Property transaction value surges in first quarter of 2018

A total of 5,501 building units and parking spaces were purchased and sold in the first quarter of 2018, according to the stamp duty record. According to information released yesterday by the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC), the total value of transactions was MOP32.8 billion, up by 52 percent quarter-to-quarter.

The purchase and sale of residential units totaled 3,627, an increase of 1,009 units or 38.5 percent quarter-to-quarter. Analyzed by month, the transaction volume in January rose sharply by 85 percent while the growth in February slowed to 3.6 percent. The transaction volume in March plunged by 57.6 percent after the launch of measures to manage the residential property market.

According to DESC, the transaction volume of pre-sale residential units surged by 808 quarter-to-quarter to 1,611 units and the transaction value grew by 69.7 percent to MOP12.49 billion, attributable to the release of large-scale housing estates in that quarter. Moreover, the purchase and sale of existing residential units increased by 201 to 2,016, with purchase prices amounting to MOP11.82 billion, up by 13.5 percent. The number of office units purchased and sold rose significantly by 86 to 122, and total property value leapt by 814.8 percent to MOP2.65 billion.

With respect to the average price per square meter of space that could be utilized within dwellings, the overall average price of residential units increased by 6.3 percent quarter-to-quarter to MOP112,304, with the average prices of those in the Macau Peninsula (MOP99,312) and Coloane (MOP137,768) rising by 1.8 percent and 9.9 percent respectively. Meanwhile, the average price of residential units in Taipa (MOP117,364) dropped by 3.7 percent. The average price of existing residential units (MOP93,450) and pre-sale residential units (MOP137,898) went up by 3.8 percent and 0.2 percent respectively.

The existing residential units purchased and sold were mainly located in Baixa da Taipa, with 231 units (11.5 percent of total). 217 units were in NATAP and 185 in Areia Preta & Iao Hon. The average price per square meter for each area was MOP100,741, MOP106,466 and MOP83,127 respectively.

As for pre-sale residential units, 844 purchased units (representing 52.4 percent of total) were in Coloane, 337 in Fai Chi Kei and 214 in NATAP; while the respective average price per square meter was MOP138,467, MOP116,589 and MOP146,501.

The average price of office units grew by 75.3 percent quarter-to-quarter to MOP194,311 per square meter, attributable to the increased number of transactions involving relatively high- priced office units. Meanwhile, the average price of industrial units decreased by 6.1 percent to MOP52,243 per square meter.

In the first quarter of 2018, there were 3,499 real estate purchase and sale contracts signed, and the number of properties involved (3,954) rose by 18.6 percent quarter-to-quarter. Meanwhile, 3,312 mortgage contracts were signed, and the number of properties involved (4,160) fell by 2 percent.

Regarding construction in the private sector, there were 20,707 residential units in the design stage, 9,030 under construction and 1,375 under inspection at the end of the first quarter. Throughout the quarter, 338 residential units were issued a construction permit, comprising a total floor area of 40 thousand square meters, while 247 residential units with a total floor area of 19 thousand square meters were issued a license for use. Forty percent of them were one-bedroom units.