Analysts expect big demand for new flats in Discovery Bay
Analysts expect the flats in the Amalfi luxury development - including large four-bedroom apartments with sea views - to prove popular
Developer HKR International has launched its latest luxury project, Amalfi in Discovery Bay, and property analysts expect the flats will be snapped up due to limited new supply in the area.
"The development offers many four-bedroom units of more than 2,000 square feet, which is very rare in the area. They come with balconies too," he said. Some of the larger apartments in the development are expected to be priced at HK$20,000 per square foot or higher.
Located at 8 Amalfi Drive, atop a hill in Yi Pak Bay, the development comprises three mid-rise blocks that provide 164 flats, ranging from one to four bedrooms and between 661 and 3,264 square feet in terms of gross floor area.
HKR International last week issued a price list for the first 50 flats to be released. They are priced at HK$6,989 to HK$15,800 per square foot, with the average asking price per square foot HK$9,711. Prices range from HK$4.62 million for a 661 sq ft flat to nearly HK$36.5 million for a 2,310 sq ft apartment.
Seventy-two flats have been sold, and HKR said the average price of sea-view apartments was HK$10,700 per square foot, against HK$7,100 per square foot for those with a mountain view.
Lee said Discovery Bay was attractive to homebuyers, including expatriates, who preferred a spacious living environment. It was also attractive to airline crew members, being close to the airport, and to investors who were after stable rental incomes.
Flats could be rented for about HK$25 per square foot per month, he said, and HK$30 per square foot for sea- view apartments, equating to a rental yield of over 4 per cent.
Lee expects three out of 10 buyers to be long-term investors, while the rest would be end-users including residents currently living in the area but seeking to upgrade to bigger flats.
About 70 per cent of the flats offer full sea views. They are near the Discovery Bay Tunnel, which provides a link to Siu Ho Wan on north Lantau.
Pandora Chan, senior manager of sales and marketing at HKR International, said the development potential of Lantau remained huge as there were many infrastructure projects, such as the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge and the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Express Line, under construction or on the drawing board.
Amalfi is the only project in Discovery Bay that boasts large duplex apartments and a rooftop swimming pool.
Prices of apartments sized between 2,000 and 3,300 square feet were pitched to match home projects close to large infrastructure developments such as in West Kowloon.
A garden house in Headland Village in Discovery Bay recently sold for HK$27,000 per square foot.
Credit Suisse equity analyst Cusson Leung Kai-tong said the new Discovery Bay project should be able to garner a good response.
It is expected to be completed by the middle of next year.
