Hong Kong mortgage frenzy sees banks go big on cash rebates

Big picture: Tourists take photos along the promenade next to Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong. As property transactions remain subdued in the city’s real estate market, competition for new mortgage customers is intensifying. — AFP

HONG KONG: Fierce competition for new mortgage customers is driving banks in Hong Kong to offer the highest cash rebates in nearly two decades.

The deals, offered as a percentage of the principal loan amount, have been ramped up from about 1.3% last year to as much as 2.6% currently, the highest in over 17 years, according to Centaline Mortgage Broker data.