Owner of Repulse Bay house set to pay Hong Kong’s highest annual property tax of US$83,000
The owner of a 25,000 square feet super deluxe house at 89 Repulse Bay Road will pay an annual government tax of about HK$655,500 (US$83,575) for the next financial year, the highest in Hong Kong, according to data released by the government.
The Rating and Valuation Department on Monday said the property could fetch about HK$13.11 million in annual rent or about HK$1.09 million per month.
The government charges 5 per cent as levy based on the estimated annual rent.
The owner Liang Liangsheng, chairman of Hubei-based C-Bons Holdings (International), which is involved in making and selling feminine personal hygiene products, property and tourism, paid HK$115 million for the house in 2001.
“The owner will be charged 5 per cent as the government rate based on the rateable value,” said Thomas Lam, head of valuation and consultancy at Knight Frank, meaning Liang is likely to pay a government rate of about HK$655,500 for the next financial year.
He added the rateable value is more or less the same as last year.
Meanwhile, the rateable value for an 8,000 sq ft house at 13 Big Wave Road in Shek O, owned by Pony Ma Huateng, co-founder of Tencent Holdings, was estimated at HK$11.85 million, the second highest in Hong Kong.
According to government estimates, Ma will have to pay an annual government rate of HK$592,500. The rateable value for the 9,950 sq ft House No 1 at Mount Nicholson was HK$9.55 million, making it the third highest in the city. The owner, Giant Victory which paid HK$1.08 billion for the house last year, will be required to pay HK$477,500 next year.
Lam said that since most of these properties are occupied by the owners themselves they will have to pay the levy.
“The government rate is only a tiny amount for these rich men,” he said.
Unlike owners of shopping malls and hotels, owners of super deluxe homes seldom argue with the government’s assessment of rateable value.
However, the rateable value for retail properties has declined sharply in light of the falling shop rents last year.
For instance, a ground level shop A at 2 Cannon Street, Causeway Bay, which has one of the highest rents in Hong Kong Island, saw its rateable value decline 35 per cent to HK$1.65 million for 12 months to March 31, 2019, from HK$2.55 million in current 2017-2108 financial year.
