Hong Kong New-Home Weekend Sales Slump 74% as Kam Tin Project Sells Just 35% of Units

A Subdued First August Weekend for Hong Kong Home Sales

Hong Kong's residential market had a subdued first weekend of August, with about 60 new-home transactions recorded on 1–2 August — a fall of 74.35% week on week and the first time in two weeks that the weekly primary-market tally has dipped below 100 deals, according to agency counts.

The weekend's main launch was Sun Hung Kai Properties' third-round sale at its Kam Tin project (芊御), which offered 68 units on a price list and 46 units by tender. Only 40 units were sold — 35 from the price list and 5 by tender — representing 35.09% of the 114 units on offer and raising about HK$224 million. Sold units included seven one-bedroom, 29 two-bedroom and four three-bedroom flats, with prices ranging from HK$4.2533 million to HK$8.2316 million and prices per square foot of usable area from HK$12,883 to HK$19,630. The top per-square-foot price, a record for the project, was achieved by a ground-floor two-bedroom unit with a 326-square-foot platform that sold for HK$7.165 million.

In the secondary market, the ten major housing estates tracked by four agencies recorded only 2–5 transactions each over the weekend. Midland reported five deals, up 25% from the previous weekend but still in single digits for a ninth consecutive weekend; Centaline also reported five, while another major agency held at two. Elsewhere, CK Asset's Yau Tong project (親海駅) sold 67 car parking spaces by ballot — 57 for cars and 10 for motorcycles — drawing more than 100 attendees and raising more than HK$81 million.

Agents attributed the muted activity to competition from upcoming new launches, residents travelling during the summer holidays and owners' reluctance to sell. They expect large-scale project launches later in the month to release accumulated purchasing power and lift overall transaction volumes.

Why a 35% Sell-Through Matters More Than the 74% Weekly Fall

A Third-Round Sell-Through of 35% Despite Flat Prices

Sun Hung Kai has positioned recent tranches of the Kam Tin project as 'original-price launches': recent add-ons were marketed at average prices of about HK$13,566–13,649 per square foot, with increases of less than 0.4% for comparable units. The third round still converted only 35.09% of the 114 units offered, and the 46 tender units produced just five sales. That points to buyer resistance at current pricing, not simply a quiet weekend: when supply is offered at essentially unchanged prices, a one-third clearance suggests the market is absorbing units more slowly than the developer's earlier rounds.

Who Is Still Buying: Family Groups, Not Broad Retail Demand

The transactions that did complete were concentrated among well-resourced family buyers. Two groups bought five two-bedroom units at the Kam Tin project between them — one spending more than HK$16.53 million on three flats, another nearly HK$10.59 million on two. At Road King's Tuen Mun project (凱和山), three three-bedroom units with parking spaces went to a single mainland Chinese extended family for HK$39.75 million in total. These are signs of consolidated, needs-based demand from family purchasers rather than a wide base of speculative retail buyers.

Secondary Volumes: A 'Rise' of One or Two Deals

Midland's five transactions were described as up 25% week on week, but the absolute numbers — 2–5 deals per agency across the ten estates — remain at the low end of the market's recent range. These are volume figures, not price data, so they do not by themselves show prices firming. What they illustrate is thin turnover: sellers with long holding periods can afford to wait. One example is a 561-square-foot three-bedroom flat at the Tsing Lung Tau estate (浪翠園), which sold for HK$4.62 million after being bought for HK$1.9 million in April 1993 — a 143% gain over 33 years. Such past profits reinforce owners' staying power and keep listings scarce.

Car Parks as a Cash Source While Flat Sales Slow

CK Asset's weekend car-park sale at its Yau Tong project (親海駅) raised more than HK$81 million for 67 spaces — a blended average of about HK$1.21 million per space. The company links demand to Yau Tong's redevelopment into a commercial-residential district and to the opening of the Central Kowloon Route's Yau Ma Tei section. For developers, ancillary assets such as parking provide a way to monetise inventories and replenish cash even when apartment sell-through rates are weak.

The sharp week-on-week drop in new-home deals should be read with caution: August's first weekend had fewer scheduled launches than the prior one, so the comparison exaggerates the cooling. The more reliable signal is the 35.09% sell-through rate at the Kam Tin project and the still-single-digit secondary volumes, which together indicate a market that is available for business but selective on price.

How Buyers, Sellers and Investors Should Read This Weekend's Numbers

• Buyers: use flat pricing as a benchmark, not a floor. Recent Kam Tin tranches were marketed at average prices of around HK$13,566–13,649 per sq ft with increases of less than 0.4% for comparable units. With only five of 46 tender units sold in the third round, buyers of remaining tender units have room to negotiate.
• Sellers: price for a thin market. Ten-estate weekend volumes were 2–5 transactions per agency. The one secondary deal that stood out was a 561-sq-ft three-bedroom in Tsing Lung Tau that sold at HK$4.62 million — under the HK$5 million threshold that attracted an end-user buyer — showing that realistically priced, clubhouse-equipped units can still transact.
• Investors: treat car-park demand as localised. The 67 spaces sold at the Yau Tong project (親海駅) for more than HK$81 million, a blended average near HK$1.21 million per space, with more than 100 attendees at the ballot. The stated drivers were Yau Tong's redevelopment and the Central Kowloon Route's Yau Ma Tei section; parking remains a thin, illiquid market outside such districts.
• Watch the next large launch for the real demand test. Agents expect upcoming project launches to release pent-up buying power and lift August volumes. The measure to watch is whether sell-through rates improve materially on the 35.09% recorded at the Kam Tin project's third round.