A Hong Kong property agent finds a hidden gem inside an ordinary looking complex
Three small, dingy Mid-Levels flats lay vacant for years until Claire Price saw their potential and returned them to their original state as one home
There is nothing particularly special about the Mid-Levels complex that houses Claire Price’s 1,200 sq ft flat. The height of modern living in 1959, it boasts a facade little changed since last century. Step through her front door, however, and the contrast is stark. Coupled with the physical aspects – a spacious open-plan kitchen and living area, tall windows and 3.3-metre-high ceilings that give the flat a loft-like vibe – is a strong sense of character and comfort.
Price, who lived in Hong Kong for 18 years before moving to Portugal at the end of last year, says she has a penchant for older buildings and was on the hunt for somewhere to renovate.
“I was showing the property to clients in 2017 but it was way beyond what they were prepared to take on,” the Briton recalls, referring to her former job with Habitat Property. “It hadn’t been lived in for six years and was properly dingy […] Although it had originally been one flat under one title deed, it had been chopped up into three small flats so it was almost impossible to feel the space.”
Price’s clients passed but she couldn’t get the building out of her mind, so she took a leap of faith and bought it. Although she wanted a single, two-bedroom, two-bathroom home, she couldn’t quite figure out the layout so enlisted French architect Damienne Joly, of Atelierd&l.
Working around structural pillars, Joly knocked down interior walls until the flats were merged and all the rooms could be accessed under one “roof”. She kept both entrances, however, so now there is a front door with a hall and a back door.
“It looked a mess when we demolished the interior but the true space was revealed and it was quite striking, even with all the rubble and exposed wires everywhere,” says Joly.