The focus of China's property buyers has shifted in recent months from Hong Kong's luxury housing market to mass-housing units selling for range of between HK$2m and HK$5m.

The number of deals by mainland buyers in this price range rose by 41% last year, according to data compiled by mReferral Mortgage Brokerage Services.

A range of factors were behind the big jump, said Sharmaine Lau Yuen-yuen, mReferral's chief economic analyst, including rising rentals and low interest rates. Against this backdrop, mainlanders living and working in Hong Kong were persuaded to buy instead of renting.

South China Morning Post