Lantau Island land plot sells for 50pc above expectations, driven by Greater Bay Area ‘fever’
- Lantau Island land plot fetches HK$1.13 billion (US$143.96 million) at tender
- High price shows developers’ ‘strong confidence’ on assets set to benefit from ‘Greater Bay Area’, analyst said
A plot of land in the south of Lantau sold for HK$1.13 billion (US$143.96 million) on Monday, beating market forecasts by as much as 50 per cent amid optimism about the spin-off benefits arising from the “Greater Bay Area” development plan.
Huge Choice Group, an affiliate of mainland developer Agile Group, won the tender for HK$12,740 per square foot, the Lands Department said.
The director of Huge Choice Group is Chan Cheuk Yin, according to records on the Integrated Companies Registry Information System. Chan is the vice-chairman of mainland builder, Agile Group Holdings.
“It is much higher than our expectation. The price shows developers’ strong confidence on the development of the Greater Bay Area,” said Thomas Lam, executive director at property consultancy Knight Frank.
The Greater Bay Area is the mainland’s plan to link 11 cities into an integrated economic and business hub.
Among these, Shenzhen has been designated as an innovation hub, which, along with Hong Kong, Guangzhou, and Macau will make up the four core cities in the scheme.
The site was identified as Lot No 738 in Demarcation District on South Lantau Road in Cheung Sha, Lantau.
With a gross floor area of up to 88,694 sq ft, it is expected to feature up to 45 luxury houses, fetching HK$25,000 per square foot, according to Lam.
Surveyors had estimated the value of the site at as low as HK$740 million, or HK$8,000 per square foot, amid a cooling appetite for risk in the city.
Villas at Whitesands in South Lantau are going for HK$17,000 to HK$23,000 per square foot, according to the Sales of First-hand Residential Properties Authority.
