No.
Total Premium
By lump sum
6
$ 593,568
By instalments under the pre-October 1960
terms
1
43,990
By instalments under the October 1960
terms
10
1,567,263
17
$2,204,821
The number of regrants was easily the lowest for over ten years. Some decline was perhaps inevitable since the majority of non-renewable 75-year leases that have expired or are due to expire in the fairly near future have already been dealt with, but the main cause was undoubtedly the recession in the property market, which must have resulted in many schemes for redevelopment and consequently (see paragraph 38) many applications for regrant being postponed.
40. Although as stated in paragraph 33 the practice of issuing 75- year leases renewable for a further 75 years was not instituted until 1898, there are a few cases where owing to a right of renewal having been engrafted on to an original non-renewable 75-year lease as part of conditions of modification of a lease or of extension to a lot, the original term either has already expired or is due to expire shortly. The renewal clause in the lease provides that on the expiration of the original term a new lease will be granted 'at such rent as shall be fairly and impartially fixed by the Director of Public Works as the fair and reasonable rental value of the ground at the date of such renewal'. The rent has therefore to be fixed by reference to the rental value of the ground irrespective of what buildings actually stand thereon, and as there has been an enor- mous increase in land values since such leases were granted, strict ad- herence by the Government to its legal rights would mean that in every case where a property was not developed to the full extent permitted by the lease the owner would, notwithstanding that the building on the lot was in good condition, be obliged, in order to be able to meet the greatly increased rent, either to redevelop or, if he did not himself have the necessary funds, to sell the lot for redevelopment. To meet this situation Government gives the lessee the choice of renewing on the normal terms or of surrendering his existing lease and receiving a new one in which development would be restricted to that existing on the property at the time. In that case the rent would be re-assessed on the basis of the restricted development and so be considerably lower. If at a later date the lessee wishes to redevelop his lot more intensively he can apply for a modification of the lease restrictions and pay the full
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