Real Estate Bull Run Continues

The rendering of The Arles in Fo Tan, New Territories

There are some people in Hong Kong who are really flush with cash.

Today someone bought the entire floor, or eight units of a new development called The Arles in Fo Tan, New Territories for HK$100 million. 

What will the owner do with them? Make them into one giant flat?! Or rent them out? Or buy them for eight family members? 

Prices of the flats ranged from HK$6.17 million to HK$23.5 million for 228 sq ft to 947 sq ft. 

Three rounds of flat-selling have been held so far

In Fo Tan. 

An industrial area.

In total 116 flats out of 272 were sold, with a 15 percent discount to HK$20,905 per square foot.

Apparently buyers came out with confidence on hearing the news the border with China may reopen in February, and Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor's big plans for the Northern Metropolis near the border, where it is expected 2.5 million people may live there in 20 years. 

The metropolis will include Tin Shui Wai, Yuen Long, Sheung Shui and Fanling.

"Since the stock market has recently been less volatile, the overall sentiment towards the property market is pretty good," Midland Realty's chief executive of the residential division Sammy Po Siu-ming said. He indicated more buyers are entering the market after Lam's policy address about the Northern Metropolis.

Buyers are bullish on the Northern Metropolis

So these buyers are bullish on Hong Kong, particularly the New Territories, but the prices are breathtaking.

Henderson Land Clinches Prime Harbourfront Plot

Henderson's blueprint presents lots of green spaces in Central

Developer Henderson Land Development is bullish on Hong Kong -- specifically Central district.

It had the winning bid of HK$50.8 billion (US$6.5 billion) for the New Central Harbourfront Commercial Site 3, beating out five other developers.

This plot of land was sold for HK$50.8 billion

Henderson will spend another HK$63 billion to develop the site which is the plot of land in front of the Hong Kong General Office and City Hall. The winning bid will feature three main buildings, the one closest to the waterfront will be multifunctional, while the other two will be office towers. Most of the land will have greenery in mind as well as public spaces. 

The old Star Ferry clock will be reconstructed in around the same spot as a visual landmark and showcase the city's maritime heritage.

According to Knight Frank, the Central Site 3 ranks as the second most expensive land transaction worldwide of all time, after a 861,120 sq ft site in Seoul's Gangnam district was bought by a Hyundai Motor-led consortium in 2014 for 10.5 trillion won (US$10 billion).

Market observers said the record price for the prime plot will boost the city's commercial property market and reinforce Hong Kong's position as a world class global financial hub.

Plowing that much money into Central means a big vote of confidence for the district even though the Lam administration has plans to develop the area near the border with the mainland.

Three buildings will be on the site, two are offices

"Although there are other large-scale developments such as Northern Metropolis and Lantau Tomorrow Vision in the pipeline, it would take 15 to 20 years for these projects to be fully completed and at least another decade for other areas to mature," said Martin Wong, head of research and consultancy of Greater China at Knight Frank.

"Central will remain the financial centre for Hong Kong in the foreseeable future," he added.

As we said earlier, Lam's vision of people sleeping better will have to wait at least 15 years... 

Lam Promises Better Sleep in New Metropolis

Lam says Northern Metropolis residents can sleep better

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor is selling her Northern Metropolis project as a way for families living there to have a better quality of life because they will have more time to sleep.

Towns near the border become metropolis

In a speech to the Global Conference of the Alliance for Healthy Cities, Lam said the government will try to ensure that the new metropolis is self-contained, adding this will be a first for a new town development in Hong Kong.

She explained that with some 650,000 jobs that are envisaged in the metropolis, by the border near Shenzhen, residents would not have to travel into Hong Kong's existing urban areas for work. In other words Central district will now be in Fanling or Sheung Shui...

"When I am driven from the urban area where I live into the new development to attend a meeting, to officiate at a function, I always see buses coming the other way, that is from the new development areas into the urban areas, and the majority of passengers on the buses are falling asleep.

"So you just imagine, if we have more jobs in the areas where these people live, they will have an extra hour of quality sleep, in home, and not on the bus."

A bus tour in Tuen Mun to catch some sleep

Maybe she didn't hear about those tour buses specifically for people to sleep on because they like the gentle rocking on public transport that lulls them to sleep. 

Anyway this Northern Metropolis won't be completed in at least the next 15 years so people won't be sleeping better until then... what does Lam suggest in the meantime for people to catch their zzz's?

Carrie Lam Snubbed by Shenzhen?

The Canton Fair is the largest and oldest trade fair in China

Just days after her policy address highlighting the Northern Metropolis as a major infrastructure project to bring Hong Kong closer to the mainland and the Greater Bay Area, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor was snubbed by Shenzhen officials today.

Earlier in the day she was in Guangzhou for the opening of the Canton Fair, the largest and oldest trade fair in China. She joined some 600 officials and business leaders from the mainland and overseas, with the event officiated by Premier Li Keqiang.

Premier Li Keqiang opened the Canton Fair

Lam met with Guangzhou Party Secretary Zhang Shoufu, city mayor Wen Guohui, and other local government officials, briefing them on her policy address.

Then later in the day she was supposed to meet with senior Shenzhen officials to brief them on the "Northern Metropolis" plan and how it would interface with Shenzhen and the Greater Bay Area. 

However, in a press release issued on Thursday night, the Hong Kong government said: "After [Lam's] arrival in Guangzhou, [she] noted that the meeting with the Shenzhen leaders in Shenzhen originally scheduled for [Thursday] afternoon had to be cancelled. The governments of the two places will fix another date for the meeting."

Lam met with Guangzhou officials

The Shenzhen side pulled out citing unexpected commitments... though one wonders why the last minute change as Chinese officials like everything to go according to schedule...

Sadly Lam had to go home empty handed, leaving behind Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po, who will attend a forum tomorrow in Guangzhou.