Shenzhen's luxury housing market has been particularly active recently. Just days ago, we discussed the regulatory adjustments affecting CITIC Xinyue Bay, which resulted in reduced floor counts and lower floor area ratios for some buildings.
Another premium project, China Merchants Houhai Xijiayuan, recently released its master plan. Both developments are located in the core areas of Shenzhen Bay and Houhai, making them, along with China Resources China Overseas' Shenzhen Bay Yunxi, the three most closely watched luxury residential projects in Shenzhen's current market.
The release of Houhai Xijiayuan's master plan gradually unveils the project's details. Here are the basic parameters: the development covers a construction land area of 14,969.93 square meters, with a total building area of 150,843.93 square meters. The floor area ratio calculation covers 111,267.45 square meters, resulting in a floor area ratio of 7.43. The project plans for 548 residential units and 700 underground parking spaces, with residential building area totaling 88,251 square meters.
The master plan reveals four residential towers and one kindergarten building. The residential towers include: Building 1 Unit 1 with 24 floors, Building 1 Unit 2 with 41 floors, Building 1 Unit 3 with 42 floors, and Building 1 Unit 4 with 46 floors. The residential buildings are arranged in an "L" shape throughout the complex.
China Merchants Shekou's project has maintained high attention levels, not only due to its prime location but also because of its complex development history. Originally an urban renewal project under Evergrande, the developer signed the Wanxia Village redevelopment agreement in 2016. The entire urban renewal project spans 249,500 square meters, with plans to build a 1.31 million square meter "Qianhai Landmark Complex." The biscuit factory served as Phase 1, planning three 59-story super high-rise residential and office towers with schools, featuring a floor area ratio of 8.9.
However, the project reached an impasse due to excessive floor area ratios, affordable housing requirements, and opposition from surrounding residents. When Evergrande encountered financial difficulties, the project was completely shelved.
In 2022, China Merchants Shekou partnered with Ping An Asset Management to establish a joint venture company, officially taking over the biscuit factory urban renewal project. Subsequent planning adjustments reduced the floor area ratio from 8.9 to 6.5, while removing talent housing and affordable housing components, allowing the project to proceed.
Currently, Houhai Xijiayuan's developer is Shenzhen China Merchants Shekou Huawan Real Estate Development Co., Ltd., established in December 2022, with Chen Yongjie as Chairman and Huang Miaoxing as General Manager.
Last December, China Merchants Shekou held a launch ceremony for the biscuit factory urban renewal unit's transformation. Company representatives outlined the project's planning philosophy and vision: fully respecting historical context while preserving and inheriting the cultural memory of the original United Biscuit Factory, integrating modern design concepts to create public spaces with contemporary characteristics, establishing another benchmark in China Merchants Shekou's green residential development path.
The project indeed appears luxurious. Released renderings show extensive glass curtain walls, exuding technology and aesthetics. The master plan reveals curved designs extensively used in building corners and balconies.
Most importantly, the project positions itself as large-area improvement products. According to released unit sizes, only 188 and 197 square meter units fall below 200 square meters, with the remainder being 237 and 246 square meter units.
However, the latest master plan reveals additional information. Building 1 Unit 1 features a two-unit-per-floor design, while Building 1 Units 2 and 3 have three units per floor. Building 1 Unit 4, however, has significantly more units. This southernmost building in the complex features seven units per floor, with visibly smaller unit sizes compared to the other three buildings.
Understanding indicates that Building 1 Unit 4 is not regular commercial housing but rather a relocation housing building with 105 square meter units. As mentioned earlier, Houhai Xijiayuan underwent regulatory adjustments, during which affordable housing was removed. However, it appears the project's relocation housing component could not be eliminated.
From the master plan perspective, this relocation housing building is not separated from the other three commercial housing buildings, meaning future community landscaping and spaces will be shared. However, the entire complex is relatively small, with limited landscaping space available.
Notably, the complex's Units 1-2 and Units 3-4 are separated by a public vehicular passage. The master plan shows only one community entrance, suggesting the north and south sections separated by the public vehicular passage should be connected by corridors or similar structures.
Predictably, as CITIC Xinyue Bay and Shenzhen Bay Yunxi approach market launch, Houhai Xijiayuan's subsequent market entry will face significant competitive pressure. All three projects are expected to launch by year-end or first quarter next year.
All three projects are located in core Shenzhen Bay and Houhai positions, consistently positioned as improvement luxury housing, featuring large-area unit products. Current information suggests CITIC Xinyue Bay offers units ranging from 210-510 square meters, while Shenzhen Bay Yunxi primarily features 200-400 square meter units. Essentially, Houhai Xijiayuan's product sizes are largely covered by these two competitors.
Regarding ocean view resources, CITIC Xinyue Bay and Shenzhen Bay Yunxi are positioned closer to the waterfront than Houhai Xijiayuan. However, Houhai Xijiayuan is significantly smaller in scale than the other two projects.
From circulated pricing information, CITIC Yuanwan Mansion and Shenzhen Bay Yunxi range from 150,000-200,000 yuan per square meter, while China Merchants Houhai Xijiayuan is approximately 110,000-130,000 yuan per square meter.
The coming period promises exceptional activity in Shenzhen's luxury housing market.
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