https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/rss/673/feed Sandy Li is the property editor. She covers property market which focus in listed property firms and government policy. During her career she has won several journalism prizes, including the Citi Journalistic Excellence Award in 2011. She was first runner-up for the same award in 2010. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg Vivien Chan, dubbed as “the queen” of serviced apartments, is undeterred by the slowdown in Hong Kong’s property market, as she plans to sell flats in her company’s flagship apartment project in Causeway Bay and houses in a super deluxe project on The Peak. The privately owned V Group will soon offer 64 of the 120 fully furnished units at The Hayworth by V, located at 9 Yee Wo Street. Previously called V Causeway Bay, it is close to Causeway Bay MTR station and has undergone a HK$200 million... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3190615/hong-kong-developer-v-group-readies-causeway-bay-serviced-apartments-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3190615/hong-kong-developer-v-group-readies-causeway-bay-serviced-apartments-and?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Aug 2022 00:30:31 +0000 The Hong Kong government has applied to relax plot ratios and building height restrictions at 37 parcels of land by up to 30 per cent in northern Fanling and Kwu Tung, as part of its Northern Metropolis development plan to boost the city’s housing supply. The Civil Engineering and Development Department submitted two applications seeking approval from the Town Planning Board this week, which, if cleared, could yield 58,439 homes – 24,929 in Fanling North and 33,510 in Kwu Tung North – according... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3189536/hong-kong-seeks-raise-plot-ratios-building-heights-northern-metropolis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3189536/hong-kong-seeks-raise-plot-ratios-building-heights-northern-metropolis?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Aug 2022 10:50:24 +0000 The low-pricing strategy of Hong Kong developers proved effective once again as hundreds of mainly young first-time buyers flocked to the sales office of a large residential project in Tuen Mun. Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP) sold all 180 units on offer in the second phase of its Novo Land project within the first four hours on Wednesday afternoon, according to agents. The development is at 8 Yan Po Road, about a 25-minute walk from Siu Hong MTR station. “The latest round of flats are priced 20... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3189246/new-flats-novo-land-tuen-mun-sell-out-young-first-time-buyers-take?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3189246/new-flats-novo-land-tuen-mun-sell-out-young-first-time-buyers-take?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Aug 2022 11:31:14 +0000 Hong Kong’s property developers are extending favourable finance terms to luxury home deals, after big-ticket sales declined by up to almost half in July. The number of transactions for lived-in homes worth HK$12 million (US$1.5 million) to HK$20 million dropped last month with just 181 deals completed, a 45 per cent drop from June, according to analysis of Land Registry data by Ricacorp Properties. The sales of homes costing between HK$20.01 million and HK$50 million dropped by 33 per cent to... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3188960/hong-kong-developers-sweeten-financing-terms-luxury-homes-after-deals?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3188960/hong-kong-developers-sweeten-financing-terms-luxury-homes-after-deals?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Aug 2022 00:30:23 +0000 Hundreds of Hong Kong home seekers shrugged off rising interest rates and ignored a typhoon No 3 warning to queue up at the sales offices of two major developers, snapping up heavily discounted flats. More than 24,000 potential buyers, mostly in their 30s, registered to buy a total of 321 flats at Henderson Land Development’s One Innovale-Archway in Fanling and Sun Hung Kai Properties’ Novo Land in Tuen Mun on Wednesday. The cheapest flat on offer was a 209 sq ft unit priced at HK$3.11 million... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3188438/buyers-shrug-rain-and-rising-rates-snap-flats-hendersons-one-innovale?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3188438/buyers-shrug-rain-and-rising-rates-snap-flats-hendersons-one-innovale?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 10 Aug 2022 11:43:09 +0000 Developers will face challenges in marketing new flats built on the runway site of Hong Kong’s former international airport as the area’s transport links and infrastructure remain limited, two years after the government scrapped a proposed HK$12 billion (US$1.53 billion) monorail link there, analysts say. Nine developers who own land on the former runway site last month formed a non-profit company, Kai Tak Runway Private Development Company (KTRPD), to liaise with the government on improving the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3188206/developers-kai-tak-runway-site-urge-government-improve-transport-links?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3188206/developers-kai-tak-runway-site-urge-government-improve-transport-links?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 10 Aug 2022 00:30:22 +0000 Property developers in Hong Kong continue to price new projects competitively after the total value of housing transactions declined by a quarter in July amid an uptrend in the city’s interest-rate cycle. Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP), Hong Kong’s largest developer by sales, for instance, on Tuesday released the latest batch of 168 units at its Novo Land project in Tuen Mun that goes on sale this Saturday at an average price of HK$14,392 (US$1,833) per square foot – almost the same as a... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3187466/hong-kong-developers-exercise-caution-pricing-new-projects-after-housing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3187466/hong-kong-developers-exercise-caution-pricing-new-projects-after-housing?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Aug 2022 11:30:16 +0000 Hang Lung Properties, the first developer to post interim results during Hong Kong’s reporting season, warned of turbulent times ahead for the real estate market as the city increasingly finds itself caught in deteriorating relations between the United States and China. “The US-China relationship is going to trump everything,” Hang Lung’s chairman Ronnie Chan Chi-chung said during the China Conference: Hong Kong organised by South China Morning Post. “Let’s not underestimate the madness with... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3186941/hang-lungs-chairman-warns-turbulent-times-ahead-hong-kongs-real-estate?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3186941/hang-lungs-chairman-warns-turbulent-times-ahead-hong-kongs-real-estate?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 28 Jul 2022 12:05:17 +0000 One of Hong Kong’s most iconic restaurants has had its rent slashed in half as the catering and tourism industries reel from a two-year absence of international visitors. The owners of The Peak Lookout restaurant, previously a huge draw for tourists with its prized location high above the city, are now paying less than half the monthly HK$230,000 (US$29,300) they were forking out on a lease signed in 2019, before the city effectively shut its borders to combat the Covid-19 pandemic. The... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3186651/hong-kongs-iconic-peak-lookout-restaurant-has-its-rent-slashed-half?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3186651/hong-kongs-iconic-peak-lookout-restaurant-has-its-rent-slashed-half?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Jul 2022 10:34:48 +0000 Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP) is selling its newest apartments in Hong Kong at double-digit discounts, and offering deferred payments to selected customers, becoming the latest developer to offer incentives to bow to first-home buyers’ demand for affordable housing. The first 165 apartments in phase 1A at the Novo Land project in Tuen Mun were priced at an average of HK$13,188 per square foot, about 12 per cent cheaper than the launch price last month at CK Asset Holding’s Grand Jete project in... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3185955/sun-hung-kai-offers-steep-discounts-deferred-payment-plans-novo-land-tuen?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3185955/sun-hung-kai-offers-steep-discounts-deferred-payment-plans-novo-land-tuen?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Jul 2022 00:30:23 +0000 An increasing number of buyers who opt to buy incomplete flats in Hong Kong via stage payment schemes are at risk of defaulting on their purchases, as rising interest rates in the city accelerate real estate price falls. More than 76 per cent of buyers of incomplete flats opted for stage payment schemes as of June 30, up from 52.3 per cent for the whole of 2021, and 54.5 per cent in 2020, according to data from mReferral Mortgage Brokerage Services. Stage payment schemes allow buyers to defer... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3185728/more-buyers-incomplete-flats-stage-payment-schemes-face-higher-risk?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3185728/more-buyers-incomplete-flats-stage-payment-schemes-face-higher-risk?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Jul 2022 00:30:27 +0000 The developer of The Vertex, a housing development in Hong Kong’s Cheung Sha Wan district, terminated 21 flat purchases on Tuesday as the would-be buyers failed to complete their transactions, forfeiting a total of HK$8.83 million (US$1.1 million) in deposits. The number of terminated deals in a single day was among the highest in memory, and the Hong Kong housing market may see more abandoned purchases given an outlook that calls for falling prices amid rising mortgage rates, a broker... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3185144/hong-kongs-property-market-turning-buyers-walk-away-21-signed-contracts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3185144/hong-kongs-property-market-turning-buyers-walk-away-21-signed-contracts?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 Jul 2022 09:45:16 +0000 Hundreds of half-century-old buildings, which could make way for no fewer than 20,000 flats to ease Hong Kong’s housing shortage, are instead stuck in limbo as market uncertainty and high government land premiums make them financially unviable for property developers. The sites, mainly comprising four- and five-storey buildings, were built under the Civil Servants’ Co-operative Building Society (CBS) scheme, which was introduced in 1952 to provide affordable housing for civil servants. By the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3184994/hundreds-hong-kong-land-sites-room-least-20000-new-flats-stuck-limbo?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3184994/hundreds-hong-kong-land-sites-room-least-20000-new-flats-stuck-limbo?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 Jul 2022 10:30:16 +0000 Hong Kong conglomerate New World Group has introduced a four and a half day work week for its employees with immediate effect, making it the first major developer to cut working hours without cutting wages. The group, one of Hong Kong’s largest employers, will also allow its staff to work one day a week from home, according to its “Summer Fridays” pilot programme announced on Monday. The group said it was implementing the programme to “help its employees maintain a healthy work-life balance and... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3184030/hong-kongs-new-world-group-introduces-four-and-half-day-work-week-better?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3184030/hong-kongs-new-world-group-introduces-four-and-half-day-work-week-better?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 Jul 2022 07:03:04 +0000 Twenty-something Hongkongers are looking to the Greater Bay Area for their first homes, as soaring prices over the past two decades in the world’s least affordable housing market have broken their dreams of ownership in the city of their birth. Average home prices in Hong Kong have increased 140 per cent since 1997 and 582 per cent since a post-handover low point in 2003, according to government statistics. That growth has priced many out of the market. In fact, a family would on average need to... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3183239/priced-out-hong-kong-young-home-buyers-look-greater-bay-area-space-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3183239/priced-out-hong-kong-young-home-buyers-look-greater-bay-area-space-and?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Jun 2022 02:01:25 +0000 Japan’s reopening of its borders to international tourists is attracting investors from Hong Kong looking to seize real estate opportunities with the yen at a near 25-year low. With Japan allowing guided tours to the country in the first phase of reopening from June 10, some Hong Kong property agencies are arranging trips catering exclusively for well-to-do clients, one of which is charging HK$128,000 (US$16,300) for six days. “It is a tailor-made pleasure-cum-investment tour for our clients who... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3183123/hongkongers-join-bespoke-japan-property-tours-scout-investment?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3183123/hongkongers-join-bespoke-japan-property-tours-scout-investment?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Jun 2022 00:30:26 +0000 For the septuagenarian talk show host and I Ching scholar Shum Yat-fei, a home for the golden years needed special amenities to cater for his needs: wide entrances for his wheelchair, hand rails on corridors and call buttons throughout the facility for emergencies. That was why Shum, 71, did not think twice when it came to putting down HK$6 million (US$764,000) upfront to rent The Tanner Hill development at North Point on Hong Kong Island in 2016 for his use throughout his lifetime. The 800... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3183003/hong-kongs-developers-step-fill-shortage-quality-pension-homes-golden?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3183003/hong-kongs-developers-step-fill-shortage-quality-pension-homes-golden?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 Jun 2022 02:00:22 +0000 A 33-year-old Chinese woman has paid €80 million (US$84.22 million) in cash for a 49-room property with three private beaches on the exclusive Italian island of Sardinia, according to the island’s oldest newspaper, L’unione Sarda. The buyer was identified as Nani Wang, and her name is the same as that of a former board director of JD Health International, the healthcare arm of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com. Her name was revealed when a cashier certified Wang’s signature on an urgent transfer... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3182961/33-year-old-chinese-woman-splashes-us842-million-cash-exclusive-49-room?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3182961/33-year-old-chinese-woman-splashes-us842-million-cash-exclusive-49-room?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Jun 2022 10:30:29 +0000 Hong Kong’s new mortgage borrowers and buyers who took the plunge with loans at the 2019 peak of the city’s residential property market are most vulnerable to soaring interest rates. The risks have been exacerbated by the 75-point blow in Hong Kong’s base rate on June 16, in lockstep with the US Federal Reserve’s biggest one-time increase in 28 years. Topping off the higher rates is a bulging pipeline of new flats – estimated at 12,646 in 2022 by JLL – waiting to find buyers. “Technically, a... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3181972/soaring-interest-rates-hong-kongs-new-mortgage-borrowers-and-highly?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3181972/soaring-interest-rates-hong-kongs-new-mortgage-borrowers-and-highly?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 17 Jun 2022 00:30:28 +0000 Nan Hai Corporation said creditors are freezing some of its assets because of the developer’s failure to meet the financial obligations on a dollar-denominated note due this weekend. The company, owned by the HK01 news portal’s founder Yu Pun-hoi, said it “has not been able to meet part of the financial obligations” for its US$350 million, 2.9 per cent credit-enhanced notes due on June 11, which led to “certain creditors initiating enforcement actions,” according to a statement to the Hong Kong... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/companies/article/3180693/nan-hai-says-creditors-are-freezing-its-assets-it-comes-short?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/companies/article/3180693/nan-hai-says-creditors-are-freezing-its-assets-it-comes-short?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Jun 2022 05:30:27 +0000 Some Hong Kong retail landlords and hotel owners are seeking to convert their properties into restaurants and housing to counter rising store closures and lower occupancy rates, as the two-year tourism slump shows no signs of ending. The owners of Park Lane Shopper’s Boulevard on Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui, one of Hong Kong’s four major tourist belts, last Friday submitted an application to turn the 300-metre long, 50-store complex along the boulevard into a food and beverage destination. The... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/companies/article/3180613/hong-kong-real-estate-owners-seek-alternative-uses-retail?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/companies/article/3180613/hong-kong-real-estate-owners-seek-alternative-uses-retail?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Jun 2022 00:30:23 +0000 Chinese developers are expected to accelerate projects launches in the third quarter and keep prices competitive after most met less than 30 per cent of their annual sales as of May end, industry experts said. Most Builders were behind on their annual targets, China Real Estate Information Corporation (CRIC), one of the largest real estate brokers in mainland China, said on Wednesday. But there was some good news. Sales revenues at the country’s the top 100 property firms reached 454.7 billion... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3180202/chinese-developers-expected-speed-sales-third-quarter-after-meeting-less?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3180202/chinese-developers-expected-speed-sales-third-quarter-after-meeting-less?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Jun 2022 11:30:13 +0000 Prime luxury stores, such as those of fashion houses Louis Vuitton, Prada and Dior proved to be some of the most popular spots for Shanghai residents to queue up on Wednesday, as shopping centres and restaurants reopened after the Chinese commercial hub of 26 million ended its two-month citywide lockdown. There are 10 major shopping centres, owned by some of Hong Kong’s largest developers, that reopened in Shanghai on Wednesday. Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP), Swire Properties and Kerry... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/china-business/article/3179994/shanghai-consumers-rush-lv-prada-dior-other-prime-luxury?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/china-business/article/3179994/shanghai-consumers-rush-lv-prada-dior-other-prime-luxury?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Jun 2022 08:18:42 +0000 A recent cut in mortgage rates, coupled with lower down payment requirements for first-time buyers, could revive Chinese home sales, analysts said. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) announced a 15 basis points cut in the five-year loan prime rate (LPR) to 4.45 per cent on May 20. The LPR is used by banks to price mortgage loans. And this rate cut came a week after the PBOC said the mortgage rate floor for first-time buyers would be lowered by 20 basis points below the five-year LPR. The home... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3179743/china-mortgage-rate-cut-lower-down-payment-requirements-could-save?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3179743/china-mortgage-rate-cut-lower-down-payment-requirements-could-save?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 May 2022 00:30:17 +0000 Singapore-listed property developer Wing Tai Holdings has won the tender for a residential property in one of the biggest collective sales in the Southeast Asian city state this year, paying 14 per cent more than the reserve price to outbid its rivals. The firm agreed to pay S$273.9 million (US$199.2 million) for the 57-year-old Lakeside Apartments, which sits on the edge of Jurong Lake Gardens on the western side of the city. Wing Tai Properties, its Hong Kong-listed affiliate, bought a... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3179272/wing-tai-holdings-outguns-rivals-en-bloc-singapore-residential-tender?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3179272/wing-tai-holdings-outguns-rivals-en-bloc-singapore-residential-tender?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 May 2022 10:30:23 +0000 Greater Bay Area (GBA) residents will soon be able to receive medical services and buy wealth management products at a commercial complex named 11 Skies near Hong Kong International Airport, without travelling to the city centre once the border with mainland China reopens. 11 Skies is a HK$20 billion (US$2.55 billion), 3.8 million sq ft office-retail-entertainment project, comprising three, seven-storey grade A office towers and separate retail and entertainment facilities. The office towers... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3178846/greater-bay-area-residents-will-soon-be-able-buy-wealth-management-beauty?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3178846/greater-bay-area-residents-will-soon-be-able-buy-wealth-management-beauty?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 May 2022 00:30:21 +0000 Trading in shares of mainland developer Jiayuan International Group and its property management arm Jiayuan Services Holdings were suspended on Wednesday after they plunged soon after the market opened. The crash came after Mingyuan Group Investment, majority owned by Jiayuan International’s chairman Shum Tin Ching, pledged 1.04 billion shares of the developer and 450 million shares of Jiayuan Services to SHK Finance on May 11, filings to the Hong Kong stock exchange showed on... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3178225/chinese-developer-jiayuan-and-subsidiarys-shares-suspended-after-stock?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3178225/chinese-developer-jiayuan-and-subsidiarys-shares-suspended-after-stock?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 May 2022 10:15:15 +0000 Hong Kong developers are speeding up the conversion of farmland in the northern New Territories for residential use, with industry observers pointing out that companies are likely to push for lower land premiums due to the softening housing market. Sun Hung Kai Properties, Hong Kong’s largest developer by market value, last week agreed to pay HK$268 million (US$34 million) to convert farmland in Yuen Long so that it can build a 71-villa project. Seven land-premium transactions, including that of... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3177967/hong-kong-developers-rural-land-conversion-new-territories-gathers-pace?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3177967/hong-kong-developers-rural-land-conversion-new-territories-gathers-pace?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 May 2022 00:30:25 +0000 New World Development plans to build Hong Kong’s first subsidised housing project that will be sold at cost to help young first-time buyers get on the property ladder in the world’s most expensive city to own a home. New World Build for Good, the developer’s social enterprise unit, earlier this month submitted a proposal to the Town Planning Board to build about 300 flats, with sizes ranging from 300 square feet to 400 square feet, on a 30,300 sq ft site in Lam Hi Road, Yuen Long, according to... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3177925/new-worlds-affordable-housing-project-aimed-getting-first-time-buyers-hong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3177925/new-worlds-affordable-housing-project-aimed-getting-first-time-buyers-hong?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 May 2022 09:50:19 +0000 Two hotels changed hands in deals worth more than HK$2.3 billion (US$295 million) in Hong Kong on Wednesday, as cash-rich investors swooped in to pick up assets from the city’s slumping hospitality industry, betting on the sector improving once Covid-19 has been contained and the city’s borders have been reopened. Shun Ho Construction (Holdings), the wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong-listed Magnificent Hotel Investments, has agreed to buy Bay Bridge Lifestyle Retreat, a 435-room waterfront... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3177380/two-hong-kong-hotels-sell-us295-million-cash-rich-investors-bet?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3177380/two-hong-kong-hotels-sell-us295-million-cash-rich-investors-bet?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 May 2022 00:30:16 +0000 Rents at housing developments along Hong Kong’s East Rail Line are expected to rebound first, following the opening of the line’s cross-harbour extension on Sunday, May 15, agents said. The extension will cut travel times between Tai Wai and Sha Tin in New Territories and Admiralty on Hong Kong Island to about 17 to 21 minutes from 28 to 32 minutes previously, making these areas more attractive to renters, they said, adding that some homeowners in Tai Wai and Sha Tin were already refusing to cut... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3177092/home-rents-along-hong-kongs-east-rail-line-expected-rebound-quickly-after?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3177092/home-rents-along-hong-kongs-east-rail-line-expected-rebound-quickly-after?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 May 2022 00:30:20 +0000 The Chinese housing market is braced for more hardship, after price cuts by developers and easing measures adopted by Beijing failed to boost sales during last week’s labour week holiday. The country’s economy has been hit hard by its latest Covid-19 outbreaks, and many companies have been forced to close down because of long lockdowns, such as those in Shanghai. This has created uncertainties about jobs and employment. “Home buying has been deterred by economic uncertainties. People would... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3177041/covid-19-lockdowns-chinese-housing-market-set-more-hardship-after-price?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3177041/covid-19-lockdowns-chinese-housing-market-set-more-hardship-after-price?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 May 2022 09:00:23 +0000 China Evergrande Group’s creditors have agreed to defer interest payment on a yuan-denominated bond for six months, giving the world’s most indebted property developer more time to overcome its liquidity crisis. The Chinese developer gained their approval to extend the interest payments on two onshore bonds totalling 20 billion yuan (US$3 billion), due on May 6, to November 6, according to a filing to Shanghai Stock Exchange. Evergrande had issued a 15 billion yuan four-year bond carrying an... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3176656/china-evergrande-gets-six-months-relief-creditors-agree-defer-interest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3176656/china-evergrande-gets-six-months-relief-creditors-agree-defer-interest?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 May 2022 12:01:35 +0000 China’s new home prices rose at a slower pace last month from March, as sales were affected after developers were forced to shut their sales offices in many cities due to the nation’s worsening Covid-19 situation. The average new home price in 100 Chinese cities increased 0.02 per cent to 16,193 yuan (US$2,450) per square metre in April, easing from 0.03 per cent growth in March, according to data from China Index Academy, one of the country’s biggest independent real estate research... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3176508/chinas-new-home-prices-april-rise-slower-pace-covid-19-lockdowns-force?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3176508/chinas-new-home-prices-april-rise-slower-pace-covid-19-lockdowns-force?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 May 2022 11:00:13 +0000 Global real estate funds are tapping growing demand for cold-storage facilities in Hong Kong as the tough social distancing rules and work from home arrangements amid the pandemic accelerates online sales of groceries. Chicago-headquartered Heitman, with over US$50 billion in assets under management, is the latest entrant into the sector, acquiring a 100,000 sq ft industrial building in Fanling for an undisclosed price. The fund will commence a fit-out of the property to repurpose the asset into... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3176348/chicago-based-heitman-joins-global-funds-tap-hong-kongs-growing-demand?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3176348/chicago-based-heitman-joins-global-funds-tap-hong-kongs-growing-demand?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 May 2022 22:00:19 +0000 The first plot of land earmarked for residential flats that must be at least 280 sq ft has failed to attract bids not because of the government’s new minimum size requirement but rather due to the site’s constraints and prevailing market uncertainties in Hong Kong, analysts have told the Post. The large site in Tuen Mun was viewed as a gauge of the industry’s response to the government’s drive to stop the proliferation of shoebox homes, known as “nano flats”. Authorities on Tuesday rejected all... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3175732/governments-rejection-bids-tuen-mun-site-unrelated?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/3175732/governments-rejection-bids-tuen-mun-site-unrelated?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Apr 2022 13:54:42 +0000 Lived-in home prices in Hong Kong fell for the third straight month in March to a 14-month low as many homeowners sold their units at heavily discounted prices or even at a loss as the city struggled to contain the fifth-wave of the coronavirus pandemic. Prices fell 0.7 per cent to 381.3 last month, the lowest since 381.9 in January 2021, according to an index published by the Rating and Valuation Department on Wednesday. Home prices eased 3.2 per cent in the first three months of the year,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3175678/hong-kong-home-prices-fall-lowest-level-january-2021-distressed-owners?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3175678/hong-kong-home-prices-fall-lowest-level-january-2021-distressed-owners?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Apr 2022 08:42:20 +0000 Hongkongers are returning to the Japanese property market after a two-year absence, taking advantage of a weakening yen, which is at a 20-year low against the US dollar. “Inquiries for Japanese homes from Hongkongers have surged by up to 40 per cent this month,” said Anvy Cheung, chief executive of Sakura Global, which specialises in Japanese property. “In the past two years, most of them just stayed on the sidelines, adopting a wait-and-see approach [due to the pandemic].” Most of the clients... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3175481/hongkongers-once-again-find-japanese-real-estate-attractive-weaker-yen?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3175481/hongkongers-once-again-find-japanese-real-estate-attractive-weaker-yen?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Apr 2022 01:30:16 +0000 Embattled China Evergrande Group is offering 2,000 completed homes for sale during the upcoming Labour Day holiday, putting its market credibility to the test after assembling a battery of advisers to overcome its liquidity crisis. The heavily indebted developer, chaired by Hui Ka-yan, will kick off a holiday promotions campaign from April 30 during what is traditionally a golden week for property sales, it announced on Tuesday. It said it would implement 10 “key marketing measures” to boost... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3175058/china-evergrande-crisis-developer-offer-2000-completed-flats-labour-day?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3175058/china-evergrande-crisis-developer-offer-2000-completed-flats-labour-day?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Apr 2022 10:17:08 +0000 Hong Kong developers are launching hundreds of flats at knock-down prices in a bid to make up for lost time as the city begins to emerge from months of strict social-distancing measures that have made house sales all-but impossible. Sino Land priced the first batch of 168 units at its Grand Mayfair I project above Kam Sheung Road MTR station at an average price of HK$17,608 per square foot after factoring in a discount of up to 16 per cent. The price, unveiled on Wednesday, is about 12 per cent... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3174948/sino-land-wheelock-unleash-cheaper-flats-boost-sales-hong-kong-emerges?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3174948/sino-land-wheelock-unleash-cheaper-flats-boost-sales-hong-kong-emerges?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Apr 2022 00:30:28 +0000 The surge in the US dollar as markets brace for a series of interest rate increases is likely to heap further misery onto Hong Kong’s flagging property market, according to industry watchers. Rate rises implemented by the Federal Reserve to contain soaring inflation will lure global capital into the US, strengthening the dollar, said Albert Wong, an honorary consultant at AA Horses Mortgage Brokerage Services. As the Hong Kong dollar is pegged to the US currency, this in turn will end the era of... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3174758/surge-us-dollar-fed-raises-interest-rates-will-further-damage-hong-kongs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3174758/surge-us-dollar-fed-raises-interest-rates-will-further-damage-hong-kongs?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 19 Apr 2022 23:30:22 +0000 Individual retail landlords in Hong Kong are hoping to sign up new short-term tenants with discounted rents in the hope of lifting them when border reopening brings back high-spending mainland tourists to spark an industry revival, analysts said. The owner of a 10,000-square foot store in Sai Yeung Choi Street in Mong Kok, for example, is offering the property at almost 60 per cent below its current rate, when its existing tenant, local fashion house Izzue, departs later this month. The store,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3174547/hong-kong-landlords-offer-deep-discounts-short-term-retail-leases-hope?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3174547/hong-kong-landlords-offer-deep-discounts-short-term-retail-leases-hope?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 18 Apr 2022 02:30:10 +0000 The first large new residential project to be launched in Hong Kong since a ferocious fifth wave of coronavirus struck has been priced more than 10 per cent lower than a development that went on sale in the same area last summer. It comes as developers prepare to unleash thousands of flats in the coming months that will test market demand amid a flagging economy and rising unemployment. Wheelock Properties priced the first batch of 112 units at Monaco Marine in Kai Tak, the site of the city’s... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3174280/wheelock-prices-flats-kai-tak-12-cent-cheaper-hong-kongs-developers-get?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3174280/wheelock-prices-flats-kai-tak-12-cent-cheaper-hong-kongs-developers-get?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Apr 2022 10:30:28 +0000 China’s property easing measures have reached Shanghai, the site of its worst Covid-19 outbreak, as Beijing tries to bolster the world’s second-largest economy. Lingang Special Area of China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone, which is home to Tesla’s first manufacturing facility outside the United States, will allow talent to buy homes in the free-trade zone after working there for three months, down from at least one year previously, according to the Lingang Special Area’s website. The... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3174253/lingang-free-trade-zone-lowers-bar-home-purchases-chinas-property-easing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3174253/lingang-free-trade-zone-lowers-bar-home-purchases-chinas-property-easing?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Apr 2022 09:30:15 +0000 The relaxation of mortgages for more expensive flats in Hong Kong will propel sales in the short term only, as an imminent interest rate hike will keep potential buyers away, industry insiders said. The sales of lived-in homes worth between HK$10.01 million (US$1.3 million) and HK$12 million jumped by 57 per cent to 199 deals in March, according to Ricacorp Properties data, after Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po on February 23 allowed loan-to-value ratios of 80 per cent for mortgages of homes... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3173883/hong-kong-see-sales-bigger-flats-slow-down-interest-rate-rise-counters?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3173883/hong-kong-see-sales-bigger-flats-slow-down-interest-rate-rise-counters?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 Apr 2022 00:30:18 +0000 Sales of car parking spaces in Hong Kong fell to a 22-month low in March according to industry data amid economic headwinds, prompting one of the city’s major investors to offer extra sweeteners to entice buyers. Veteran investor Choi Bak-lung, who holds more than 200 car parking spaces in Tseung Kwan O, said he would provide guaranteed rental income and short-term loans to buyers in a bid to speed up sales amid poor market sentiment. “Investors now need to think of new gimmicks to push the sale... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3173051/veteran-car-park-investor-offers-guaranteed-rental-income-and-short-term?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3173051/veteran-car-park-investor-offers-guaranteed-rental-income-and-short-term?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 Apr 2022 03:00:13 +0000 Hong Kong’s major mall operators are tempting shoppers with an array of promotions, including discounts of up 70 per cent, after the government announced it would distribute consumption vouchers from Thursday. The battered retail market is expected to receive a much-needed boost, which has suffered since January because of the harsh social distancing measures to contain the fifth wave of the Covid-19 pandemic fuelled by the Omicron variant. Sun Hung Kai Properties, Kerry Properties and Sino Land... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3172933/hong-kong-mall-operators-target-shoppers-after-government-announces?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3172933/hong-kong-mall-operators-target-shoppers-after-government-announces?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 Apr 2022 11:28:34 +0000 Hong Kong developer Kerry Properties, which owns two shopping malls in Shanghai, said it is looking at ways to support its tenants and alleviate the impact of the city’s lockdown. “We recognise this is a very challenging time in Shanghai for everyone,” the home builder said in an email to the Post. “We are currently looking at the best way to support each of our tenants, which potentially include a number of initiatives from rent relief to other forms of assistance depending on their individual... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3172557/shanghai-lockdown-hong-kong-developers-kerry-and-hang-lung-looking-ways?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3172557/shanghai-lockdown-hong-kong-developers-kerry-and-hang-lung-looking-ways?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 31 Mar 2022 09:00:15 +0000 Midland Holdings said Hong Kong’s social distancing policies would weigh on property market sentiment through the first six months, after the city’s sole publicly traded real estate agency posted its third annual profits slump in four years. Net income fell 24 per cent to HK$100 million (US$12.8 million) last year, without the one-off employment support scheme that had helped it swing to profit in 2020. Revenue, 99 per cent contributed by agency fees, rose 20.5 per cent to HK$6 billion, the... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3172452/midland-says-hong-kongs-property-doldrums-will-remain-through-first-half?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3172452/midland-says-hong-kongs-property-doldrums-will-remain-through-first-half?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Mar 2022 23:30:23 +0000 Singapore-based private equity fund EXS is looking to expand a hostel chain in Hong Kong catering to young travellers and digital nomads. EXS Property Innovation Concepts VCC, a fund platform focused on “New Economy Real Estate” across Asia, recently invested US$4.6 million for an undisclosed stake in the Southeast Asia-focused hostel operator Mad Monkey. Following a successful first round of fundraising, Mad Monkey aims to open up to 50 hostels in the next three years in Asia and Australia,... https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3172153/southeast-asia-focused-hostel-chain-mad-monkey-eyes-hong-kong-it-looks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www-scmp-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/business/article/3172153/southeast-asia-focused-hostel-chain-mad-monkey-eyes-hong-kong-it-looks?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Mar 2022 00:30:19 +0000