SIGNATURE HOMES, the luxury leasing arm of Sun Hung Kai Properties, has been generating considerable interest from overseas expatriates seeking high-end accommodation in Hong Kong.
The company secured an average occupancy rate of 96 per cent last year, with rents ranging from $30 to $55 per sq ft, and is looking forward to more brisk business this year.
Prices of Hong Kong luxury accommodation have risen from a Sars-depressed market three years ago to an almost all-time high.
Signature Homes is offering its target clientele - about 90 per cent of whom come from Europe and the United States, and the rest from the Asia-Pacific - an ever-growing portfolio of serviced apartments.
About 70 per cent of its clients work in the financial sector, 20 per cent in consulates and 10 per cent in other professional sectors.
Demand for luxury housing is traditionally dominated by financial corporations, but there has been an increase in expatriates from other sectors such as trading and manufacturing.
This was a positive result of China's entry into the World Trade Organisation and improved economic conditions in Hong Kong and the mainland, said Mavis Kang, general manager of Signature Homes.