Just 132 residential units were sold in Macao last month, representing a drop of around 50 percent when compared to the 263 transactions that were made in the first month of this year, the latest stamp duty records from the Financial Services Bureau show.
According to the data, 93 units were sold in the Macao peninsula, down from the 199 units that were recorded in January. Taipa and Coloane meanwhile registered respective transaction totals of 33 and 6, lower than the 42 units and 22 units that were sold in January.
The average price per square metre in February also witnessed a small drop, with its total of 86,225 patacas down one percent in comparison to the 87,195 patacas recorded in January.
Prices on the peninsula and Coloane saw a month-on-month increase of just over 2 percent (84,794 patacas) and 2.72 percent (106,294 patacas) respectively, although the total average across the city was brought down by the price decrease in Taipa, which fell from 93,954 patacas to 87,331 between January and February, a drop of more than 7 percent.
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The current data reflects the continuing slump of Macao’s property market, which has seen transactions plummet by as much as 65 percent since 2019.
Official data published earlier this month showed that the number of units transacted between 2019 and 2023 had fallen from 8,277 to 2,879, with the average price per square metre also dropping from 107,522 patacas in 2019 to 93,500 patacas in 2023.
In order to revitalise the ailing real-estate sector, the government has relaxed some of its market curbs. However, industry representatives have called for the complete scrapping of such regulations and the reinstatement of the investment residency scheme, which they claim will stimulate the market.
