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Hang Lung has US$132 million in limbo as its purchase of Shouson Hill villas in Hong Kong hits a snag amid US-China spat
- The developer said it had paid a 10 per cent deposit for the HK$2.57 billion Shouson Hill villas on The Peak – a deal that now hangs in the balance
- The sale of the six multistorey villas hit a snag last month when the Chinese government said the US consulate had failed to seek its permission
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Hang Lung Properties, the Hong Kong buyer of the US government’s real estate asset in Hong Kong, may have up to HK$1.027 billion (US$132.5 million) in limbo, as its purchase has been caught up in the souring diplomatic relations between Washington and Beijing.
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The developer paid HK$257 million as the 10 per cent deposit for the HK$2.57 billion Shouson Hill villas on The Peak, with another HK$770 million to Hong Kong’s government as stamp duty, according to Hang Lung’s financial results filed with the Hong Kong stock exchange.
The purchase of the six multistorey villas at 37 Shouson Hill Road, originally due for completion on December 30, has been held up because Hong Kong’s Land Registry on December 21 declined to certify the transfer of titles, citing diplomatic obligations between China and the US that should not be regarded as an ordinary commercial activity. Both the seller and the buyer of the property had been in talks to resolve the matter, Lo said.
“Now we are closely communicating with the seller through lawyers on both sides,” Hang Lung’s chief executive Weber Lo said during an earnings press briefing. “We are still prepared, willing and able to proceed with the transaction.”
The deal now hangs in the balance while the direction of US-China relations remains to be seen under Joe Biden’s new administration.
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