How do billionaires in Hong Kong manage to avoid property taxes?

One retail landlord saved almost $17m on taxes.

According to a report by Bloomberg, billionaire Edwin Leong, one of Hong Kong’s largest retail landlords, got around Hong Kong’s new property curbs and saved almost $17 million on his tax bill.

He managed to qualify as a first-time homebuyer, purchasing three luxury apartments on the Peak for HK$1.2 billion ($155 million) on the same day last month. Previously, Leong had held no real estate in his name -- despite owning more than 300 other properties, including apartments, hotels and shopping malls, through his company, Tai Hung Fai Enterprises Co., and having an estimated net worth of $4 billion.

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