Macao property data: bank lending surges as property rents slip in second quarter

Macao’s banking sector reported a sharp rise in new loan approvals for residential and commercial real estate in June 2026, according to the latest property data from the Monetary Authority of Macao.

New residential mortgage loans (RMLs) climbed 30.9 percent month-on-month, reaching 1.46 billion patacas. This growth was largely driven by residents, who accounted for 97.9 percent of the total volume. Commercial real estate loans (CRELs) also saw a significant jump, rising 88.0 percent to 1.04 billion patacas during the same period.

There are just over 8 Macao patacas to the US dollar.

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Despite the surge in new approvals, total outstanding balances for both sectors continued a monthly decline, property data showed. By the end of June, outstanding RMLs fell by 0.5 percent to 201.98 billion patacas, while outstanding CRELs dropped by 0.8 percent to 132.50 billion patacas.

Loan delinquency rates remained relatively stable. At the close of June, the delinquency ratio for residential mortgages stood at 3.6 percent, while commercial real estate loans recorded a ratio of 5.6 percent, marking a 0.2 percentage point increase compared to the same period in 2025.

Property data: rental statistics

Separate property data from the Statistics and Census Service revealed a cooling in the rental market for the second quarter of 2026. The average rent for residential units fell 0.1 percent quarter-on-quarter to 140 patacas per square metre. Commercial and industrial sectors also experienced downward pressure, with shop rents falling 1.5 percent, office unit rents decreasing 0.6 percent, and industrial unit rents declining 0.3 percent.

Compared to the second quarter of 2025, residential rents showed a modest increase of 0.7 percent, while industrial, shop, and office rents recorded decreases of 5.1 percent, 4.1 percent, and 4.1 percent respectively.