Hong Kong Chief Executive Mr. John Lee Ka-chiu delivered the third Policy Address of his term of office on Oct. 16, 2024, with the theme of Reform for Enhancing Development and Building Our Future Together aiming to consolidate and enhance Hong Kong's status as an international financial, shipping, and trade center. While innovation and technology (I&T) and finance are the focus, he has also proposed measures to attract talent and funds, as well as several actions to promote industry development.
We are pleased to see that in the Policy Address, the government has actively reviewed and initiated a number of policies that will benefit the economy, attract talent and develop industries. These include relaxing the loan-to-value (LTV) ratio of properties and allowing the purchase of big-ticket residential properties in the New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme, bringing positive momentum to the property market. The Policy Address also proposes to promote Hong Kong as an international hub for post-secondary education, increase student housing supply, and pilot a large-scale land disposal approach for developers in the Northern Metropolis, all striving to promote the development of different industries and the improvement of Hong Kong’s long-term competitiveness.
In this special report, we summarize the real estate-related policies in the 2024 Policy Address, share our house views, and propose recommendations on current issues.