| Owning Property in Hong Kong |
| |||
Owning property in Hong Kong is an investment objective for many international entrepreneurs, in the residential real estate, and commercial real estate sectors. Following is information related to owning property in Hong Kong along with Healy Consultants services to assist investors in the Hong Kong property market: | ||||
1.
| There are virtually no restrictions to foreign individuals owning property in Hong Kong. While land ownership is not possible, property investment is done on a renewable leasehold basis. | |||
2.
| Healy Consultants manages the preparation and execution of key steps in the process to owning property in Hong Kong. These steps include i) the signing of a provisional sale and purchase agreement ii) payment of the initial 5% deposit iii) signing of the mortgage deed iv) the final sale & purchase agreement with a further 5-10% deposit v) settling the final balance from the agreed purchase price. The entire process can take two to three months. | |||
3.
| Owning property in Hong Kong requires the payment of taxes. Healy Consultants provides professional tax and accounting advice to investors to ensure all tax obligations are met. Detailed information on the Hong Kong tax requirements can be found on the Inland Revenue Department web site. | |||
4.
| While owning property in Hong Kong is expensive, there are advantages for investors in the financial position to do so. These advantages include: | |||
i)
| Hong Kong has no capital gains tax. | |||
ii)
| Relatively low costs for buying Hong Kong property and selling Hong Kong property. | |||
iii)
| According to the Global Property Guide, Hong Kong is classed as pro-landlord. Recent changes to the law now allow the landlord to be able to forfeit tenancy contracts after just fifteen days delay of rental payment. | |||
5.
| Foreigners are attracted by Hong Kong's vibrant city and nightlife. As a regional hub for many companies, especially in the financial services industry, the demand for owning property in Hong Kong has been strong. According to the 2009 Quality of Living survey, conducted by Mercer Human Resource Consulting, Hong Kong ranked 8th out of 215 cities around the world in terms of infrastrcture. The continuation of the strength in the Hong Kong property market will depend on the extent of the current recessionary period. The number of transactions in the Hong Kong property market has dropped in recent months and is vulnerable to further decline, especially at the luxury end of the market, which is traditionally well supported by executives employed in the financial sector.
| |||
6.
| The property management services provided by Healy Consultants are of benefit for investors owning property in Hong Kong. By allowing our firm to project manage activities such as property maintenance and refurbishments, implementing property security, organizing property valuations, finding tenants and ad hoc problem solving, clients avoid these time consuming activities, allowing them to devote more time to their families and business. |
|||
7.
| Due to it's limited land availability, Hong Kong's property market is amongst the most expensive in the world, on a per square foot basis. Owning land in Hong Kong is not possible. Apart from the St. John's Cathedral, all land belongs to the government. Land tenure is on a renewable leasehold basis. Land leases are generally granted for 75, 99, or 999 years, and are now also being granted for 50 years |
|||
8.
| Appointing and supervising a local lawyer to ensure the legal matters associated with purchasing property in Hong Kong are undertaken correctly and fairly. This allows the strengths of local laws to be utilized to protect asset ownership for foreign investors. | |||
9.
| To assist clients to achieve their objective of owning property in Hong Kong, Healy Consultants project manages the process of arranging property finance. Healy Consultants will present clients with financing options, including international mortgages, and negotiate mortgage terms and conditions. Leading international banks in Hong Kong are preferred for obtaining housing loans for clients, these include HSBC, ANZ Bank, DBS Bank and OCBC Bank. | |||
| Contact Us | ||||
For more information on owning property in Hong Kong, call our Hong Kong office at (+852) 8331 1911 or contact email@healyconsultants.com | ||||
| Back to Hong Kong Real Estate page. | ||||