Why Hong Kong developer CK Asset sold a mall at an ‘exceptionally cheap’ price

With the “exceptionally cheap” sale of a vacant Hong Kong shopping mall, developer CK Asset Holdings is freeing up capital for other projects, while the buyer will have to be patient because the location will struggle to attract tenants in the short term, according to analysts.

The developer completed the mall in its residential project Seaside Sonata on Hai Tan Street in Sham Shui Po five years ago but never leased it out. It recently changed hands along with a batch of parking spaces for HK$179.77 million (US$23 million), according to Land Registry records. The price per square foot for the retail portion was HK$2,996, analysts said.

Midland Commercial said that the decline in commercial and industrial property prices in the city had created new entry opportunities for investors and end users, while giving some owners a chance to restructure their property portfolios.

“It is estimated that the owner’s decision to put the shopping mall up for sale reflects a strategy of selling older properties to free up capital for reinvestment,” the property agent said. “The potential buyers are expected to be mainly long-term investors.”

The new buyer, according to Land Registry records, was Assets Master, a company whose director, Yip Kin Cheong, shares the same name as a Hong Kong-based lawyer. Yip did not respond to request for comment.

“Since the current business environment is not favourable, especially with the year drawing to a close and the Lunar New Year approaching, finding tenants will be challenging,” said Stanley Poon Chi-ming, managing director at Centaline Commercial.

The “exceptionally cheap” per-square-foot price, compared with other brand-new retail shops in new developments in Kowloon, was based on the sale price after deducting the value of the parking spaces, Poon said.

Although Seaside Sonata had been occupied since mid-2021, CK Asset – the flagship developer of the conglomerate run by the family of billionaire Li Ka-shing – had never publicly offered its 38 retail shops for lease, he added.

Alex Leung, senior director at CHFT Advisory and Appraisal, said that Hai Tan Street had low pedestrian traffic, as it had some old tenement blocks in poor condition and was far from the district’s traditional retail hub.

“Reflecting the sluggish market, the rent per square foot for street shops on Hai Tan Street has been only about HK$15 to HK$25 in recent years,” he said. “The core challenge remains finding tenants who are willing to move to a less accessible location that also lacks compatibility with the existing street-level operators.”

Seaside Sonata was developed through a partnership between CK Asset and the Urban Renewal Authority. The developer put the property – comprising 38 retail shops, 13 car spaces and six motorcycle spaces – up for sale via public tender in May. The tender closed in mid-June.

According to the tender documents, the 38 retail units located on the ground and first floors of three of Seaside Sonata’s towers have a total gross area of more than 51,000 square feet. The units range from 321 to 5,825 square feet.

These properties tended to “deter” potential buyers and would appreciate less readily than other shop properties because they were disconnected spaces across the different towers, Poon said.

This is not the first Sham Shui Po retail property developed with the Urban Renewal Authority that CK Asset has sold. In August 2025, it sold the 53,200-square-foot podium retail space of Trinity Towers to City University of Hong Kong for HK$423.6 million.

CK Asset had never offered the retail shops for lease. City University turned the property into a veterinary medical centre, a move that reportedly sparked dissatisfaction among residential owners in Trinity Towers.