A luxury Hong Kong apartment linked to a disgraced Macau gambling tycoon has sold for more than 10 percent off what its former owner paid 12 years ago.
Mandy Lieu, the model who had a high-profile relationship with Alvin Chau Cheok-wa, sold the three-bedroom unit at the Argenta development in the Mid-Levels West neighborhood for HK$81.2 million ($10.3 million), the South China Morning Post reported. Lieu acquired the residence in 2014 for HK$91.3 million ($11.6 million) in cash. The 2,182-square-foot apartment traded for about HK$37,200 ($4,742) per square foot.
The sale came after a lengthy, troubled marketing process. Following Chau’s legal downfall in 2021, Lieu mortgaged the property and initially sought HK$120 million ($15.3 million). After failing to find a buyer, she cut the asking price to HK$105 million ($13.4 million). The mortgage later fell into arrears and creditor Melco Resorts Limited repossessed the apartment, putting it on the market as a foreclosure in October 2023 for HK$95 million ($12.1 million).
The buyer, Atlas Worldwide Holdings Limited, is registered outside Hong Kong and has an unknown ultimate beneficiary, according to Land Registry records cited by the South China Morning Post.
Hong Kong’s luxury market has led capitals across the globe this year. Earlier this year, the enclave ranked second worldwide in the number of transactions exceeding $10 million, according to Knight Frank’s Global Super-Prime Intelligence report. In the first quarter, the city saw 94 big-ticket residential transactions worth a total of more than $1.8 billion, marking a 16 percent quarter-over-quarter increase and a 17 percent jump in transaction value.
Lieu’s sale comes as local residential players say demand for such properties hinges on pricing.
“Finding suitable buyers for such high-value transactions is more challenging than in the past,” Tommy YT Chow, senior principal district sales director at Centaline Property, told the Morning Post. “While there is continued demand for second-hand luxury properties in Mid-Levels West, buyers will only consider them if the pricing is attractive and closely aligned with bank valuations.”
Chau, the founder of Suncity Group, was sentenced to 18 years in prison in 2023 after being convicted on 162 charges tied to criminal syndicate activity and illegal gambling operations. Lieu and Chau had four children together and ended their relationship in 2019.
— Chris Malone Méndez
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