Former noodle shop magnates move windfalls into property

When a Hong Kong businessman turns a big profit, rest assured that he will go property hunting.

A case in point being the Tam brothers, who sold their mixian (rice noodle) franchises to Japanese noodle company Toridoll Holdings for HK$2.1 billion (US$270 million) last year.

Last month, Tam Chak-kwan, the founder of Tamjai Samgor Mixian, bought a penthouse apartment in High Park Grand in Prince Edward for HK$70 million (US$8.934 million). He and his wife paid more than HK$36,200 per square foot for his new 1,934 square foot (179.7 square meter) unit developed by Henderson Land. That equates to US$49,940 per square meter.

This was his second purchase in the same residential project at Prince Edward after he and his wife bought a similar but lower level unit for HK$56.2 million, or about HK$29,000 per square foot.

This means that in three months, they bought two units for a total of HK$137 million (US$17.49 million).

Tam is following in the footsteps of his younger brothers and sisters who sold their Tam Chai Yunnan Mixian empire for over HK$1 billion in May 2017.

In February, fifth brother Tam Chak-kwan and his wife Yau Mei-fung paid HK$168 million for a 4,015 square foot house at No.62 Begonia Road, Kowloon Tong. The couple bought it through a private tender by developer China Overseas Land & Investment at HK$41,841 per square foot.

In August, fourth sister Winnie Tam Yim-ping bought a four bedroom unit in The Masterpiece for HK$161 million, or about HK$54,000 per square foot. The upmarket Tsim Sha Tsui property was built by New World Development.

In total, the three Tams spent HK$455 million (US$58.1 million) on four properties this year. And there is plenty more money where that came from.