In Hong Kong, home prices are reported to have fallen 12.6% from its peak last September, while home prices in Singapore are down more than 8% from the peak of 3Q2013. It is no surprise that some property consultants in Hong Kong and Singapore have started to draw comparisons to sentiments during the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2003, when both the property market and wider economy slumped.

Even so, 2003 proved to be the year when Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing’s Cheung Kong registered record new-home sales. “Despite the fact that it was during the SARS period in Hong Kong and Singapore, we sold more than 6,000 residential units in Hong Kong that year, and it’s still a record today,” says Justin Chiu, executive director of Cheung Kong Property Holdings.

Even prior to SARS, the Hong Kong and Singapore economies were already hit by the bursting of the dotcom bubble in 2001 and 2002. “The economy was down, and people were feeling gloomy, and I thought we should do something to cheer people up,” says Chiu.

He realised that hard-selling through advertisements would not be enough to lift the mood. He wanted to launch a gimmick that would stir the property market. “In Hong Kong, where there are so many projects launching at the same time, you need to attract eyeballs,” says Chiu. “The best thing to do would be to make it more entertaining. So, we decided to dress up like movie stars.”

As his staff refused to do so, Chiu ended up being the sole star. He gamely turned up at the sales galleries and showflats in various impersonations, the most memorable being Elvis Presley, James Bond and a sheikh. “The response was good,” he recalls. “Of course, at that time, there was criticism in the real estate industry. Some people even said, ‘Why so cheap?’ There were also comments from colleagues. But as long as I can keep the buyers happy and the atmosphere good, why not?”

As most of Cheung Kong’s sales galleries and sales offices are located within a shopping mall, it was easier to draw visitors. “Even though they may not have been in the mood to buy a property, they still came in hoping to enjoy some entertainment,” Chiu says. “They may not buy a property today, but they may be a buyer tomorrow, or they may have friends who want to buy a property. But they will remember us.”

The gambit paid off, propelling Chiu to stardom and Cheung Kong to be the top property developer in terms of sales in 2003. Chiu also earned the moniker “God of Property” in Hong Kong that year.

On the back of the success in Hong Kong, Chiu exported the idea to Singapore at the launch of Cairnhill Crest. It was in 2004, when the local housing market was still lacklustre. Chiu hosted a series of cocktail parties at the show houses dressed as James Bond one evening and Elvis Presley on another.

“Even though I haven’t been [dressing up in costumes] for the last 10 years, it is still on people’s minds,” says Chiu.

Asked whether he planned to pull another marketing stunt at the launch of Stars of Kovan, he says, “I will leave it to the next generation.” In Hong Kong and Singapore, property cooling measures are still in place. Both governments have reiterated that they are unlikely to lift them anytime soon. “As developers, we still need to do business and have subsidised some of the stamp duty and provided mortgage financing scheme for buyers in Hong Kong,” says Chiu.

Therefore, he adds, primary home sales have not fallen as significantly as secondary market activity, where the cooling measures have hurt mainly investors, speculators and upgraders.

Chiu: We just take [the property cooling measures]
into account when we’re doing our numbers

While Cheung Kong is still selling projects in Hong Kong such as The Zumurud, La Mansion and Yuccie Square, it has launched no new developments this year. Stars of Kovan will be Cheung Kong’s first major launch in 2016, says Chiu.

Cheung Kong has taken the Singapore property cooling measures in its stride. “We just take it into account when we’re doing our numbers,” says Chiu. “If the risk is higher, we pay a lower land price, and if the risk is lower, we will bid a higher price.” Cheung Kong has since ventured farther afield, with developments in the UK and Bahamas.

This article appeared in the City & Country, Issue 725 (April 25, 2016) of The Edge Singapore.