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SCMP Reporter

HONG KONG residents may have become finicky about buying property in Guangzhou, but Asia Standard International Group (ASIG) says it has been able to sell most of the 84 units at Riviera Garden in Panyu, which it put on the market a week ago.

  Even by Guangzhou standards prices are cheap, averaging about $400 per square foot for flats which range in size between 626 and 1,191 sq ft, said the company.

  The 84 units constitute the third residential block out of a total of 50 15-to-25-storey blocks which ASIG said it will construct on Shekou Island near Panyu over the next 10 years.

  The development is also expected to feature luxurious detached houses with private mooring facilities for yachts.

  A company spokesman said it would soon start construction of a clubhouse, due to be completed by mid-1996, which will feature Chinese and European restaurants, tennis courts, a gymnasium and various other recreational facilities.

  The project, a joint venture between ASIG and the local Panyu city government, is designed to be self-contained and yet be close to the central business area thanks to the mass transit railway which the city government is constructing.

  However, it looks as though completion of that project will be delayed until at least 1998 or 1999, which may dampen buyer sentiment, according to some estate agents.

  The first two blocks on the 450,000 sq ft site have been completed and were sold exclusively to Hong Kong buyers.

    This third phase is also being sold exclusively to Hong Kong buyers, with the company expecting it to sell out as well.

  'Hong Kong buyers are very selective about what they are prepared to buy,' said Kelvin Ng, a salesman with ASIG.

    But analysts also pointed out that buyers could be turned off by the fact that it will take at least half an hour by car to get to downtown Guangzhou from Shekou Island.

  'It is too far away from the city centre,' said Land Power's Raymond Mak, who is involved in the sale and marketing of Guangzhou property.

  Mr Mak and other property agents said anybody thinking of buying a flat there for investment purposes would have a very difficult time finding a tenant to rent.

  'If someone is thinking of renting the flat out,' said Mr Mak, 'the locals can find one in much better locations for just about the same price.'   Trying to sell the property later could be a problem too, said estate agents.

  The secondary market in Guangzhou is not well developed and people are averse to using agents when buying a new flat, they said.

  Besides, there is a huge amount of affordable property for sale in Guangzhou which is located in much better and more convenient locations.

  'If someone is buying or renting property, they could be in a better location for just a little more,' said Mr Mak.

  However, according to Mr Ng, the sale of flats has been successful because most of the Hong Kong buyers are either end-users or purchasing flats for relatives in China, rather than investment buyers.

  Mr Ng said the development has also been popular because of the price of the units. At $400 per sq ft, he said that is one-third the price of a similar flat in more central Guangzhou.

  But some estate agents worried about the low price. They said it might actually deter Hong Kong buyers.

  According to Andrew Ness, of Richard Ellis' China Research department, Panyu 'is a peripheral area' which has been greatly overdeveloped.

  'It is not a liquid market,' he said, adding that buying as an investment was not a good idea.

FACT FILE DEVELOPMENT: Riviera Garden, a proposed 50-block development with three 15-storey blocks so far completed.

DEVELOPER: Asia Standard International Group and the local Panyu government.

LOCATION: Shakou Island, Panyu, Guangzhou - 15 minutes drive from either Tienhe or downtown Guangzhou.

SIZE OF UNITS: 626 to 1,191 square feet.

NUMBER OF UNITS FOR SALE: A few of the remaining 84 residential units in block 3. PRICE: Starts at $400 per sq ft COMPLETION DATE: With occupation permit, expected sometime this month.



Hong Kong residents attracted to Panyu's Riviera Garden flats