Housing transactions in Taiwan might grow at a faster rate next quarter, despite a 30 percent increase so far this year, as many people think it is a good time to join the market, the results of a quarterly survey released yesterday by Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房屋) showed.
The nation’s largest broker by number of offices said it expects total transactions to reach 348,000 to 360,000 units this year, an annual gain of 13 to 17 percent from last year.
“The housing market is benefiting from an economic recovery, wealth effect fueled by TAIEX rallies and favorable lending terms for first-home purchases,” Evertrust general manager Yeh Ling-chi (葉凌棋) said.
Photo: CNA
The same factors also supported housing price increases of 10 to 15 percent over the past four quarters, Yeh said, citing real price transaction data jointly compiled by Evertrust and National Chengchi University.
The government in August introduced favorable lending terms such as ultra-low interest rates of 1.75 percent, a five-year grace period and mortgages of up to 40 years for first-home purchases despite a buyer’s age.
The stimulus program underpinned 40 percent of mortgage operations at the nation’s five major state-run banks: Bank of Taiwan (臺灣銀行), Land Bank of Taiwan (土地銀行), Taiwan Cooperative Bank (合作金庫銀行), Hua Nan Commercial Bank (華南銀行) and First Commercial Bank (第一銀行), government data showed.
Together, they drove 23 percent of overall deals, which would approximate 176,000 to 180,000 units in the first six months, indicating a 30 percent increase from a year earlier and muting a slowdown induced by credit controls, interest rate hikes, stiffer property taxes and bans of presale house purchase agreements, Evertrust said.
The property fever is posed to extend through the second half of this year, as 50 percent of the survey respondents said they believe it would be a good time to buy a house in the next 12 months, while 52 percent said it is the right time to sell, Evertrust research manager Daniel Chen (陳賜傑) said.
At the same time, 60 percent said they expect home prices to rise next quarter, way higher than the 9 percent who said they expect price corrections, Chen said.
In addition, 53 percent said they would hasten purchase decisions to take advantage of the stimulus program, he said.
A massive earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale that struck in Hualien on April 3 would not dampen buying interest, although nearly 90 percent said they prefer to buy homes that are less than 20 years old, he said.
Buying interest was strongest in Kaohsiung at 64 percent, followed by Hsinchu County at 57 percent, Taichung at 56 percent, Taoyuan and New Taipei City at 53 percent each, and Taipei at 52 percent, the survey showed.
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