Veteran Hong Kong sports administrator Lawrence Yu Kam-kee is selling his Kowloon Tong home of over 50 years for about HK$190 million (US$24.2 million), after waiting patiently for market conditions to improve.
“I had wanted to sell for a long time but waited until the market improved a bit to get a better price,” Yu told the South China Morning Post. He added that he had moved out of the house about a year ago as it was too large for a single occupant.
The sale agreement had been signed and a deposit paid, with completion scheduled for September, Yu said.
Yu bought the house at No. 8 Wiltshire Road, an affluent residential area, in 1974 for HK$750,000, according to Land Registry records. The agreed price represents a gain of more than HK$189 million, roughly 252 times the purchase price.
The four-storey detached house, which includes two parking spaces, received its occupation permit in April 2005. It has a saleable area of 8,227 sq ft with a four-bedroom layout.
“I didn’t want to rent it out because it would be troublesome to manage,” Yu said.
Chinese media earlier reported that the property was initially marketed at HK$250 million before eventually changing hands at HK$190 million, implying a price of about HK$23,000 per square foot.
Yu, who turned 80 last August, is a well-known figure in Hong Kong’s sporting and business circles. He previously served as chairman of the Hong Kong Football Association and the Hong Kong Community Chest.
The sale comes as Hong Kong’s luxury housing segment shows tentative signs of recovery after several years of decline, prompting some long-time owners to test the market by selling trophy assets accumulated decades ago.
Last month, a Singapore family behind developer Wah Ha Realty put a rare residential estate in Hong Kong’s Southern district up for tender for about HK$300 million. The property has been held by the family since 1993.
Prices of homes with a saleable area of at least 1,076 sq ft rose about 2.9 per cent last year, though they remain roughly 19 per cent below their 2021 peak.
The softer valuations have attracted interest from wealthy mainland Chinese buyers looking for big homes in prime districts.
Global banking analysts said the escalating tensions in the Middle East could redirect global wealth flows and support demand for Hong Kong property, as investors sought stable financial hubs.
Meanwhile, 48 residential transactions valued at over HK$100 million each were completed in the city in the first quarter of this year, up from 44 in the previous quarter, according to a report from Midland Realty on Tuesday. In 2024, only 101 deals in this price bracket were completed, the property agency added.
Midland said that the rise in the number of luxury home sales showed that affluent buyers were employing diversified strategies and preferred stable, well-regulated destinations. -- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
