Cooling measures start to bite as homes market sees sharp sales drop

The number of new residential mortgage applications slumped 30 per cent last month from the previous month as the government's measures to cool the property market started to bite, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority said.

Buying interest from across the border dropped throughout Hong Kong, hit by the new stamp duty imposed on non-locals and companies who buy homes, with mainlanders accounting for just one in 15 transactions last month, down 40 per cent from November, data from the Centaline Property Agency showed.

via Business feed http://www.scmp.com/business/article/1138262/cooling-measures-start-bite-homes-market-sees-sharp-sales-drop