Why HK’s Stamp Duty Doesn’t Apply to the Uber-Rich and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

Hong Kong slapped a 15 percent stamp duty on home sales this autumn, but the city’s elite – along with their mainland cousins – have quickly found a way around that market curb. Also in the news, “universal insurance” is proving to be the new road to riches on the mainland, after the head of Baoneng became China’s fourth wealthiest man, and crowdfunding platforms are now helping Chinese people invest RMB into renovating Brooklyn brownstones. Read on for all these stories and more.

Why HK’s Stamp Duty Doesn’t Apply to the Uber-Rich

Here’s how billionaire Edwin Leong, one of Hong Kong’s largest retail landlords, and his family, got around Hong Kong’s new property curbs and saved almost $17 million on their tax bill.

They managed to qualify as first-time homebuyers, purchasing three luxury apartments on the Peak for HK$1.2 billion ($155 million) on the same day last month. Previously Leong had held no real estate in his name – despite owning more than 300 other properties, including apartments, hotels and shopping malls, through his company, Tai Hung Fai Enterprises Co., and having an estimated net worth of $4 billion. Read more>>

Vanke Raider Now China’s Fourth Richest Person

An investor some call a “barbarian” has big Chinese companies looking over their shoulders. And as the country’s economy slows and business conditions grow more challenging, management teams may find themselves confronting more acquisitors with an aggressive streak.

Yao Zhenhua, 46, rose to prominence about a year ago when he acquired 25.4% of shares in China Vanke, a blue-chip real estate company with a net profit margin of about 10%. Yao’s company, Shenzhen Baoneng Investment Group, is now Vanke’s top shareholder. Read more>>

CCCC Shareholder Steps In After Latest Default

China City Construction Holdings Group said late on Friday that one of its shareholders had stepped in to pay interest on a local bond upon which the construction company defaulted last week.

China City Construction Holdings Group, the unlisted Hong Kong subsidiary of a mainland Chinese construction and development, firm said in a statement earlier on Friday that it could not make an interest payment December 9 on a five-year bond. Read more>>

How Crowdfunding Helps Mainlanders Invest in Brooklyn Brownstones

Adam Dahill saw promise in the three-story brownstone on a quiet Bedford-Stuyvesant street, despite its weather-beaten facade, crumbling front steps and broken windows. But he needed nearly $1.3 million to buy it and turn it into the sort of Brooklyn dream home for which the city’s lawyers and bankers pay big money.

No problem. For funding, Mr. Dahill borrowed money from a new and eager group of international financiers: middle-class Chinese investors. Read more>>

Malaysia Confirms Awarding of Projects to Blacklisted Mainland Builder

The World Bank’s blacklisting of the China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) has no effect on Malaysia awarding it the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) contract, said Minister in Prime Minister’s department Abdul Rahman Dahlan.

He said that ECRL project is not funded by the World Bank and therefore the sanction does not apply to CCCC’s participation. He answered this to reports that quoted his Dewan Negara answer on the matter, where he denied that CCCC was blacklisted by the World Bank. Read more>>

Shanghai Home Prices Slide to 3-Month Low Following Crackdown

Sentiment among home buyers fell again in Shanghai last week while average cost of new houses also dropped to the lowest in about three months due to a structural shift.

The area of new residential properties sold, excluding government-subsidized affordable housing, retreated 13.1 percent to 131,000 square meters during the seven-day period ended Sunday, Shanghai Centaline Property Consultants Co said in a report released today. Read more>>

Mainland Tourists Now Favor Singapore’s Malls Over Casinos

Singapore’s casinos are so 2015. After luring tourists for half a decade, they’re now losing out to the mall.

Shopping has overtaken gambling as the biggest earner in Singapore’s tourism industry for the first time since 2012, surging 44 percent in the six months through June from a year ago, official data show. It’s most likely thanks to first-time Chinese visitors, according to HSBC Holdings Plc, as the nation’s travelers continue to fuel growth in Singapore’s tourism industry. Read more>>

Wang Jianlin’s Son Takes a Pass on Taking Over Family Business

Wang Jianlin may be ready to hand over the reins of his 634 billion yuan (HK$712 billion) business empire – spanning from shopping centres, theme parks and sports clubs to cinemas – to a successor, but his only son may not be the one.

The founder and chairman of Dalian Wanda Group said he was most likely to pick a professional manager to take over the running of his business, according to a speech he made at an entrepreneurs summit at the weekend. Read more>>

Tune in again tomorrow for more news, and be sure to follow @Mingtiandi on Twitter for headlines as they happen.