Veteran Hong Kong investors take advantage of recovery in non-residential property sector to exit holdings

Family of Tang Shing-bor has already offloaded at least 42 properties worth about HK$9.6 billion since mid-May

Pan Sutong possibly sold the site of a luxury home on Deep Water Bay Road last month

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The family of Tang Shing-bor, who died in May and was known as the ‘shop king’, remains confident about the Hong Kong real estate market. Photo: iStockphoto

Published: 7:30am, 28 Sep 2021Updated: 7:13pm, 28 Sep 2021

Veteran Hong Kong property investors with large portfolios are taking advantage of a recovery in the non-residential market to exit holdings bought decades ago, either for debt reduction or profit taking.

The family of Tang Shing-bor, who died in May and was known as the “shop king”, is selling 39 properties worth about HK$4.7 billion (US$604 million), while Lam Hiu-ngai, the founder of Kai Bo Food Supermarket, has separately put 21 properties up for sale.

People were aware that Tang’s family was “facing financial difficulties. They need to sell shops to reduce their debt,” said Edwin Lee, founder and CEO of Bridgeway Prime Shop Fund Management.

The family has been selling down its portfolio at deep discounts since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic last year after its hospitality business collapsed following first the city’s social unrest in 2019 and then the coronavirus outbreak. The company has been facing a liquidity crunch, which led to the quick resolution of a court case by Tang brought against him last year over about HK$12 million in unpaid rent for a hotel property in Tsim Sha Tsui.

Tang’s family has already offloaded at least 42 properties worth about HK$9.6 billion since mid-May, according to a list compiled by Centaline Commercial. This excludes the reported sale of a shop in Causeway Bay at a loss of about HK$35 million this month.

A whole block of the East Asia Industrial Building in Tuen Mun is among the most expensive properties that the Tang family has sold so far. Photo: Handout

It has, however, narrowed the possible discounts for properties it is selling currently compared to previous offers amid improving sentiment and smooth sales – from a possible 15 per cent to about 10 per cent – said Joe Ma, marketing manager of shops at Centaline Commercial.