Taiwan’s housing market cooled sharply this year, with property transfers in the first nine months plunging 28.1 percent to 194,976 units — the lowest level for the period since 2017, data released yesterday by the Ministry of the Interior showed.
The volume ranks as the third-lowest on record, with only 175,787 units in 2016 and 193,238 units in 2001 lower, according to Chen Chin-ping (陳金萍), deputy research head at Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房屋), Taiwan’s largest broker by number of offices.
Chen attributed the slowdown to the central bank’s ongoing selective credit controls, tighter loan restrictions and limited supply of new-home handovers.
Photo: Hsu Yi-ping, Taipei Times
Seasonal factors, such as the traditionally slow summer vacation period, further dampened market activity, she said.
The decline contrasts sharply with last year’s monthly transactions, which exceeded 30,000 units from April to August, fueled by favorable lending terms for first-time buyers.
The surge prompted the central bank to tighten mortgage conditions to curb risks of loan concentration and a potential housing bubble.
Policymakers sought to ease the slowdown last month by freeing first-home loans from the banking loan ratio limit, enabling banks to extend more credit. Authorities also extended the window for home relocators to sell properties from 12 months to 18 months after purchase, while retaining first-home mortgage privileges.
“The policy adjustments are positive for loan accessibility and may help reduce the wait-and-see attitude among first-time buyers,” Chen said.
Despite the measures, last month’s home sales fell 3.9 percent from the previous month and dropped 30 percent year-on-year, highlighting ongoing caution among buyers amid economic uncertainty, including potential impacts from US tariffs.
The government has described the 20 percent tariffs as temporary and said trade negotiations continue, hoping to bring down the tariff rate.
Market watchers said the fourth quarter would be crucial in assessing whether policy easing could stabilize transactions. The central bank plans to review loan restrictions in December to determine whether they should be extended into next year.
In related developments, Taiwan’s construction cost index rose just 0.8 percent in the first three quarters, the slowest pace since 2017, according to Sinyi Realty Co (信義房屋).
The slowdown signals that cost-driven pressures on housing have largely disappeared, even though developers have said there is little room for price concessions given earlier spikes in building material costs since the COVID-19 pandemic.
“With construction costs stabilizing, housing prices will increasingly depend on demand rather than cost pressures,” Sinyi Realty research manager Tseng Ching-der (曾敬德) said.
Mercuries Life Insurance Co (三商美邦人壽) shares surged to a seven-month high this week after local media reported that E.Sun Financial Holding Co (玉山金控) had outbid CTBC Financial Holding Co (中信金控) in the financially strained insurer’s ongoing sale process. Shares of the mid-sized life insurer climbed 5.8 percent this week to NT$6.72, extending a nearly 18 percent rally over the past month, as investors bet on the likelihood of an impending takeover. The final round of bidding closed on Thursday, marking a critical step in the 32-year-old insurer’s search for a buyer after years of struggling to meet capital adequacy requirements. Local media reports
US sports leagues rushed to get in on the multi-billion US dollar bonanza of legalized betting, but the arrest of an National Basketball Association (NBA) coach and player in two sprawling US federal investigations show the potential cost of partnering with the gambling industry. Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, a former Detroit Pistons star and an NBA Hall of Famer, was arrested for his alleged role in rigged illegal poker games that prosecutors say were tied to Mafia crime families. Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was charged with manipulating his play for the benefit of bettors and former NBA player and
The DBS Foundation yesterday announced the launch of two flagship programs, “Silver Motion” and “Happier Caregiver, Healthier Seniors,” in partnership with CCILU Ltd, Hondao Senior Citizens’ Welfare Foundation and the Garden of Hope Foundation to help Taiwan face the challenges of a rapidly aging population. The foundation said it would invest S$4.91 million (US$3.8 million) over three years to foster inclusion and resilience in an aging society. “Aging may bring challenges, but it also brings opportunities. With many Asian markets rapidly becoming super-aged, the DBS Foundation is working with a regional ecosystem of like-minded partners across the private, public and people sectors
BETTER THAN EXPECTED: The firm’s Q3 results exceeded its projections, based on ‘the underlying strength of our core markets,’ chief financial officer Dave Zinsner said Intel Corp returned to profitability and gave an upbeat revenue forecast after PC demand grew, suggesting that it is making progress on a long and challenging comeback attempt. In the third quarter, revenue rose 3 percent to US$13.7 billion. The Santa Clara, California-based company posted its first quarterly net income since the end of 2023, with earnings per share of US$0.23, excluding some items. Analysts had estimated sales of US$13.2 billion and earnings per share of US$0.01 on average, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Fourth-quarter sales would be roughly US$13.3 billion, the company said in a statement on Thursday. Intel shares gained about
RSS