Henderson flat sale a hit amid rebound
First project at former airport offloads 70pc of first batch of 196 homes
Buyers showed a strong appetite for new flats in Hong Kong for a second day in a row, encouraged by a steep economic rebound as investors look to deploy funds amid improving sentiment.
Henderson Land Development sold some 70 per cent, or 134 of 196 units, on offer at phase one of The Henley, the company’s first project in Kai Tak, at the close of sales yesterday, raking in HK$15.5 billion, the company said.
The upbeat sales come a day after Road King Infrastructure sold all 180 units on offer at its 800unit South Land project in Wong Chuk Hang, the first residential project atop an MTR station on
Hong Kong Island in three decades. In Mong Kok, Sino Ocean sold 27 of 45 flats at its Uptify project on the same day.
“These are pretty good sale results,” said Sammy Po Siu-ming, chief executive of Midland Realty’s residential division.
“Sentiment is supported by expectation that interest rates will stay low, ample funds are looking for investments, the local pandemic being under control, a return of economic growth and lower unemployment,” Po added.
Hong Kong ended six consecutive quarters of economic decline caused by the coronavirus pandemic after posting 7.8 per cent growth in the first quarter, the strongest in 11 years. It was led by export and government spending. Unemployment fell to 6.8 per cent in March from 7.2 per cent in February.
Henderson’s 479 flats in phase one of The Henley are located on the site of the city’s former airport, near the East Kowloon business district under development.
Some 60 per cent were bought by end users and 40 per cent by investors, compared to 30 per cent investors at other launches, Po said, adding that with many flats enjoying sea views, there was potential for better price appreciation, he said.
The one- to three-bedroom flats, ranging from 274 sq ft to 889 sq ft, were priced at an average HK$27,080 per square foot after a discount of up to 5 per cent.
Prices of the three-phase project, due for completion in January next year, are about 11 per cent higher than a nearby project sold in February, agents said.
Some 3,063 people registered their interest, or nearly 16 buyers for each available unit.
Three of the 12 luxury units offered separately on Saturday via bidding without price guidance were sold for a total of HK$141 million, Henderson said. They include units with a rooftop, balcony or garden space and sea views.
One unit was sold for HK$83.5 million, or HK$61,888 per square foot, some 20 per cent higher than the previous record in Kai Tak, Po said.
Although new home sales fell by a third to 1,037 deals last month from March, Derek Chan, Ricacorp Properties’ head of research, said on Thursday that multiple project launches and recent good sales results could see about 1,500 deals for this month.