The Tsing Yi site looked exciting enough to pull in 21 bids
They’re back. Or maybe they never really left, but three of China’s biggest developers reappeared in Hong Kong’s property news late last week as the mainland heavyweights joined the bidding for mixed-use site in Tsing Yi. And the New Territories generated a bit more ink as a factory in Tsuen Wan sold for HK$1.3 billion, and one of the New owners of Hong Kong’s priciest office tower says that Goldman Sachs has been renting her space on the cheap. All these stories and more await you below.
Country Garden, COLI, Sino-Ocean Join HK Developers in Bidding for Tsing Yi Site
Tsing Yi Town Lot No. 192 at the junction of Liu To Road and Hang Mei Street on Tsing Yi island in the New Territories received at least 21 bids as the government tender closed on Thursday. Developers who submitted bids included local players Henderson Land, Wheelock and Sino Land, as well as mainland builders China Overseas Land & Investment, Sino-Ocean and Country Garden.
The 14,000 square foot (1,300 square metre) plot is approved for non-industrial use and is valued at up to HK$920 million ($117 million). The site can provide up to 102,000 square feet of floor area. Read more>>
Tai Hung Fai Buys Tsuen Wan Industrial Building for HK$1.3B
As developers look forward to relaxed rules for converting industrial buildings to commercial or residential use, local builder Tai Hung Fai Enterprise has purchased the 23-storey Wong’s Factory Building in Tsuen Wan for HK$1.29 billion ($164 million), or HK$4,529 ($577) per square foot. The 280,000 square foot industrial building occupies a 19,000 square foot site, and the new owner is expected to renovate the property.
Also in Tsuen Wan, mainland data center operator SUNeVision Holdings has purchased an industrial plot which formerly hosted a cooked food market for HK$726 million. The site can provide around 200,000 square feet of floor area and SUNeVision is expected to build a data centre on the property. Read more>>
New Owner of HK’s The Center Says Goldman Was Leasing on the Cheap
The new owners of The Center, the world’s most expensive office building, have said they want new tenants who will pay higher rents when global investment bank Goldman Sachs’ lease expires in December.
“[Goldman Sachs] is paying rent well below market value,” said Pollyanna Chu Lee Yuet-wah, a co-founder of Kingston Financial Group, who has a 17 per cent stake in the HK$40.2 billion (US$5.15 billion) office tower. Read more>>
Govt Pushed to Tax Empty Flats
An expected interest rate rise in June is likely to force more developers and homeowners, alike, to dig in and not sell their new and second-hand flats, adding more pressure on the Hong Kong government to introduce a levy on unoccupied properties to increase supply, according to leading market watchers.
Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po last month unveiled the government is considering imposing the tax, in a bid to cool the city’s red-hot property prices and make more properties available. Read more>>
Folli Follie Leases Former Body Shop Site in Central at 4o% Discount
Accessories retailer Folli Follie has leased a shop in Central’s Man Yee Building for approximately HK$650,000 ($82,814) per month — nearly 40 percent less than the rent paid by the previous tenant. The Fosun-invested bling-bling provider is now reported to be leasing the 1,200 square foot shop on Queen’s Road for HK$542 ($69) per square foot.
The property’s former tenant, The Body Shop, had been paying over HK$1 million in rent each month, before moving out a few months ago. Prior to relocating to the Man Yee Building, Folli Follie had been leasing a shop in the China Building approximately 200 metres west on Queen’s Road for HK$1.8 million (229,329) per month. Read more>>
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