Tag Archives: En-bloc / Collective Sales

Hong Kong’s 50-yr rule has marred skyline

COLLECTIVE property sales opponents like Mr Dennis Butler (’En bloc sales: Adopt HK’s 50-year limit’, last Saturday) and Mr Augustine Cheah (’The difference’, last Saturday) have quickly latched on to Ms Tan Hui Yee’s piece, ‘En bloc debate, HK style’ (Aug 10) and hailed it as a ‘well-argued commentary’.

Few people in Singapore know that all Hong Kong properties are on a 50-year leasehold term, beginning from the handover date July 1, 1998, except the land on which St John’s Cathedral stands in Central, which is the only freehold land in Hong Kong.

That may be one reason why the Hong Kong administration proposed a condition to lower the 90 per cent consent threshold to 80 per cent – that the building be at least 50 years old. For example, if a 30-year-old building was demolished after a collective sale, the remaining lease on the land would be below 20 years.

From Hong Kong’s international airport, you take a ride through the scenic beauty of the New Territories. Then you pass through downtown Kowloon Continue reading

Interest in residential land picks up

The year’s only collective sale tender so far has closed with more than one interested bidder, indicating demand for residential land may be returning.

Dragon Mansion, at 18 Spottiswoode Park Road, was last month the first collective sale site to be launched for sale this year.

The freehold site, which is more than 30 years old, is designated for residential use with a plot ratio of 2.8 and could potentially yield an estimated 120 units of 1,000 sq ft apartments in a new development.

CKS Property Consultants, which is marketing the site, said it saw interest from developers because ‘basically there are no freehold collective sale sites on the market right now’.

However, the firm declined to comment if the asking price of more than $120 million had been offered. Continue reading