Top fund managers continue to snatch up properties to expand self-storage businesses in Asia’s biggest markets, with Warburg Pincus-backed Storhub having expanded its holdings in a Hong Kong industrial building for the second time in two months and the third time this year.

Already the largest self-storage operator in Singapore, in this latest deal, Storhub has agreed to acquire two floors and a pair of parking spaces in the Precious Industrial Centre in Cheung Sha Wan for a combined HK$98 million ($12.4 million), according to Land Registry records seen by Mingtiandi.

Storhub’s latest purchase in the 1977-vintage building will give it ownership of 10 of the 13 floors in the property at 18 Cheung Yue Street in northwestern Kowloon, potentially setting it up to take full ownership of the tower, which is located within a two minute walk of an industrial building acquired by a Blackstone self-storage joint venture earlier this month.

Taking Over in Cheung Sha Wan

In its latest acquisition, Storhub is buying the seventh and eighth floors in the Precious Industrial Centre from a local private company named Cathay United Garment Factory Ltd, adding 19,210 square feet (1,784 square metres) in gross floor area to its Hong Kong portfolio, according to local media accounts.

At the agreed compensation and given the reported area of the properties, the mini-storage firm is paying the equivalent of HK$5,102 per square foot – slightly less on a unit basis than it paid in a HK$66.27 million purchase of the second floor of the building last month.

During the first quarter, Storhub paid HK$350 million to acquire seven floors, including the lowest levels of the building and six parking spaces.

Strata title sales of similarly aged industrial buildings in the area have been transacted at prices running from HK$4,500 to HK$5,000 per square foot, a surveyor said in an earlier comment to Mingtiandi.

Storhub’s latest acquisition is its fifth major buy in the city this year, and would add to the 75,297 square feet which it already owns in the building about a 3-minute walk from the Lai Chi Kok MTR station.

Situated in an area where the Urban Renewal Authority plans to build 1,830 residential units, Storhub sees its Cheung Sha Wan location benefiting from potential demand from new residents in the neighbourhood, according to its website.

The Precious Industrial Centre is also a 5-minute drive from four private residential estates containing 8,827 flats, known locally as “Four Little Dragons”, which analysts say would provide steady demand for self-storage due to high flat prices in Hong Kong.

Mini-Storage Strategy

With 713 self-storage facilities in Hong Kong as of September 2022, according to government statistics, the biggest demand drivers for the sector continue to be high population density and expensive home prices, the surveyor said, with operators rushing to acquire aged industrial assets in the city to meet growing demand.

About 400 metres (437 yards) from the Precious Industrial Centre, a Blackstone joint venture this month acquired an industrial building in Cheung Sha Wan for HK$850 million from the family of the late “Wool Magnate” Chao Kuang Piu, marking the partners’ fourth en-bloc purchase in the city since April of 2021.

One month before that deal, Canadian investment giant Brookfield acquired a pair of units in the Chai Wan Industrial Centre, and a ground floor parking area in the property, in a move to beef up its self-storage portfolio, for HK$55 million.

Separately, Dutch pension fund manager APG and Singapore’s CapitaLand Investment announced this week that they would commit up to S$1.14 billion ($810 million) to take over and expand the region’s largest self-storage operator, Extra Space Asia.

(Mingtiandi)

Hang Lung Approved to Build $637M Luxury Project on Former US Site in Hong Kong

Hang Lung Properties has been given the green light to build luxury homes on a former US government site on Hong Kong’s Shouson Hill, according to a recent report by the city’s Buildings Department, with analysts predicting that the villa project will be worth as much as HK$5 billion ($637 million) upon completion.

The 47,296 square foot (4,394 square metre) luxury development will be built on a site which was once home to a set of residences owned by the US consulate in the city, and will comprise five detached homes covering about 9,459 square feet each, according to the approved plan.

Hang Lung sees the project on the south side of Hong Kong island as an opportunity to profit from strong demand in the luxury market, where the company’s chairman, Ronnie Chan sees buyers from north of the SAR’s borders driving high-end home sales. “The last time I saw so many wealthy mainlanders arrive in Hong Kong was probably in the early 1950s due to political changes up north,” Chan said in announcing the developer’s interim results in September.

Despite Chan’s enthusiasm, property analysts see challenges even for elite home sales with a recent report by a property agency forecasting that luxury residential values are “likely to correct by 10 percent over 2022, and to decline by a further 5 to 10 percent over 2023,” as greater economic uncertainty and rising interest rates make buyers more cautious.

Shouson Hill Mansions

“(37 Shouson Hill Road) will be redeveloped into luxurious detached houses and is now in the planning stage,” said Hang Lung in its 2022 interim report. “Each home in the project could sell for as much as HK$100,000 per square foot,” a property agent said.

Located in a neighbourhood close to the residences of Hong Kong billionaires including CK Asset’s Li Ka-Shing and Alibaba’s Joe Tsai, each of the five homes in Hang Lung’s residential project would span three storeys atop a basement level.

New homes covering around 10,000 square feet of area are considered prestigious and rare, a surveyor said. Houses on 37 Shouson Hill Road will enjoy views of the city’s Deep Water Bay, which is the main selling point of the project, the surveyor said.

Comparable homes in Shouson Hill and Repulse Bay sell for around HK$80,000 to $110,000 per square foot of saleable area, according to another agent.

The developer’s land parcel on Shouson Hill, which was one of the US government’s most valuable assets in the city, is about a 5 minute drive from the Ocean Park MTR station, and about 2 minutes by car from Emperor International’s luxury villa project at 15 Shouson Hill.

While Hang Lung looks set to move forward with the luxury development, the early days of the project showed slower progress as the developer’s purchase of the site hit some early resistance from the mainland government.

Hang Lung initially purchased the nearly 95,000 square foot parcel from the US government in September of 2020 for HK$2.6 billion, but that transaction was blocked by China’s central government just three months after the sale was agreed to, on the grounds that that the US Consulate General in Hong Kong needed to seek approval from Beijing before signing the deal.

According to its interim report released last month , Hang Lung succeeded in completing its acquisition of the site in February last year.

High-End Resilience

Despite an economic downturn and a slump in mass housing market Hong Kong continued to witness landmark luxury housing deals during the third quarter, according to an agency’s report last month. Among the high-end transactions was the HK$430 million sale of House 3B at Wheelock’s Gough Hill Residences in August.

In July, one of the 15 luxury villas at Deep Water Bay’s No. 15 Shouson – jointly developed by CC Land, Emperor International, CSI Properties Ltd and Mingfa Group – was sold for HK$435 million to an unnamed buyer. During June, another unnamed buyer purchased a detached home at the same project for HK$870.2 million, which marked the city’s priciest residential transaction this year.

Mingfa agreed in September to sell its 20 percent stake in No.15 Shouson to CC Land and Emperor International for HK$650 million.

(Mingtiandi)

上環富衛金融中心呎租48元 郵政署續約3年

港島區地標商廈，租戶不乏政府部門，往往大手承租全層或部分樓面。其中，郵政署新近續租上環富衛金融中心單位，呎租分別為48元及50元，屬原價續租三年。

上環富衛金融中心17樓3至5室，建築面積約3317方呎，以每月16萬租出，平均呎租48元，該廈21樓亦以40.5萬租出，建築面積約8016方呎，平均呎租50元，租客為郵政署，屬原價續租，市場消息指，郵政署屬該廈長情租客，早於大約2000年進駐該廈。

20年前進駐 屬長情租客

早前，《施政報告》指，金鐘政府合署將有近40%的辦公室遷往北部都會區，有代理表示，目前港島區有不少商廈，均為政府部門所承租，選址為地點方便，租金較廉宜的物業，不排除當金鐘政府合署部分辦公室遷往北部後，政府將部分部門遷入金鐘政府合署，從而減少在私人市場承租樓面。該代理又說，不過，這是很長遠的事，現階段未能預期對市場的影響。

涉全層及部分樓面

另一代理則強調，近年商廈空置率雖然創高，不過，假若疫市一過去，長綫勢必平穩及向好，早在疫市之前，中環是最核心商業區，空置率曾出現1%至2%的低水平，當扣除正常租客更替後，等於「零」空置，大機構找不到合適位置，故此，超級甲廈國際金融中心呎租被推至逾200元，連分散業權的美國銀行中心呎租也曾創下100元新高。2017年及2018年，很多中資來港承租寫字樓，現時市況低迷，他們沒有擴張，但也沒有遷走。

(星島日報)

更多富衛金融中心寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：富衛金融中心寫字樓出租

更多上環區甲級寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：上環區甲級寫字樓出租

更多國際金融中心寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：國際金融中心寫字樓出租

更多中環區甲級寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：中環區甲級寫字樓出租

更多美國銀行中心寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：美國銀行中心寫字樓出租

更多金鐘區甲級寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：金鐘區甲級寫字樓出租

中環威靈頓街鋪7800萬易手 每呎3.62萬 15年升值1.8倍

疫市下，核心區鋪位仍不乏追捧客，中環威靈頓街一個地鋪，建築面積約2150方呎，以約7800萬易手，平均每呎3.62萬，新買家料回報2.85厘，物業於15年間升值1.8倍。

上址為威靈頓街112至114號新威大廈地下B及D號鋪，建築面積約2150方呎，市場消息透露，以約7800萬易手，平均呎價3.62萬，租客為金禾冰室，月租18.5萬，租期至明年3月，續租每月加至19.5萬，至2025年3月為止，回報分別為2.85厘及3厘，據了解，新買家屬新晉鋪位投資者，過往鍾情投資住宅。

連約回報2.85厘

原業主於2007年11月以2750萬買入該鋪，持貨15年，帳面獲利5050萬，物業升值1.8倍。

盛滙商舖基金創辦人李根興形容，該鋪位「大大件」，內里可容納60個座位，可惜鋪型呈L形，門面難於分間，不能拆售為細鋪圖利，若以收租角度而言，尚算不俗，月租近20萬，估計每月營業額90萬至100萬才可收支平衡，若果以人均消費計算，若每人100元，每日要做5轉才夠數，早餐午餐下午茶及晚市，以及外賣一轉就可以，估計達標不難。他又說，翠華2012年於上市時，指翻枱數目是每日25次，屬「人間極限」。他又補充，上述新威大廈樓齡47年，門闊約16呎，內里闊約30呎，鋪深約68呎。

新晉鋪位投資者承接

位處該鋪位對面的威靈頓街97號威利大廈高層地下H鋪，建築面積約4400方呎，現址Pizza Express，於2021年3月以1.35億易手。原業主為百年涼茶店「春回堂」及有關人士，於2011年8月以9800萬買入，持貨11年，帳面獲利3700萬，物業升值逾37%，該鋪位門闊約22呎， 內闊約44呎，深約80呎。Pizza Express月租32萬，料回報約2.8厘。

業內人士指，近期在加息等負面因素衡擊下，鋪位交投亦轉向淡靜，不過，由於威靈頓街鋪位罕有放售，尤其旺市時業主惜市，仍然受到投資者追捧，上述鋪位回報不足3厘，即使明年3月起，租金回報達3厘，惟扣除差餉及稅項等支出，低於3厘，尤其現時銀行存款趨向高息，令鋪位吸引力減少。

西營盤第三街101號怡豐閣地下1號鋪，鋪面向第二街，地鋪及自建閣建築面積各約800方呎，平台約1000呎，以 1500萬易手，平均呎價1.875萬 (不計閣樓與平台)，該鋪位門闊約13呎，鋪深約40呎，樓齡31年，月租3.3萬至2024年3月，料回報2.6厘。

第三街鋪每呎1.875萬售

原業主於2006年11月以370萬買入，持貨16年，帳面獲利1130萬，物業升值3倍。

(星島日報)

中鐵綫效應 助中葵涌工業區轉型

施政報告提出「中鐵綫」新鐵路，由元朗錦田經葵涌連接九龍塘的走綫，現時距離葵興港鐵站較遠的中葵涌工業區，周邊未來有機會設新車站，有望加快區內工廈轉型。

葵涌工業區大概可以分為3個部分，分別是青山公路，葵涌段西北面的中葵涌工業區、葵涌道東面的葵涌工業區及葵青交滙處周邊的南葵涌工業區。

7宗重建或改裝 涉256萬呎

雖然葵涌區內現時有葵興及葵芳2個港鐵站，不過兩者距離中葵涌工業區相對較遠，以比較近的葵興站為例，步行至中葵涌工業區的工廈需要12至20分鐘。

按照政府構思中的中鐵綫將會由錦田出發，經葵涌至九龍塘，發揮分流屯馬綫的作用，將會採用快綫形式營運，減少中途站，有機會只會在東北葵、石籬一帶設車站。若果構思落實，中葵涌工業區交通將會進一步改善，推動該區轉型。

近年受惠於新的工廈活化政策推動，中葵涌亦有不少工廈計劃重建或改裝，城規會近年批出至少7宗申請，涉及約256萬平方呎，包括作為住宅、數據中心、新式工廈及酒店用途，類型相當多元化。

醬油廠重建規模最大 供1336住宅

規模最大屬於同珍集團旗下葵涌同珍醬油廠重建計劃，位於昌榮路1至7號，在2019年獲城規會批准，將重建成4幢住宅物業及1幢商廈，樓高14至40層，總樓面約103.7萬平方呎，提供1,336個住宅單位、15.8萬平方呎辦公室及9.2萬平方呎的零售樓面。

另一方面，近年數據中心需求殷切，吸引不少財團收購區內工廈以重建成為數據中心，當中萬國數據 (09698) 便在區內3個工廈重建項目，均是計劃重建成為數據中心，涉及約75.9萬平方呎樓面。

其中包括大圓街2至10號美羅工業大廈，現為約47年樓齡舊式工廈，申請以地積比率11.7倍重建，將建成22層高的數據中心，總樓面涉約23.5萬平方呎；而打磚坪街57至61號中央工業大廈，計劃重建成20層高數據中心，總樓面約27.7萬平方呎。

除了數據中心之外，近年不少工廈希望重建成為新式工廈，以獲得額外的樓面，例如南豐計劃重建打磚坪街94至100號工業地盤，以重建23層高的新式工廈，總樓面約19萬平方呎。

(經濟日報)

全幢工廈招標 可建樓面19萬呎

葵涌區工廈有價，早前藍田街30至38號全幢工廈放售，可建樓面約19萬平方呎，將於11月23日截標。

藍田街30至38號現狀為1幢3層高的工業大廈，總樓面面積約3.5萬平方呎，並可經由藍田街及打磚坪街進入，地盤面積約1.67萬平方呎，最高重建面積19萬平方呎。

重建數據中心成趨勢

負責項目招標的代理指，區內周邊落戶多個重建項目，數據中心龍頭企業萬國數據在過去4年間，已斥資逾25.5億元購入位於藍田街2至6號、打磚坪街57至61號及大圓街2號的3個地盤，作重建高端數據中心用途。

另外，由金朝陽發展的打磚坪街105至113號新式工廈iCITY，在今年初開售，短短一周沽出逾百伙，標準單位建築面積約335至510平方呎，售價多為400萬至450餘萬元，例如其中1個中層09室，面積444平方呎，以約427.9萬元售出，呎價約9,637元。

(經濟日報)