億京等持有的九龍灣展貿徑1號九龍灣國際展貿中心 (下稱九展)，落實於6月30日結束營運。就記者於九展現場所見，該項目多處都已經張貼通知，宣布九展將營運至6月30日，並「感謝各租戶和客人一直以來對九展的支持和陪伴，期望在未來以全新面貌與大家相見」。

匯星Star Hall 5月仍運作

商場部分如常運作，而近年舉行演唱會熱門選址之一的「匯星Star Hall」，5月仍會舉行多個演唱會和表演活動。不過，商場內部分商戶已遷走，也有部分租戶近月已經在其社交網站公布搬遷等事宜。

位處展貿徑1號的九展，由合和實業發展，1995年落成，樓高14層 (另有4層地庫)，提供會議、展覽、食肆和寫字樓等元素，並於2021年由億京和資本策略 (00497) 等購入，市場盛傳購入價逾100億元。資料顯示，該用地去年曾經獲屋宇署批出建築圖則，可以重建為4幢19層 (另設3層地庫) 的商業樓宇，涉及約176.78萬方呎樓面面積，惟大業主方面至今暫未公布九展未來具體發展方向。

 (信報)

渣甸山屋地放售 估值約6億

分別有兩間外資代理行獲接管人委託，放售渣甸山包華士道8號獨立屋地。市場人士估計物業估值約6億元，較2022年中低約17%。

該物業現狀為兩層高獨立大宅，罕有單邊屋地，門闊達約124呎，氣派十足，地盤面積約9,814平方呎，實用面積約6,493平方呎，花園面積約6,000平方呎，極具重建價值。

物業現址劃為「住宅 (丙類) 1」用地，可重建為3層高獨立屋 (連一層停車間)。物業將會以「交吉」及現狀出售。

早年曾放盤 估值7.2億

資料顯示，相關物業於2022年曾委託相關代理放售，當年估值7.2億元，是次調低估值1.2億元重新放售，期內貶值約17%。

其中一間代理行代理表示，自政府宣布全面撤辣後，積壓的住宅需求逐漸釋放，樓市交投回復暢旺，連月錄得大手入市個案。渣甸山作為本港傳統豪宅區之一，長久以來是中港富豪的首選聚居之地，相信是次放售的獨立屋將備受高端買家追捧，特別是內地富豪。

(經濟日報)

Rain fails to dampen homebuyers' spirits

Property sales were brisk over the weekend in Hong Kong despite stormy weather as lower prices at new projects attracted more buyers and prompted sellers of second-hand homes to continue cutting prices.

CSI Properties (0497) said its first batch of 52 flats at Topside Residences was 18 times oversubscribed with nearly 1,000 checks. Prices may be raised for the second batch, which will be released today.

The 52 homes account for about 20 percent of the 259 flats at the project, and are offered at an average price of HK$19,388 per square foot after discounts.

CK Asset (1113), meanwhile, said prices for the remaining flats at Blue Coast, atop Wong Chuk Hang MTR station, may be hiked by up to 10 percent.

Two Blue Coast flats - a 958-sq-ft flat for HK$23.16 million and a 773-sq-ft flat for HK$18.58 million - were sold yesterday.

In Ho Man Tin, the first round of sales for 260 flats at phase IIB of Onmantin sold out on Saturday.

In the secondary market, weekend sales at 10 major housing estates tracked by a local property agency saw 11 deals, up by 37 percent, reaching a four-week high.

An agent said developers have shown restraint in pricing and consecutively launched new properties at lower market rates, while secondary homeowners have been willing to offer greater discounts, contributing to a steady upward trend in the overall property market.

(The Standard)

As Hong Kong property launches hit 7-year high, analysts say pent-up demand may moderate

‘The inventory of developers should drop steadily towards the end of the year,’ a local property agent says

Properties that have been priced at a bargain have already been absorbed by the market, an international property agent says

Buoyed by the brisk sales of flats following the removal of Hong Kong’s property cooling measures, the city’s developers have this year launched 4,800 new units as of last week, a seven-year high and about more than half of what they made available to the market in the same period last year, a local property agency said.

In the next 12 months, 31,000 new residential units are expected to be launched by the developers, an international property agency said. That would be three times as much as the 10,650 new units sold during the whole of last year, according to official data.

Starting this weekend and continuing in the coming months, more than 1,900 new units could be made available to potential buyers, including 939 units at The Yoho Hub II in Yuen Long by Sun Hung Kai Properties, 259 units in Topside Residences in Yau Ma Tei by CSI Properties and 114 units at Jardini in Jardine’s Lookout and Wong Nai by Citic Pacific.

CK Asset Holdings will also launch 15 of the 70 remaining units in its El Futuro project in Sha Tin. The first batch of the project was launched in 2020. The latest units to be put on offer on May 1 have the “best views of the horse racing course at night and special features such as U-shaped bedroom windows”, a spokeswoman said.

Including uncleared inventory at projects launched in previous years, 6,060 units have been sold between January and April, according to data tracked by the local property agency.

“The inventory of developers should drop steadily towards the end of the year,” an agent said. “A 10 to 20 per cent drop is reasonable.”

At the end of 2023, Hong Kong developers had an estimated 22,000 unsold new homes, the agent said.

Developers launched only 4,700 units at most between January and April in the 2018-2023 period, but the recent removal of the decade-old property cooling measures has given them an incentive to ramp up launches, the agent added.

On February 28, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po announced the removal of all measures intended to cool housing prices. Among the measures scrapped were the Buyer’s Stamp Duty that targeted non-permanent residents and the New Residential Stamp Duty for second-time purchasers. Homeowners are also no longer required to pay a Special Stamp Duty if they sell their homes within two years.

The decade-old measures were scrapped to boost a struggling property market.

Along with the removal of all these restrictions, mortgage financing has also been relaxed. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority currently allows homes valued at less than HK$30 million to be eligible for 70 per cent mortgage financing, compared with the previous cap of 60 per cent for flats valued between HK$15 million (US$1.9 million) and HK$30 million.

At the same time, developers have also been extending discounted prices to attract more buyers.

For example, the first batch of flats at the Onmantin residential project by Great Eagle Holdings in Ho Man Tin was priced from HK$17,759 to HK$25,866 per square foot. The cheapest unit, measuring 388 sq ft, had a price tag of HK$6.89 million.

The project was launched on Saturday and all 260 flats on offer had been sold by 9pm.

The first batch’s price range was more than 25 per cent cheaper than that of the nearby In One Above residential project, which was launched by Chinachem Group in May last year.

The prices at Onmantin were also the lowest for the neighbourhood since 2016, when Kerry Properties launched its Mantin Heights development at an average of HK$19,000 per square foot.

However, analysts are forecasting that demand is likely to moderate in the coming months with pent-up demand appearing to taper off. The local agent noted that recent launches had reflected an increase of 1 to 2 per cent in prices.

“As market sentiment has significantly improved in the two months after the removal of the market curbs, much of the purchasing power has been consumed, ” another agent said. “It is likely that the market could perform moderately in the coming months.”

Properties that have been priced at a bargain have already been absorbed by the market, another agent said.

“Sell-through rates in some major project launches dropped from over 95 per cent in the first round to around 70 per cent in subsequent rounds,” the agent said. “With abundant supply and high interest rates in place, buyers in general are looking for a bargain in this tug of war game between developers and sellers.”

Given that interest rates have remained at a more than two-decade high, new unsold units could be fully absorbed by 2025, another agent said.

“Many first homebuyers, both from Hong Kong and elsewhere, are comfortable about getting units from developers,” the agent said.

“Also with new projects under construction, buyers do not need to start mortgages until completion, [and they are] betting that interest rates will be lower next year.”