Ko Lai: If Hong Kong successfully auctions luxury residential land in the new fiscal year, market confidence is expected to further increase.

In the land sale list for 2026/27 in Hong Kong, there are 9 residential land plots, including two luxury residential land plots that have been carried over. Leung Chun Fung, Senior Director of Valuation and Consulting Services at Colliers, said that the last transaction on luxury land plots was several years ago. If the government can successfully release these luxury land plots in the new fiscal year, it will inject more confidence into the market and attract more interest. The Development Bureau of Hong Kong announced that the 2026/27 land sale list includes 9 residential land plots totaling 6650 units, with 3120 units in the Hung Hom district. Additionally, there are 3 land plots carried over from the 2025/26 fiscal year in Stanley, Tung Chung, and Sai Kung. Leung pointed out that the two luxury land plots, located in Stanley and Sai Kung, are scarce in supply and have not been released due to weak market sentiment and a slowdown in high-end residential transactions. With recent improvements in the luxury residential market, the government may consider restarting the tender process for these land plots this year to take advantage of the recovery momentum and increase land revenue. He mentioned that the supply of high-end residential land has been extremely limited in recent years, with the last traditional luxury residential land transaction dating back to the end of 2023 in Tung Chung, Lantau Island. If the government can successfully sell these luxury land plots in the new fiscal year, market confidence will be further boosted. Bruce Hou, Senior Director and Head of Financing Assessment at Colliers Hong Kong Valuation and Consulting Services, said that the budget proposal to continue suspending the sale of commercial land for the next year is as expected. Despite the improvement in market sentiment last year and the revival of the rental market, the overall vacancy rate of Grade A office buildings remains high at 17.5%, and the market still needs time to absorb the new supply in the past few years.