New projects continued to sell well, with about 114 flats sold over the weekend at The Coast Line in Yau Tong and Villa Garda III in Lohas Park.

Developed by CK Asset (1113), the two phases of The Coast Line sold 40 out of 44 units, marking a gain of HK$320 million. Eight special flats featuring a rooftop in the first phase were also subscribed yesterday, with only one left.

On Saturday, CK Asset put the remaining 35 units at The Coast Line II on to the market and ended the day with 31 homes transacted.

Nonetheless, CK Asset's chief manager of the sales department, William Kwok Tze-wai, said he was disappointed that not all of the special units introduced over the weekend were sold which, he added, indicated that the market's purchasing power has been almost exhausted.

Kwok expects one or two more interest rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve this year, that may cause home prices to fall in the fourth quarter.

In Tseung Kwan O, Villa Garda III joined the new project race by launching the sale of 138 units on Saturday. Over 60 flats were sold in the first hour and the project closed the day with 74 deals for over HK$580 million.

Jointly developed by Sino Land (0083), K Wah International (0173), China Merchants Land (0978) and MTR Corp (0066), the phase 11D of Lohas Park, known as Villa Garda III, received more than 2,300 checks before the first round of sales.

Hit by the sales of the new projects, the secondary market recorded only three deals in 10 major housing estates over the weekend, marking a drop of 40 percent from a week ago, data from a property agency showed.

It was the 17th consecutive week of single-digit transactions, with seven out of 10 housing estates reporting no deals.

An agent attributed it to new homes being priced at market levels in Kowloon district.

Another agent reported similar data, with only four deals in the 10 estates monitored by the agent.

The agent, expects home prices to continue to come under pressure in the secondary sector as homebuyers become cautious and prefer quality properties at low prices.

(The Standard)

CK Asset, Henderson Land among developers drawing out Hong Kong homebuyers with discounted new home offers

CK Asset sells 39 units out of the 41 on offer at The Coast Line I and The Coast Line II

‘New mass residential projects have to offer bigger discounts to lure buyers,’: property agent

Homebuyers in Hong Kong have continued to flock to projects that offer them best value for their money, with CK Asset Holdings – the flagship developer of billionaire Li Ka-shing that has been offering huge discounts – selling almost all units in the latest batch of its Coastline project on Sunday.

As of 6.30pm on Sunday, the project in Yau Tong had sold 39 units out of the 41 on offer at The Coast Line I and The Coast Line II, according to property agents.

CK Asset is offering discounts of as much as 16 per cent at The Coast Line II, significantly cheaper than the most recent launches by Wheelock Properties – Koko Mare and Koko Rosso – in the neighbouring Lam Tin area.

“At this moment, price is more important to buyers,” an agent said.

“Location is also always a concern for buyers. So, for example, the Yau Tong project is located in the city area and is being offered at a price lower than those in the New Territories, and that is another reason why it received an overwhelming response.

“People still like to live near the city centre because of proximity to work and [a shorter] commute.”

Homebuyers do like the New Territories as the area is cheaper, but most Hongkongers would still prefer the convenience of the city, so both price and location are important, the agent added. “In this period, [however,] attractive pricing is more important,” the agent said.

Hong Kong is consistently ranked top among markets where housing is unaffordable, and its residents are used to paying more than their peers across the world for homes.

However, surging interest rates have made buyers more sensitive to prices than usual. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has been keeping rates high in step with the US Federal Reserve’s monetary tightening stance to maintain the Hong Kong dollar’s peg to the US dollar. Commercial banks in the city have raised their prime rates five times since September last year, by a total of 0.875 percentage points, bringing them to a level last seen in February 2008.

A higher prime rate translates into higher monthly mortgage payments, and is affecting HK$1.8 trillion (US$229 billion) of outstanding home loans in Hong Kong. It has led many potential homebuyers to step back and wait and see what happens to the market before making their purchases.

The payment on a typical HK$5 million mortgage over 30 years has risen by 11.5 per cent after the five prime rate increases by HK$2,431 per month to HK$23,511, according to calculations by a mortgage brokage service provider.

“New mass residential projects have to offer bigger discounts to lure buyers,” another agent said.

“The Coast Line II in Yau Tong is one of the examples where the prices are attractive to buyers, marking the start of a price war. We expect some developers will follow the price cuts later this year, while the others may slow down project launches.”

Any potential price cuts are likely to give a slight boost to property transactions, including those involving new and lived-in homes, car parks and commercial buildings, for the rest of the year, the agent said.

As of Thursday, 42,754 property transactions had been recorded in Hong Kong, comprising deals for 10,243 new homes and 36,974 secondary homes, with the rest for commercial buildings and car parks, according to data compiled by the agency.

Last year, 59,619 property transactions were recorded in Hong Kong, with 10,243 new homes and 36,974 second-hand homes sold. It was the lowest number of transactions since 1997, when the agency started compiling data.

“The number of new homes sold may go back to the 14,000-level this year,” the agent said. “At first glance, that is a big jump, but last year was really bad. The annual transaction number of about 10,000 primary homes was much lower than the annual average of about 16,000 between 2017 and 2021.”

Other property projects that were on sale this weekend also saw buyers snapping up a number of units.

As of 6.30pm on Sunday, Villa Garda III had sold 74, or 53 per cent, out of the 138 units put up for sale, agents said. The project in Tseung Kwan O district’s Lohas Park neighbourhood, valued at HK$1.03 billion, is being developed by Sino Land, K Wah International and China Merchants Land.

The flats on sale included 17 one bedroom, 113 two bedroom and 8 three-bedroom units, with areas ranging from 340 to 719 sq ft.

Villa Garda III offered various discount schemes, including a 200-day Talent Payment plan, where units are priced at an average of HK$16,308 per square foot after a maximum discount of 14 per cent and a 4.5 per cent cash rebate on the balance of the transaction price. It is believed to be the most attractive plan for buyers.

Under the discount plan, these flats were being sold for HK$5.77 million to HK$12.28 million, or HK$15,168 to HK$17,653 per square foot.

There is no specific definition of talent in the price list, nor is there any requirement for the provision of diploma certificates.

Henderson Land’s The Holborn in Quarry Bay also sold three units. A maximum discount of 21 per cent and a 6 per cent early-completion cash rebate can be enjoyed if buyers settle the purchase price within 90 days after signing the preliminary agreement for sale and purchase of the project.

The Henley Park, another Henderson Land project, found one more buyer after putting up for sale 18 units in the Kowloon development. Units were priced between HK$7.93 million and HK$18.4 million, or HK$20,397 to HK$30,456 per square foot.

Other projects were also put on sale this weekend. In Lohas Park, Manor Hill put up 12 units for sale at an average price of HK$16,744 per square foot. This batch of units comprises two-bedroom units with storage capacity and an area of 428 sq ft. They were put on sale for a price range of HK$6.91 million to HK$7.32 million.

Uptify in Mong Kok, which offered 21 units on Sunday, provided a maximum discount of 24 per cent, which was increased from 14.5 per cent in early July, according to another property agency.

(South China Morning Post)

港鐵租九龍灣恒生中心 呎租25元

兩層逾5萬呎樓面 料作擴充

近期甲廈租務集中東九龍，九龍灣恒生中心兩層逾5萬平方呎樓面，獲港鐵租用，料作擴充，呎租約25元。兩層樓面原由恒生銀行使用，去年集團決定放棄多層。

市場消息指，九龍灣德福廣場恒生中心錄得租務成交，涉及物業中層兩層，每層面積2.6萬平方呎，合共約5.2萬平方呎租出，據估計，平均呎租約25元。物業位處港鐵站上蓋，租金水平較穩定。

玩具公司孩之寶租3層

消息稱，新租客為港鐵，而該集團總部，亦設於該項目，即德福廣場港鐵總部大樓，相信是次租用兩層恒生中心作擴充。

恒生中心樓高15層，1995年恒生銀行以約10.9億元購入該廈10層，多年來一直作自用。直至去年初疫情期間，多間銀行採在家工作措施，先後減省辦公室樓面，而恒生銀行亦不例外，把其中多層自用樓面，推出市場放租。

結果其中一層，獲本地網購平台士多 Ztore 於租用作擴充，呎租約25元。至於最大手租務，來自玩具公司孩之寶，租用3層樓面，作搬遷以減省成本。若連同是次兩層租予港鐵，去年推出的放租樓層，已相繼獲吸納。

近期整體商廈租務稍加快，而空置率最高的東九龍區，因租客選擇較多，近期連錄大手租務。包括九龍灣啟匯 (Harbourside HQ)，獲醫院管理局租用2層半，樓面達9萬平方呎，成為今年九龍東最大宗的甲級辦公室大樓面租賃成交，呎租料約17元。

醫管局租啓匯9萬呎

醫管局表示，計劃將現時位於九龍灣國際展貿中心的資訊科技及醫療信息部辦公室遷往啟匯，搬遷工作將於明年初展開。另外，觀塘全新甲廈 The Millennity 1座27至29樓，合共3層樓面，合共約4.5萬平方呎，獲日資機構Fuji Film租用。

另其他商廈租務方面，消息稱，灣仔北海中心中層01室，面積約1,222平方呎，成交呎租約39元。另葵涌九龍貿易中心B座中高層11室，面積約2,737平方呎，以每呎約28元租出。

(經濟日報)

更多啟匯寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：啟匯寫字樓出租

更多九龍灣區甲級寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：九龍灣區甲級寫字樓出租

更多The Millennity寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：The Millennity寫字樓出租

更多觀塘區甲級寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：觀塘區甲級寫字樓出租

更多北海中心寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：北海中心寫字樓出租

更多灣仔區甲級寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：灣仔區甲級寫字樓出租

更多九龍貿易中心寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：九龍貿易中心寫字樓出租

更多葵涌區甲級寫字樓出租樓盤資訊請參閱：葵涌區甲級寫字樓出租

尖沙咀彌敦道單邊舖月租30萬 珠寶店進駐 租金較4年前跌40%

核心區舖位租賃暢旺，尖沙咀彌敦道美麗都大廈繼早前一個巨舖由零售商承租，最新一個單邊複式舖，由一間來自民生區的本地珠寶連鎖店進駐，趁淡市搶攻黃金地段，月租30萬，租金較4年前跌約40%。

尖沙咀彌敦道美麗都大廈地下G12號連1、2樓11號舖，位處加拿分道單邊，毗鄰港鐵站D1出口，屬大廈最顯眼舖位，上一手長租客謝瑞麟珠寶金行承租多年，疫情前撤出，隨後該舖一直經營散貨場，知情人士透露，該舖最新以每月約30萬租出。

連鎖店首度進軍核心區

現場所見，新租客福泰珠寶正在裝修中；根據福泰珠寶網頁資料顯示，該集團成立於1993年，「主要位於香港非黃金地段住宅區，荃灣、佐敦、深水埗、將軍澳及上水」，該公司並於2014年起，「向香港境外自身經營零售商舖的若干珠寶零售商批發珠寶產品及買賣回收金。」

平均呎租182元

美麗都大廈位於彌敦道54至64B號，有代理指，上述地下G12號連1、2樓，每層建築面積各約550呎，合共約1650方呎，平均呎租約182元。福泰珠寶趁淡市，進軍核心區，插旗設據點。

事實上，該地段素來為珠寶店所鍾愛，該舖舊租客謝瑞麟，大廈另一個巨舖，六福珠寶於2013年進駐，直至2019年遷出，對正該廈、加拿分道另一個單邊舖，現址為老鳳祥銀樓。

珠寶店鍾情該地段

代理續表示，謝瑞麟高峰期月租逾100萬，疫市前撤出時月租約50萬，最新租金跌約40%。

近月，美麗都大廈舖位連環租出，對上一宗於本月錄得，地下3及4號連1樓1、2、3及4號巨舖，地下建築面積約1500呎，1樓約2420方呎，合共約3920方呎，由外國品牌零售商以每月35萬承租，看中地段人流聚集，該巨舖舊租客為六福珠寶，最新租金較4年前，跌幅同樣約40%。

(星島日報)