Three levels of Convention Plaza in Wan Chai sell for record price
HK$1.38bn ‘strata-title’ sale will be highest in terms of unit rate for a whole floor in a building, says head of research at JLL
Hong Kong office prices continue to rise, as the latest headline deal saw one mainland company buy three consecutive office floors at Convention Plaza in Wan Chai on Wednesday, for a combined HK$1.38 billion.
CEFC China Energy Company, ranked as one of the mainland’s ten largest private companies by China Daily in 2014, bought floors 21-23 with a combined 49,554 square feet of office space through two separate firms, Tactic Ally Limited and Dunhan Ventures Limited.
The Shanghai-based company, founded by Ye Jianming, focuses on oil and gas and financial services.
The buyers are now required to pay property tax of around HK$118 million, as stamp duties double to 8.5 per cent of the transaction value for commercial buyers.
“Some small units in Convention Plaza sold for close to HK$ 30,000 per square foot last year, but if the latest transaction is completed, it will be the highest in terms of unit rate for a whole floor in a building,” said Denis Ma, head of research at JLL in Hong Kong.
Driven by strong demand from mainland firms, he said office sales have accelerated in recent months.
Ma added strata-title properties – those that are adjoining in some way – were now changing hands at record-high unit rates after a number of non-grade-A office buildings were sold at prices approaching the grade-A office market averages in Central.