Macau casino billionaire Angela Leong On-kei has sold her detached house in Hong Kong’s Sai Kung district for HKD70 million ($8.9 million).
The sale closes a 14-year holding period with a nominal capital gain of HKD1.2 million. It follows years of asking-price cuts.
Fourteen Years for a Marginal Gain
Located within the Royal Castle development on Pik Sha Road, the detached home covers 210 square metres. The layout includes four bedrooms, a private garden, a swimming pool, and a rooftop terrace. Leong originally bought the property through a corporate vehicle in early 2012 for HKD68.8 million. She is co-chairwoman and the largest individual shareholder of Macau casino operator SJM Holdings.
Initial listings put the property on the market several years ago at HKD168 million. Securing HKD70 million represents a steep cut from that target. It reflects the concessions wealthy vendors now accept to exit non-core residential holdings in secondary luxury enclaves.
Discounting Drives Volume in Sai Kung
Sellers across Sai Kung have adjusted expectations downward to clear stock. Price cuts of up to 10 per cent helped lift deal numbers across high-value residential brackets in recent months as opportunistic buyers moved in.
Frankie Liu, sales director at Century 21 Goodwin Property, said: “With the batch of discounted luxury homes now cleared, I expect luxury residential transaction activity in the area to slow down in the fourth quarter.”
Super-Prime Demand Splits Across Districts
Pricing trends in Sai Kung contrast with demand patterns in traditional top-tier neighbourhoods. Buyers in The Peak and Southern districts continue to focus on established luxury estates. Local business owners there are trading up to consolidate family holdings, according to Centaline Property district sales director Joseph Yan.
Deutsche Bank ranked Hong Kong as the world’s most expensive residential property market this year, trailing only Dubai in overall super-prime transaction volume. Knight Frank data shows that sales of homes priced at $10 million or higher surged 75 per cent quarter on quarter to $1.67 billion in the second quarter. Purchases in core prime postcodes drove those gains rather than deals in outlying districts.
Borrowing Costs Loom Over Next Quarter
Financing conditions remain a headwind for broader turnover. On September 17, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority lifted its base rate to 4.25 per cent in lockstep with the US Federal Reserve. Hong Kong’s three note-issuing lenders held their prime lending rates steady after that adjustment. Another Federal Reserve rate decision in late October could force local commercial banks to increase mortgage borrowing costs before year-end.
