Regular Club meeting was held on October 13. We welcomed back President Eliza, who
returned after taking some time off recovering from a medical condition. We also welcomed Past President Mark’s son, Wally, who was enjoying his term break and managed to join our meeting and say hi to all the Harbour aunties and uncles.
Members took turns to give activity reports from the past weeks, including one adventurous trip to Lai Chi Wo (荔枝窩). Members thanked Past President Webster for the arrangements. President Elect Jason reported that President Eliza and himself attended District Incorporation Committee’s Consultation Session regarding reorganization of District’s legal entities. President Elect Jason further encouraged members to sign up for End Polio Walk, to be held on October 22. Past President Mark, our Club’s Preserve Planet Earth Chair, also encouraged members to sign up for District’s Carbon Reduction and Ecology Summit (October 30) as well as Mangrove Sapling Plantation and Ecological
Conservation Tour (November 5).
Ms. Sandia Lau, Director of Centaline Property Agency, was our speaker. She talked about Hong Kong real estate market’s transformation during the pandemic. In the pandemic, Sandia argued that “work from home” has changed how buyers perceive a home, now often preferring larger spaces and no longer prioritizing quick access to public transport. Sandia argued that because the government auctioned large parcels of land
in the mid 2010s, demand for construction labor and machinery in the past few years has caused costs to spike even as demand remains soft, with developers sometimes selling at a loss. Sandia touched upon future supplies, and argued that Kai Tak area offers the most compelling investment thesis in the coming years, given its location and relatively good town planning. In conclusion, she expects transactions to pick up as rising interest rates forces investors to rebalance their portfolios. She also expects the Government to relax its stamp duty regime.
