从太平山最新豪宅看香港楼市

    来到香港太平山，乘坐一段陡峭的登山缆车后，就可以到达山顶，在这片独一无二的山顶区域俯瞰香港迷人的天际线和维多利亚海港。在英国人统治香港的155年里，最初在太平山顶居住的都是外籍人士。1997年，香港主权回归中国。如今太平山顶最新、最惹眼的建筑是香港本地房地产公司太古地产（Swire Properties）开发的豪宅项目——傲璇（Opus Hong Kong）。

    这栋螺旋式上升的12层大楼是世界著名建筑师法兰克•盖瑞在亚洲的首栋住宅建筑作品。11月14日，太古地产宣布，傲璇第9层一套6,683呎（621平方米）、可以俯瞰山景和维多利亚海港天际线全景的全层单位，日前以5,800多万美元售出——折合每呎8,784美元——跻身全球以及香港最昂贵的住宅物业之一。8月份，第8层的全层单位以5,500多万美元售出。在此之前，傲璇事实上被视为租赁性物业。首位租户租的是一套带花园和私家泳池的复式单位，未来三年月租金约11万美元。【与此同时，房地产公司高纬环球（Cushman & Wakefield）11月14日发布的一项分析显示，香港繁华的铜锣湾购物区的零售物业租金已超过纽约市第五大道，成为全球租金最贵的地区。】

    盖瑞在傲璇的外立面设计了蜿蜒的纵向支柱，仿佛随风摆动的芦苇。这一有机的设计意在向香港超乎想象的、丰富繁茂的自然环境致敬。香港不到426平方英里的土地上居住着约700万居民，但整个城市已开发的土地面积占比不到1/4，约40%的土地都是公园和自然保护区。

    在香港，住在高楼大厦里很正常。由于分配的可开发土地有限，楼市供不应求，推高了房价；预计到年底，住宅价格将上涨15%。怀揣现金的内地买家到处抢购物业，加剧了香港和内地之间的紧张关系。笔者在香港逗留期间，导游告诉我，香港的商品和服务价格便宜，生活质量高，但大多数居民买不起房，不得不一辈子租房居住。

    香港政府最近推出了新的税种，希望阻止这种趋势进一步发展。10月26日，香港财政司司长宣布，2010年实施的、旨在抑制房价快速上涨的额外印花税的适用期将从24个月延长至36个月，并上调惩罚性税率。同时，对购买住宅者征收买家印花税，非香港永久居民的买家税率为15%。另外，据房地产咨询公司莱坊（Knight Frank）称，政府还宣布计划未来3-4年供应65,000套新的住宅单位，每年供应约20,000套。要是都是盖瑞设计的，该多好啊！

    下面是更多照片：

    A steep tram ride takes visitors up to the Peak, an exclusive mountaintop neighborhood that overlooks Hong Kong's stunning skyline and Victoria Harbor. The Peak was originally home to expats during Britain's 155-year occupation of Hong Kong, which ended with the 1997 handoff to China. Its newest and most notable addition is the Opus Hong Kong, an opulent development from HK-based Swire Properties.

    The 12-story twisting tower is world-renowned architect Frank Gehry's first residential building in Asia. Yesterday, Swire informed me that its ninth-floor, 6,683-square-foot unit with panoramic views of the both the surrounding forest and the harbor-side skyline recently sold for more than $58 million -- that's $8,784 per square foot -- making it one of the world's most expensive residential properties, and the most expensive in Hong Kong. In August, the eighth-floor unit sold for more than $55 million. The Opus was actually conceived of as a rental property, and the first tenant, who leased a double-level garden apartment with a private pool, is paying roughly $110,000 per month for the next three years. (Meanwhile, an analysis released yesterday by real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield reports that retail rents on Hong Kong's glitzy Causeway Bay shopping strip just overtook New York's Fifth Avenue to become the priciest in the world.)

    Gehry designed the curved vertical struts on the building's exterior to resemble reeds swaying in the wind. The organic notes pay homage to Hong Kong's surprisingly lush landscape. Less than a quarter of the city, which houses some 7 million residents in just 426 square miles, is developed, with 40% of the area's total land dedicated to parks and nature reserves.

    High-rise living is the norm in Hong Kong. But with a finite footprint allotted to development, demand for housing is outpacing supply and driving up costs; residential prices are expected to rise by up to 15% by the end of the year. Cash-rich Chinese buyers are snapping up properties at a breakneck pace, fueling tensions between HK and the mainland. During my visit, my guide told me that while goods and services are cheap in Hong Kong and the quality of living high, most residents can't afford to buy property there and are forced to rent for life.

    The HK government recently implemented taxes to counter the trend. On October 26, the Financial Secretary announced that the Special Stamp Duty, a 2010 ordinance that discouraged quick flipping of residential properties, would be continued with higher penalty rates and the holding period extended from 24 to 36 months. A Buyer's Stamp Duty was also implemented on residential purchases, imposing a 15% tax on buyers who are not Hong Kong permanent residents. The government has also announced plans for 65,000 new housing units to come onto the market over the next three to four years, at a pace of about 20,000 apartments per year, according to property consulting firm Knight Frank. If only they were designed by Gehry.

    Here are some additional photos: