There it is in black and white: “The Exclusive Place for Really Rich People.” It’s a glossy flyer for Centaline property agency and the title adorns a picture of the night time Harbour view from the Peak. The property is 4500 square feet, price HK$350 million.
Below is an even more intriguing title: “Sparkling Victoria Harbour – The rich neighbourhood: huge garden, private pool, large garage,“ This one is 4,200 square feet, but also HK$350 million. Where are these Centaline havens reserved for really loaded people? “Oh it’s the Peak, Repulse Bay, that sort of area,” explained Centaline agent Carmen Shun airily. So which houses in particular was she referring to?
There were so many she could not remember and had to nip off to check and come back to me. She found one of them. “Number 8 Severn Road,” she said, triumphantly. Was this the former residence of Tony Chan, ChinaChem Nina Wang’s fung shui friend? Once upon a time he lived up there. Or was it a Swire prince’s pad? No, no she said. “No one famous. It’s the Sun Hung Kei house.” They own it now? Was one of the Kwok brothers having to sell up to pay his legal fees? “No, someone purchased it before,” she explained. “It’s on the second hand market. That’s why the (HK$350m) price isn’t too bad,” she added. So what was selling well just now I inquired, in these rarified areas. “Parkview,” she said. Parkview? Wasn’t that old hat these days? Oh no, she said, there have been lots of transactions. A 1,300 square feet flat up there in the mist was a snip at HK$20m. Well it’s a lot less than Hk$350m, that’s definitely just for really really rich people.
Ferrari Toys
And on the subject of really rich people and their toys, the latest Ferrari has hit town, being unveiled at The Repulse Bay. If you need to ask how much it is, you can’t afford one, but suffice to say Hong Kongs’ allocation will have been snapped up as soon as they were announced.