Centaline Mortgage: September Hong Kong bank refinancing registrations rose 20.6% month-on-month to 1,225 cases, up for four consecutive months.

Centaline Mortgage Research Department and Land Registry data show that in September 2026, Hong Kong banks recorded a total of 1,225 refinancing registrations, 209 more than August (1,016 cases), up 20.6% month-on-month, hitting a two-and-a-half-year (31-month) high since February 2024 (1,228 cases). In the first nine months of 2026, a cumulative 6,733 refinancing registrations were recorded, an increase of 30% (29.8%) compared with 5,186 cases in the same period of 2025. Wong Mei-fung, Managing Director of Centaline Mortgage, said that refinancing registrations rose for four consecutive months from June to September this year and exceeded the 1,000-case mark for two consecutive months, far above the low level of only about 500-plus cases per month over the past two years, reflecting a clear recovery in the refinancing market this year. According to Centaline Mortgage Research Department and Land Registry data, refinancing registrations in the third quarter of 2026 totaled 3,110 cases, up 57.1% quarter-on-quarter and up 67.4% year-on-year, hitting a 10-quarter high and the highest third quarter in nearly three years (the other high was 4,364 cases in the third quarter of 2023). Wong Mei-fung pointed out that the main reason for the strong month-on-month increase in refinancing registrations in recent months was that a number of banks launched mortgage incentives and raised mortgage cash rebates. The recovery in the refinancing market this year was driven by multiple favorable factors: First, mortgage incentives have flourished recently, with some banks successively launching low-interest fixed-rate mortgages and others newly introducing "P-then-H" low-interest plans, attracting mortgage users to seize the opportunity to lower their mortgage rates; Second, in the second half of the year, several banks raised mortgage cash rebates to increase their mortgage competitiveness in the market, bringing mortgage rebates back to a nearly three-year high since banks cut rebates after September 2023, attracting property owners to refinance to earn substantial rebates; Third, property prices and property valuations rebounded significantly this year, giving more properties sufficient equity headroom to refinance or even release funds through refinancing "cash-out," further driving up refinancing applications. In terms of market share, HSBC topped the list for the fifth consecutive month in September with 315 registrations, with market share rising 2.9 percentage points month-on-month to 25.7%. Second-placed BOC HONG KONG recorded 234 registrations, with market share falling 0.9 percentage points month-on-month to 19.1%. HANG SENG BANK ranked third with 209 registrations, with market share rising 3 percentage points to 17.1%; Standard Chartered Bank ranked fourth with 170 registrations, with market share unchanged at 13.9%; as for fifth to seventh places, they were, in order, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (Asia), OCBC Bank (Hong Kong), and Shanghai Commercial Bank; BANK OF E ASIA and China CITIC Bank International tied for eighth; Dah Sing Bank and Public Bank tied for tenth. According to Centaline Mortgage Research Department and Land Registry data, a total of 6,733 refinancing registrations were recorded in the first nine months of 2026, up 29.8% from 5,186 cases in the same period of 2025. HSBC recorded 1,529 registrations, with a market share of 22.7% and a year-on-year increase of 57.1% in registrations, ranking first; BOC HONG KONG recorded 1,403 refinancing registrations, up 10% year-on-year, with market share falling 3.8 percentage points year-on-year to 20.8%, dropping one place from the same period last year to second; Standard Chartered Bank rose two places to third, with a refinancing market share of 12% and 808 registrations, more than doubling year-on-year. HANG SENG BANK had a market share of 11% with 743 registrations, ranking fourth. The largest year-on-year increase in registrations was OCBC Bank (Hong Kong), which recorded 270 registrations in the first nine months, an increase of 1.8 times, rising five places to seventh.