appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Peggy Ye

A North Point redevelopment site is being put on the market for HK$1.2 billion (US$153 million) after its owner, which spent years assembling the ageing property, warned that overhauling the site could result in losses of as much as 30 per cent.
The sale offers a rare glimpse into the difficulties facing private developers in Hong Kong’s urban-renewal drive, where lengthy acquisition periods, financing costs and uncertain returns can undermine projects even as the residential market recovers.
Cushman & Wakefield was appointed to market the 7,680 sq ft site at 77-87 Marble Road, which can be redeveloped for residential, commercial, hotel or student accommodation purposes, according to its statement on Tuesday. Interested parties are invited to submit expressions of interest by September 28.
The site’s current owner was a consortium led by Excellent Group, according to Land Registry records. Companies Registry records listed Lo Shing-chung as a director, and he is identified as the founder of Macau developer Excellent Group.
The North Point project was the group’s first major development venture in Hong Kong after it entered the market in 2018. Excellent Group did not respond to a request for comment.
The consortium spent years acquiring units in the three-block, 61-year-old property before obtaining a compulsory-sale order in July 2025. It won the site at the HK$600 million reserve price after no competing bidder emerged.
Market sources said the consortium had spent more than HK$800 million acquiring units, with years of financing costs adding further to its cost base. They described the HK$1.2 billion asking price as merely “covering the cost”.
The economics were already challenging when the consortium completed the acquisition. Lo said at the time that the company had initially wanted to redevelop the site for housing, but expected to lose 20 to 30 per cent because costs were too high. The main reason for completing the acquisition, he said, was to “finish” a project that had dragged on for years as interest costs mounted, according to Chinese media reports.
Many developers currently prefer government land sales or other opportunities that provide greater certainty over development schedules and project execution
Alkan Au, JLL
“In general, it’s rare to sell after consolidation” rather than redeveloping the property, said Selena Lam, director of valuation and advisory services at Colliers Hong Kong.
The North Point property’s history shows the limits of the government’s effort to encourage urban renewal by lowering the compulsory-sale threshold to as little as 65 per cent in 2024.
Alkan Au, head of value and risk management at JLL in Hong Kong, said developers remained highly selective despite improving market sentiment, favouring projects with more predictable returns, larger scale and shorter timelines.
“Compared with redevelopment projects that require lengthy assembly processes, many developers currently prefer government land sales or other opportunities that provide greater certainty over development schedules and project execution,” Au said.
Even after reaching the ownership threshold for a compulsory sale, it could take between 18 months and two years for a developer to gain full control of a site, Au added.
Still, redevelopment economics have improved at the margin.
Lam said construction and financing costs had remained relatively stable over the past year while sentiment in the residential property market had strengthened.
“Developers continue to see redevelopment opportunities in older buildings where the uplift in value can support a viable development margin,” she said.


Developer family’s deals highlight capital shift across Hong Kong property sectors

Kowloon Bay’s new Amoy Footbridge set to draw neighbourhood closer together

Southeast Asian buyers emerge as top non-local investors in Hong Kong commercial property

Hong Kong commercial property downturn to worsen amid tightening credit: agents

Hong Kong property

After years, Macau firm opts out of Hong Kong renewal project, seeks US$153m for site

A view of 77-87 Marble Road in Hong Kong’s North Point neighbourhood. Photo: Google Maps

Is Hong Kong’s property market recovery running out of gas? UBS flags 4 risks

UBS predicts Hong Kong’s property market’s recovery will moderate both in property prices and rents during coming months due to four disrupting factors. Photo: Eugene Lee

7 Hong Kong developers bid for waterfront project as Kowloon renewal gathers pace

A view of Bailey Street in Hong Kong's Hung Hom district on June 25, 2025. Photo: Jelly Tse

Hong Kong’s old buildings: 5 lessons for urban renewal

People walk past “Blue House”, a four-storey tenement block on Stone Nullah Lane, Wan Chai, on August 29, 2024. Photo: May Tse

The Lui Seng Chun tong lau in Sham Shui Po, seen on August 29, 2024. Photo: May Tse

Business

Property

Hong Kong & China

News

Hong Kong

Sale of North Point site that owner spent years assembling highlights challenges of making urban redevelopment pay, even in improving market


Sale of North Point site that owner spent years assembling highlights challenges of making urban redevelopment pay, even in improving market.


After years, Macau firm opts out of Hong Kong renewal project, seeks US$153m for site

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Sale of North Point site that owner spent years assembling highlights challenges of making urban redevelopment pay, even in improving market

Sale of North Point site that owner spent years assembling highlights challenges of making urban redevelopment pay, even in improving market