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Hong Kong is riding a 10-month high in transactions involving upmarket real estate deals, with former chairman and CEO of Alibaba Group Holding Zhang Yong joining the wave after purchasing a luxury home in Mid-Levels for HK$53.54 million (US$6.89 million). In the first 20 days of October, 78 first-hand private residential sales priced between HK$30 million and HK$49.99 million were registered, according to Land Registry data. “This represents a 24 per cent increase from the 63 transactions for the entire month of September and a 2.9-fold increase from the low of 20 in January this year,” said Derek Chan, head of research at Ricacorp Properties. “This represents a 10-month high.” The purchases come a month after Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s policy address, where he announced the lowering of the entry threshold for residential properties under the Investor Entry Scheme from HK$50 million to HK$30 million. Mid-Levels Central led the surge with 34 transactions, followed by Mid-Levels West with 15 and Kai Tak with 13, reflecting the preference of investment immigrants, Chan said. “On the buyer side, with favourable policies supporting the relative scarcity of such luxury properties, not only investment immigrants but also local buyers are rushing to take advantage of the low prices,” Chan said. Of the 52 registrations showing both the buyer and seller information, 17 involved buyers who spoke Mandarin, accounting for over 32.7 per cent. Chan said the relaxed entry threshold was likely to continue to further boost first-hand luxury home transactions priced between HK$30 million and HK$50 million, with the segment’s market share expected to exceed 3.5 per cent this year, a seven-year high. The luxury housing market was gradually moving towards balance and maturity, according to Chan. “Although cash-rich buyers – especially ultra-high-net-worth individuals – still dominate the market, as they are the most capable buyers, new trends are emerging, with investors returning, attracted to the resilience and long-term value of real estate,” Chan said. “As for speculators, they remain relatively low-key, because the current market places greater emphasis on selective and careful choices rather than short-term flipping.” He added that “while cash buyers remain the mainstay, opportunities for strategic investors are also re-emerging”. Thomas Chak, head of capital markets and investment services at Colliers Hong Kong, said cash-rich private investors – particularly ultra-high-net-worth individuals from mainland China – continue to dominate the luxury residential segment in Hong Kong. “These buyers are typically founders or major stakeholders in listed technology firms, and they are drawn to trophy assets in prestigious districts such as The Peak, Southern Districts and Mid-Levels,” he said. “Mortgagee sales have also attracted these investors, who are taking advantage of softened prices and scarcity value in low-density, sea-view properties.” Chak said while speculative activity is “not the primary driver, we see a diversification in investor profiles”. He said the lowering of the entry threshold to HK$30 million has “opened the market to a broader pool of cross-border buyers, including family offices and non-local investors”. Zhang acquired the 2,084 sq ft flat at Bamboo Grove, a residential development on Kennedy Road owned by a unit of Hysan Development, at an average price of HK$25,691 per square foot. Zhang, also known as Daniel Zhang Yong, paid an initial deposit of about HK$2.7 million, with the remaining amount to be paid in stages between November and January, Hysan said in a filing with the Hong Kong stock exchange late on Friday. Zhang spent 16 years climbing the ranks at Alibaba. He stepped down in 2023. In December last year, he was appointed as an independent non-executive director at Hysan. Alibaba owns the Post. Hysan, the largest commercial landlord in shopping haven Causeway Bay, said the transaction will allow it to accrue a gain of HK$19.3 million for the group. Bamboo Grove comprises six blocks of 345 residential units and 436 car park spaces. It has been held by Hysan for leasing purposes, though in August, the group initiated a phased sale of the residential units in two blocks, along with a portion of the car park spaces. Meanwhile, a 3,326-sq ft luxury home at One Stanley was acquired by Golden Crane Holdings for HK$138 million and was registered with the government on October 6, according to official records. The property was valued at HK$41,491 per square foot, according to JLL. Earlier this month, Hysan also sold three units at Bamboo Grove for HK$133 million, two of which were bought by the company’s chairwoman Irene Lee Yun-lien’s son, Nicolas Hugh Ingram, while the third was acquired by the wife of non-executive director Lee Chien. Ingram purchased two units, measuring 1,451 sq ft and 1,503 sq ft, for HK$77.23 million. Sharp Focus, owned entirely by Lee Chien’s wife Kitty Chou Hok-yee, bought a 2,191 sq ft flat for HK$56.39 million. The purchases added to several upmarket deals completed in recent months by the city’s top business people, further boosting the view of a stabilising property market. Hang Seng Bank chief operating officer Vivien Chiu Wai-man paid HK$40 million for a 1,651 sq ft luxury flat in Happy Valley early this month. The flat in Beverly Hill on Broadwood Road was handed over to Chiu on October 6, according to Land Registry records. Chiu is the second top official from the bank that acquired an upscale home in Hong Kong in a span of just over a month. In late August, then Hang Seng Bank CEO Diana Ferreira Cesar acquired a 1,193 sq ft lived-in flat for HK$26.6 million or HK$22,232 per square foot, at Flora Garden in Tai Hang. Luanne Lim took over as the bank’s CEO this month. In September, Swire Pacific chairman Guy Bradley bought a luxury property in the Southern district for HK$50 million.
