricter terms, because they would drive away speculators, making the market more stable and housing prices more reasonable,” Evertrust spokesman Jay Hsieh (謝志傑) told a media briefing.
Photo: Hsu Yi-ping, Taipei Times
The positive sentiment is more evident in central and southern Taiwan, whereas slightly more people in New Taipei City and Taoyuan are expecting price corrections, the survey showed.
“That is because selective credit controls and harsh tax terms would not affect first-time home buyers or people who live in their own houses for a long time,” Hsieh said.
Stable economic growth and record-low interest rates have also led people with real demand to conclude it is better to take action before inflation kicks in, raising mortgage payments.
Housing transactions in the first two months of this year supported the survey’s findings, Evertrust general manager Yeh Ling-chi (葉凌棋) said, adding that he expects housing transactions to increase 5 to 8 percent to 150,000 units in the first half of this year.
He declined to bet on full-year figures because of concerns that developers might become more conservative if property tax changes clear the legislature, as it would take more time for developers to make a profit.
If passed, the revisions would impose taxes of 45 percent on short-term transfers of presale projects and related equities, making it more difficult to find buyers, he said.
Developers with deep pockets would opt to complete construction of new projects before selling them, but less wealthy builders would have to stay on the sidelines, Yeh said.
The government seems serious about property tax revisions and people intent on saving taxes could embark on a sell-off, as policymakers aim to make the new tax terms retroactive, he said.
The finance ministry has said property tax revisions are its top priority for the current legislative session.
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