Buyers get 12 years to pay for an address at CK Property’s Zumurud apartments

CK Property Holdings Ltd., the developer owned by Hong Kong’s wealthiest man, is offering the city’s longest financing plan and steep discounts to buyers of The Zumurud apartments in Man Tau Kok, in a programme to drum up sales.

After a 20 per cent deposit, 19 of the first 23 lots of Zumurud apartments -- Arabic for Emerald -- will have up to 12 years to complete their purchases of the units, each ranging between 1,577 and 1,723 square feet, in 138 monthly instalments through 2028.

The price of the property will be HK$33.23 million to HK$52.69 million (US$6.8 million), or between HK$19,288 and HK$32,470 per square foot.

“It should be the longest completion date for new flats in Hong Kong history,” said Sammy Po, chief executive at Midland Realty’s residential department.

CK Property, which is developing the 19 storey apartment through a venture, will even give you a loan to finance the remaining 80 per cent of the purchase, skirting Hong Kong’s banking rule that puts a 50 per cent lending limit on properties costing more than HK$10 million.

With discounts of up to 24 per cent, the price of a Zumurud address drops to HK$28.24 million to HK$40.05 million, or HK$16,395 per sq ft to HK$24,677 per sq ft.

According to Zumurud’s Z138 payment plan, buyers start repaying 34.5 per cent of the property’s value through 138 monthly instalments, three months after putting down a 20 per cent deposit. The obligation ends with a 45.5 per cent payment, likely in 2028.

With the Z138 plan and after discounts, the down payment starts from HK$5.6 million, compared with HK$14 million via a standard bank mortgage plan.

“The scheme will offer a more flexible financing plan,” said Louis Chan Wing-kit, Centaline Property Agency’s residential managing director. “The lower entry barrier will bound to encourage buying interest.”

Still, buyers who choose this scheme should assess their ability to afford between HK$60,000 and HK$80,000 in monthly payments, Chan said.

The property’s title won’t transfer to the buyer until the completion of the transaction.

“Buyers can resell their units through a confirmor, subject to a 20 per cent penalty if the resale occurs within three years” of the original purchase, said Midland’s Po.

A confirmor is a sales transaction that takes place before the completion of the original purchase.