Foreign Property News | Posted by Zarni Kyaw
5.88-hectare site at West Kowloon station was one of 22 residential and commercial lots on this year’s official land sale list unveiled on Thursday.
Secretary for Development Michael Wong says government intends to sell site as a whole instead of carving it up.
A prime commercial site on top of Hong Kong’s high-speed rail terminus will be sold to developers in the first half of the year, with 2019 expected to see the highest supply of floor space for offices and businesses in two decades.
The 5.88-hectare (14.5-acre) site at West Kowloon station was one of 22 residential and commercial lots on this year’s official land sale list, which was unveiled by the government on Thursday.
The expected yield of private flats from this year’s land sales and other projects, however, would be the lowest in almost a decade.
Announcing the land sales programme for 2019-20, Secretary for Development Michael Wong Wai-lun said the government intended to sell the huge West Kowloon site as a whole, instead of carving it up for separate sales, as some market watchers had been speculating.
“In terms of design and management, we believe it is beneficial to sell the site as a whole,” Wong said.
But Thomas Lam, executive director of Knight Frank in Hong Kong, said this might lead to selling difficulties.
“The total value is too large and I’m not very optimistic that it can be sold easily as a whole,” Lam said.
“To be sure, developers are interested in the site because of the location, but no single developer now has the ability to put so much money in one site. They have to form a consortium to bid for the project.”
Lam estimated the site could fetch HK$95 billion (US$12 billion) to HK$110.8 billion (US$14 billion) – or HK$30,000 (US$3,800) to HK$35,000 (US$4,500) per square foot.
Ref: Property Report
