Transactions of residential and commercial property in Taiwan’s six special municipalities hit an 11-year high last year, driven by strong demand in the first six months, local government data showed.
Significant demand from January to June offset the effects of the seventh round of selective credit controls launched in the second half by the central bank to limit mortgage eligibility, the data showed.
Transactions of homes, shops, offices and factories in Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung totaled 271,309 units, up 14.7 percent from a year earlier and an 11-year high, the data showed.
Photo: CNA
Jessica Hsu (徐佳馨), research head of property agency H&B Realty Co (住商不動產), said that the credit controls in September affected the local home market.
However, government subsidies for home buyers pushed up property sales in the first half, which helped offset the effect of the central bank’s intervention, Hsu said.
All of the special municipalities reported a year-on-year increase in sales of homes, shops, offices and factories, the data showed.
Residential and commercial property sales last year in Taipei, the most closely watched property market in Taiwan, rose 12.0 percent from a year earlier to 29,930 units, while sales in New Taipei City, the most populous city in the country, rose 6.9 percent to 64,169 units, the data showed.
In Taoyuan, property transactions totaled 49,189 units, up 20.8 percent from a year earlier, while sales in Taichung rose 15.3 percent to 54,996 units, they showed.
Tainan’s property sales grew 11.4 percent from a year earlier to 27,783 units, while sales in Kaohsiung rose 24.8 percent to 45,242 units, they showed.
Sales in Tainan hit a historical high, while transactions in Taichung and Kaohsiung were the highest in 17 and 18 years respectively, said Chen Chin-ping (陳金萍), a research manager at Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶集團).
Property sales in the six municipalities last month alone totaled 21,445 units, up 8.2 percent from a month earlier, but down 9.7 percent from a year earlier, the data showed.
Charlene Chang (張旭嵐), a section chief at Taiwan Realty Co (台灣房屋), said that the spike last month was due to some home buyers wanting to move into a new house before the Lunar New Year.
Moderating economic growth made some home sellers more willing to cut prices, Chang added.
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