How the ranking is calculated
Five pillars with published weights: liquidity 30% (annual transactions ÷ total units), net rental yield 25% (gross less management fee, rates, government rent and a 4% vacancy allowance), commute 20%, building age 15%, developer and management 10%. Every raw figure is printed beside its score in the tool, so you can disagree with the weighting and still use the data.
Commute is no longer Central-only. Kai Tak, Kwun Tong, Causeway Bay and Tsim Sha Tsui are major employment hubs too, and the tool lets you re-weight all five — if you work in Kwun Tong, Laguna City and Ocean Shores score far higher than the default ranking suggests.
The ranking
Ordered on the default weighting (Central 35%, Tsim Sha Tsui 20%, Causeway Bay 15%, Kwun Tong 15%, Kai Tak 15%). The commute column is the weighted door-to-door time.
| # | Estate | District | Score | Turnover/yr | Net yield | Commute (min) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | City One Shatin | Sha Tin | 73 | 6.6% | 2.95% | 31 |
| 2 | Ocean Shores | Tiu Keng Leng | 70 | 5.2% | 2.53% | 28 |
| 3 | Laguna City | Lam Tin | 69 | 5.2% | 2.56% | 23 |
| 4 | Whampoa Garden | Hung Hom | 68 | 5.0% | 2.48% | 19 |
| 5 | Caribbean Coast | Tung Chung | 67 | 5.6% | 2.68% | 44 |
| 6 | South Horizons | Ap Lei Chau | 66 | 5.1% | 2.39% | 27 |
| 7 | Kingswood Villas | Tin Shui Wai | 65 | 5.7% | 2.96% | 55 |
| 8 | Mei Foo Sun Chuen | Mei Foo | 63 | 4.7% | 2.66% | 23 |
| 9 | Taikoo Shing | Quarry Bay | 62 | 4.4% | 2.14% | 17 |
| 10 | Discovery Bay | Lantau Island | 55 | 4.1% | 2.04% | 47 |
Psf, size and management fees
Psf figures are reference transacted bands on saleable area; management fees are per saleable square foot per month. Fees look small but eat directly into net yield — Discovery Bay's gross yield is respectable, and it falls back sharply once the fee is deducted.
| Estate | Saleable psf band (HK$) | Units | Completed | Mgmt fee/sq ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| City One Shatin | 11,000–14,000 | 10,642 | 1981–1987 | HK$2.4 |
| Ocean Shores | 11,000–14,000 | 5,728 | 1999–2003 | HK$3.0 |
| Laguna City | 10,500–13,500 | 8,072 | 1990–1993 | HK$2.6 |
| Whampoa Garden | 12,500–15,500 | 10,431 | 1985–1991 | HK$2.9 |
| Caribbean Coast | 8,000–10,500 | 5,344 | 2002–2005 | HK$3.2 |
| South Horizons | 13,000–16,500 | 9,812 | 1991–1995 | HK$3.0 |
| Kingswood Villas | 7,000–9,500 | 15,880 | 1991–2000 | HK$2.2 |
| Mei Foo Sun Chuen | 11,000–14,000 | 13,149 | 1968–1978 | HK$2.6 |
| Taikoo Shing | 17,000–21,000 | 12,698 | 1976–1987 | HK$3.5 |
| Discovery Bay | 9,000–13,000 | 8,000 | 1982–2015 | HK$5.5 |
Commute to five business districts
Door-to-door minutes on the estate's realistic main route, including feeder buses or ferries — not just the train leg.
| Estate | Central / Admiralty | Causeway Bay / Wan Chai | Tsim Sha Tsui / Kowloon Stn | Kwun Tong / Kowloon Bay | Kai Tak / Kowloon City |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City One Shatin | 32 | 38 | 25 | 35 | 28 |
| Ocean Shores | 30 | 34 | 30 | 16 | 24 |
| Laguna City | 26 | 30 | 25 | 12 | 20 |
| Whampoa Garden | 20 | 26 | 12 | 22 | 15 |
| Caribbean Coast | 42 | 50 | 38 | 50 | 45 |
| South Horizons | 18 | 24 | 30 | 34 | 38 |
| Kingswood Villas | 55 | 62 | 45 | 60 | 58 |
| Mei Foo Sun Chuen | 22 | 30 | 15 | 30 | 25 |
| Taikoo Shing | 14 | 10 | 22 | 18 | 24 |
| Discovery Bay | 38 | 48 | 45 | 60 | 58 |
Estate by estate
1. City One Shatin (Sha Tin) — score 73. Small units with unusually strong rental demand — the most active secondary market in the eastern New Territories. Turnover runs at about 6.6% of its 10,642 units a year and net yield lands near 2.95% after management fees, rates and a vacancy allowance. At the table: Near-identical stock makes pricing transparent; you win on speed and payment terms more than on percentage discount.
2. Ocean Shores (Tiu Keng Leng) — score 70. Beside the Tseung Kwan O line terminus, with a high proportion of sea-view flats and relatively young buildings. Turnover runs at about 5.2% of its 5,728 units a year and net yield lands near 2.53% after management fees, rates and a vacancy allowance. At the table: Plentiful matched stock keeps valuations firm; negotiate on condition and completion date rather than a headline cut.
3. Laguna City (Lam Tin) — score 69. Generous saleable areas and a settled family profile, with a short feeder trip to the MTR. Turnover runs at about 5.2% of its 8,072 units a year and net yield lands near 2.56% after management fees, rates and a vacancy allowance. At the table: Owners are mostly trading up, so the deal chain sets the pace — a seller mid-chain concedes materially more.
4. Whampoa Garden (Hung Hom) — score 68. Retail, schools and hospitals on the doorstep with a Tuen Ma line station and easy harbour crossing. Turnover runs at about 5.0% of its 10,431 units a year and net yield lands near 2.48% after management fees, rates and a vacancy allowance. At the table: Steady volume makes the band clear; argue from the specific block and floor that traded, never the estate average.
5. Caribbean Coast (Tung Chung) — score 67. Airport and logistics employment underpins rental demand and the stock is the newest of the ten, but it is furthest from the CBD. Turnover runs at about 5.6% of its 5,344 units a year and net yield lands near 2.68% after management fees, rates and a vacancy allowance. At the table: A higher share of investors means holding costs bite: rate rises or a vacancy gap convert straight into negotiating room.
6. South Horizons (Ap Lei Chau) — score 66. The South Island line transformed the commute, and sea-view units carry a visible premium. Turnover runs at about 5.1% of its 9,812 units a year and net yield lands near 2.39% after management fees, rates and a vacancy allowance. At the table: Sea view versus inward view can differ by a fifth — the most effective lever is putting the flat in the right comparable set.
7. Kingswood Villas (Tin Shui Wai) — score 65. One of Hong Kong's largest private estates: the lowest entry price and the busiest turnover, paid for with the longest commute. Turnover runs at about 5.7% of its 15,880 units a year and net yield lands near 2.96% after management fees, rates and a vacancy allowance. At the table: Comparables are abundant and sellers know the market, so leverage comes from the latest same-block transaction, not general sentiment.
8. Mei Foo Sun Chuen (Mei Foo) — score 63. Four MTR lines, high efficiency ratios and established schools — offset by buildings approaching fifty years old. Turnover runs at about 4.7% of its 13,149 units a year and net yield lands near 2.66% after management fees, rates and a vacancy allowance. At the table: Age caps bank valuation and mortgage tenor, so a valuation shortfall is the usual, and strongest, lever on price.
9. Taikoo Shing (Quarry Bay) — score 62. The benchmark for management and retail integration, and the most defensive pricing — at the highest psf and the lowest yield. Turnover runs at about 4.4% of its 12,698 units a year and net yield lands near 2.14% after management fees, rates and a vacancy allowance. At the table: Owners are long-hold and rarely stressed, so room is narrow: work the floor and aspect differential rather than the headline ask.
10. Discovery Bay (Lantau Island) — score 55. Low density and genuine open space for families, with the highest management charge of the ten and a ferry or bus dependency. Turnover runs at about 4.1% of its 8,000 units a year and net yield lands near 2.04% after management fees, rates and a vacancy allowance. At the table: Thin transaction flow and few comparables produce the widest ask-to-deal gap of the ten — usually the most negotiable estate here.
Where the psf figures come from
The tool's live market psf panel is read periodically from the public estate pages of Centanet, Midland and 28Hse: the transacted and asking saleable psf range, the average psf and the recent deal count, each with a link back to the source so you can check it yourself.
When live data is present the price band is calculated from it. When it is not, the band falls back to our reference figures, built from the Rating and Valuation Department's Hong Kong Property Review and Land Registry transaction counts — and the page says so.
One caveat worth holding on to: portal psf includes asking prices and normally sits above real transactions, while bank valuations normally sit below asking. The gap between those three numbers is where the negotiating room lives.
Using these numbers to negotiate
First, put the flat in the right comparable set. Within one estate, phase, aspect and floor can move price by twenty per cent, so negotiating off an estate-wide average is negotiating against yourself.
Second, read the liquidity. High-turnover estates (City One Shatin, Kingswood Villas) are transparent, so discounts are narrow and the win comes from speed and payment terms. Low-turnover estates (Discovery Bay, Caribbean Coast) have few comparables and the widest asking-to-transacted gap.
Third, find the seller's clock: a trade-up chain, a maturing mortgage, emigration, an empty flat. None of that appears on the listing, but it shows up in days-on-market and the price-cut history.
On the mid-band price, every 1% negotiated is cash in your pocket. Our fee is (asking − agreed) ÷ 2, payable on signing the provisional agreement, and nothing at all if no discount is achieved.