Property tycoon Lee Shau-kee has finally tired of the humble life of a Mid-Levels apartment owner and has splashed out serious money to trade up to a mansion befitting his wealth on The Peak.
After living in an apartment in Mid-Levels for 26 years, the 82-year-old Henderson Land chairman and his family yesterday paid a record land price for a residential site on The Peak to build their ultimate dream houses.
His younger son Martin Lee Ka-shing, an executive director at Henderson Land, yesterday outbid Chinachem Group in the private land auction and won the site at 35 Barker Road for HK$1.82 billion.
That translates into an accommodation value of HK$68,229 per square foot and makes it the most expensive site in terms of gross floor area in the world, said Koh Keng-shing, managing director at Landscope Surveyors.
The previous record land price was set by Sun Hung Kai Properties when it bought 12 Mount Kellett Road on The Peak for HK$42,196 per sq ft in December 2006.
'The price is reasonable but it is not something bought for money,' Martin Lee said. 'Even if you are willing to spend a fortune, you may not be able to get something you fancy. We will build three or four 2- to 3-storey houses for our family to live in.'