<![CDATA[For some firms, Hong Kong's unrest has brought an uptick in business]>

While Hong Kong's recent turmoil has been detrimental to most businesses in the city, a handful are busier than ever, proving opportunity can still be found in the simmering chaos.

Freddy Choo, a business director at Singapore-based real estate firm C&H Properties, says his firm has stepped up marketing in Hong Kong via social media and other online advertising, and has contacted similar companies to collaborate in anticipation of a surge in demand.

The firm has budgeted a six-figure sum to promote its planned "Hong Kong investors' seminar" in the coming year, Choo says, which "shows the potential for capital flight out of Hong Kong".

Nick Siew, an associate director at Hartamas Real Estate, a subsidiary of Malaysian property services provider Hartamas Group, says he has seen a surge in foreign sellers organising seminars in Hong Kong.

They book rooms every weekend at hotels such as the Park Lane and Sheraton. Firms offering units at Malaysian developments in Kuala Lumpur such as Star Residences, Pavilion Damansara Heights and Bukit Bintang City Centre have sold between two and five flats per event, he says.

John Hu, founder of John Hu Migration Consulting, says he has recently fielded a deluge of inquiries. Photo: Xiaomei Chen alt=John Hu, founder of John Hu Migration Consulting, says he has recently fielded a deluge of inquiries. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

"In the last three months, the number of property seminars in Hong Kong has doubled from the previous year," Siew says, adding that this translates to between eight and 10 property events every weekend.

A host of foreign and local companies offering services ranging from real estate to immigration consulting have upped their activities in Hong Kong to grab a piece of a new pie, as more residents consider relocating amid growing concerns over the city's social, political and economic stability.

Among six foreign realtors to which This Week in Asia spoke, five said they had increased marketing efforts and were holding regular seminars in Hong Kong.

They say they had boosted their marketing budgets for the city by between 20 and 30 per cent, spending HK$150,000 to HK$250,000 a month for print and online adverts in local media and renting spaces for seminars.

Aims, an immigration and relocation specialist headquartered in Singapore, has opened two new offices in Hong Kong since June.

Teresa Ng, the firm's sales and marketing manager, declined to share specific figures but says her firm's marketing budget has increased by 30 per cent and they have hired more staff, including lawyers and immigration experts from around the world.

Hong Kong investors have been eyeing Singapore properties, agents say. Photo: Alamy Stock Photo alt=Hong Kong investors have been eyeing Singapore properties, agents say. Photo: Alamy Stock Photo

Ng says she has received 10 times the normal volume of immigration inquiries since June.

"Over 200 Hongkongers have started various immigration application processes in the last two months," Ng says. Each client pays upwards of US$65,000 for the firm's services, she adds.

John Hu, founder of John Hu Migration Consulting in Hong Kong, says he has recently fielded a deluge of inquiries.

He has been holding several immigration seminars a month, which he says are usually a "full house". Each event draws 50 to 60 potential clients, 10 per cent of whom are now signing on the dotted line.

"We have been receiving thousands of inquiries," Hu says, adding that monthly sales have increased fourfold since June.

EAGER TO LEAVE

Widespread demonstrations that began in June have seen millions of Hongkongers take to the streets against a now-scrapped extradition bill. The protests have since morphed into a wider anti-government movement calling on authorities to implement universal suffrage and launch an amnesty for arrested protesters, as well as an independent probe into police conduct.

With the unrest now in its 16th week, consumer sentiment in the city has hit an all-time low. A rising number of retailers have been forced to shutter their shops or begin cutbacks. In July, retail sales fell 13 per cent year on year, and 20 to 30 per cent of stores have reported sending full-time employees on unpaid leave. The tourism industry saw a 40 per cent decline in business for August, and in the property sector, year on year sales were more than 14 per cent down last month.

Demonstrators march along Hennessy Road in Hong Kong's Causeway Bay. Photo: Bloomberg alt=Demonstrators march along Hennessy Road in Hong Kong's Causeway Bay. Photo: Bloomberg

A mixture of weariness and worry for the future has prompted Hongkongers to look elsewhere to spend or park their money, even if they are not upping and leaving the city just yet.

James Fisher, chief operating officer and director of market analysis and analytics at Spacious, a Hong Kong-based property app and website, says searches for overseas properties in a host of countries ranging from Canada and Portugal to Britain and Singapore rose 85 per cent in the third quarter of this year compared with the second quarter.

"Developers and brokers are also seeing this as an opportunity," he says. "We're on pace for a 130 per cent increase quarter over quarter in the number of overseas developers and brokers interested in listing projects with Spacious or holding sales events in Hong Kong."

Nicholas Mak, head of the research and consultancy department at Singapore-based property agency ERA Realty, says more Hongkongers are buying homes in the Lion City, and he expects the trend to continue.

Hongkongers bought nine properties in Singapore through his firm during the second quarter of the year, which was triple the figure between January and March. In the third quarter, eight homes were acquired, and in August alone the number was five " the highest monthly figure in a year.

Alan Cheong, executive director of research and consultancy at Savills in Singapore, says inquiries from Hong Kong remain level but the probability of closing a sale has "increased significantly".

"Hong Kong-based investors who were previously dithering on the sidelines here have decided to put pen to paper," he says.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore has warned Singapore-based wealth managers at DBS Bank and other corporations not to actively woo Hong Kong investments. Photo: Reuters alt=The Monetary Authority of Singapore has warned Singapore-based wealth managers at DBS Bank and other corporations not to actively woo Hong Kong investments. Photo: Reuters

Cheong says the effects of the current unrest will take time to emerge. "Although we have yet to see a sharp increase in Hongkongers in our neighbourhoods, they could well have submitted their requests to come here. It may take time for their numbers to manifest," he says.

But the city's residents are not just looking at Singapore. Agents say other markets such as Malaysia and Thailand are popular choices for their affordability.

A Malaysian tourism official last month said more Hong Kong residents had applied to the "Malaysia My Second Home" scheme, which looks to attract wealthy foreigners to settle there. Some 251 applications have been approved so far this year, compared with 193 last year.

Cheong is confident that in time, Hong Kong will bounce back. The push to integrate the city into southern China's plans for a Greater Bay Area encompassing 11 cities will draw companies in, he says.

But the unrest will have motivated Hongkongers to start thinking about hedging their bets abroad, he believes.

"The time it takes to get an effect is significant," Cheong says. "It may take another quarter or two before they come."

This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).

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