Brisk sales of Cheung Sha Wan flats

Henderson Land Development (0012) sold at least 20 of 68 units within an hour after launching the second round of sales at The Harmonie in Cheung Sha Wan which offers 337 flats, local media reported.

The minimum consideration of the latest round of sales came in at HK$6.54 million after discounts. The units being put up for sale were previously said to have attracted around 3,100 cheques, making the batch 44 times oversubscribed.

The 68 flats, ranging from 322 square feet to 377 square feet, include 64 two-room units and four two-room apartments with storerooms. The average prices were HK$20,310 to HK$25,006 per sq ft after discounts.

Meanwhile, in the Mid-Levels, the developer secured the whole ownership of an old building at No 88 Robinson Road via a compulsory sale with nearly HK$1.01 billion, the bottom price.

Completed in 1961, the nine-story residential building measures around 10,360 sq ft. The developer expects to offer around 100 flats in the project, which is suitable for small-to-medium units.

Separately, Grand Ming Group (1271) received the green light to develop 119 units at No 1 Luen Fat Street in Fanling, where the Fan Ling Theatre is located. The case will be handed over to the Town Planning Board for review on Friday.

In other news, Hong Kong's private property price index dropped 0.28 percent month-on-month to 392.5 points in December, official data showed, falling for three consecutive months but still gaining 3.32 percent for the whole year.

The price-tracking index has been rising for 13 years in a row, data of the Rating and Valuation Department showed yesterday.

The rental index also dropped by 0.05 percent to 182.50 points month-on-month, extending the downtick to the third month. The index rose 3.34 percent in 2021, putting a two-year decline to an end.

The Midland Property Price Index also weakened by 0.65 percent week-on-week at 170.25 points, said Midland Realty chief analyst Buggle Lau, in line with the fall last year and resulting in a year-to-date drop of 0.79 percent.

Despite the recent setback, the resilience of the local property market is quite strong, Lau said, home prices have not moved more than 10 percent either way despite the pressures of Sino-US tensions, social unrest and the Covid-19 pandemic.