Commercial Real Estate in Hong Kong

Spread across an area of 1,092 square kilometers, Hong Kong is the Special Administrative Region of China. Apart from being a hot tourist destination, Hong Kong is also an economic as well as trade center.



Due to its excellent legal and banking systems, many overseas business firms have made Hong Kong as their regional headquarters. This in turn has tremendously increased the demand for Hong Kong's commercial real estate, including office spaces, shopping malls, and retail stores.



The worldwide demand for commercial spaces also comes from arenas including law firms, financial institutions, and accountants. In addition to overseas investors, a growing number of mainland companies are also taking up office spaces in Hong Kong. In short, commercial real estate in Hong Kong has now turned out to be a demand-driven scenario. As a result, in recent years, the sale price of commercial property has been pushed up. Further, the rents charged on commercial real estate are exceptionally high, ranging from HK$22 to HK$105 per square foot per month.



Investing in commercial real estate in Hong Kong provides great benefits to investors. One of the prime benefits of investing in a Hong Kong commercial property is that it provides you access to one of the world's established markets. Another great benefit of investing in a commercial property is that not any kind of restrictions have been imposed on international investors to buy a property or asset. Further, purchasing a commercial real estate in Hong Kong is considered one of the best options for long term investment, as it can undoubtedly fetch you huge profits by way of renting and leasing.



Above all, the laws and regulations in connection with the process of buying commercial real estate are quite simple and liberal. Once you have found an appropriate property, an Agreement of Sale and Purchase would be signed between the property owner and investor, and this completes the sale procedure.



The buying processes related to the purchase of commercial property in Hong Kong are administered by the Conveyancing and Ordinance, which is structured in the form of English Law. In other words, the real estate law of Hong Kong is akin to one found in the UK, which in turn has attracted many American and British commercial real estate investors.



One of the unique things regarding the Hong Kong Property Law is that all of the land found here belongs to government, ie, each of the real estate in Hong Kong is held under leasehold title. Hence, those who are interested in property investment buy an agreement or a lease for a period ranging from 50 to 999 years.



A real estate or property in Hong Kong can be either solely owned by one person or through jointly by several investors. However, joint investment may be usually in the form of tenant or a joint tenancy. Further, a property can also be owned through a company structure. But, in case, if a company would like to conduct its business through the purchase of a property on lease, then it should be registered with the Hong Kong Companies Registry. In addition, every type of lease should be listed at the Hong Kong' Land Registry.



A plethora of real estate firms now operate in Hong Kong in order to help you find your dream commercial property. In other words, commercial real estate is one of core businesses of many real estate companies in Hong Kong. They offer a continuum of services in connection with the commercial real estate, such as, sale of commercial as well as retail property, office leasing, retail leasing, leasing and sales of industrial property, sale and acquisition of development sites, leasing and management of shopping centers, and asset management with regard to commercial, retail, and industrial.



Additionally, majority of them provide the services of professional lawyers to help you in effectively carrying out buying procedures, such as tax matters, Hong Kong Companies Registry, and negotiation of purchase. In addition, there are also real estate firms providing steps to arrange mortgages for the purchase of commercial property. But, prior to approaching a service provider, it is important to undertake an investigation with regard to their reputation and the quality as well as efficiency of service rendered.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/non-fiction-articles/commercial-real-estate-in-hong-kong-234784.html

Wantanee Khamkongkaew is an independent author evaluating and commenting on leading International Property Consultants in Asia and Greater China, especially CB Richard Ellis.