Housing site near Redhill MRT launched for sale
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: A residential site (pictured) located at Alexandra View (Parcel B) has been launched for sale by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). Originally on the reserve list, the 0.65-ha site received an application from a developer last month to launch its tender with a...
Continue Reading • 8 Nov 2012
What Obama's win means for US property buyers
By Andrew Batt: America has voted and Barack Obama has won, but what will the vote mean for the increasing number of overseas property buyers and investors from Southeast Asia who are looking stateside?‘Don’t count on the election to boost housing’ screamed the headline on one...
Continue Reading • 7 Nov 2012
Prime London prices get a boost
By Andrew Batt: Whilst average U.K. property prices are falling, prime central London property prices continued their rise in October according to the Knight Frank Prime Central London Sales Index.October saw another month of positive growth in the prime central London residential market, with...
Continue Reading • 7 Nov 2012
UK property prices decline
By Andrew Batt:Average house prices in the U.K. dipped by 1.2 percent in the three months to October according to the latest Halifax House Price Index.Commenting on the decline, Halifax Economist Martin Ellis said: “Signs of a modest deterioration in the trend in house prices continued in...
Continue Reading • 7 Nov 2012
SDP proposes 'non-open market' flats
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) is proposing a new class of public housing, referred to as ‘non-open market’ (NOM) flats which could fetch prices of as low as S$70,000, The Straits Times reported. Introduced in a housing policy paper, flats will be...
Continue Reading • 6 Nov 2012
Fancy moo-ving to Uruguay
By Andrew Batt: Buyers of a dairy farm in Uruguay which has just been released for sale will get some added extras – a total of 1,000 cows.Savills, together with Gateway to South America is offering for sale by private treaty the San Pedro Irrigated Dairy Farm, a 1,042 hectare operational...
Continue Reading • 6 Nov 2012
HSBC steps up UK mortgage lending
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Mortgages approved by HSBC in the UK rose by 22 percent in the first three quarters of 2012 to reach £15.6 billion (S$30.53 billion) compared with the same period last year. At the same time, lending to first-time buyers grew 33 percent to £4 billion (S$7.83...
Continue Reading • 6 Nov 2012
Cash buyers dominate London property market
By Andrew Batt: More than 87 percent of prime residential property purchases in London are being made in cash, according to a new market report published by EA Shaw.According to the report, 61 percent of purchases are being made for investment purposes, while transaction levels increased by four...
Continue Reading • 6 Nov 2012
Two sites go up for sale
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Two redevelopment sites at Balestier Road and Pasir Panjang Road have been launched for sale by tender, according to exclusive marketing agent Knight Frank.The first site at 520 Balestier Road is a 1,971.3 sq m (around 21,219 sq ft) freehold plot zoned commercial and...
Continue Reading • 6 Nov 2012
Telok Blangah the next property hotspot?
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Telok Blangah estate is set to see more housing demand, mainly due to its natural greenery and proximity to the central business district (CBD) and nearby business parks, The Straits Times reported. According to Nicholas Mak, Research Head at SLP, a third of Telok...
Continue Reading • 5 Nov 2012
Citi offers more relief to Sandy victims
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Following the destruction brought about by Hurricane Sandy in the US, Citigroup Inc (Citi) has expanded its service relief for mortgage customers in affected areas, The Wall Street Journal reported.Customers of CitiMortgage located in the hardest-hit areas as designated...
Continue Reading • 5 Nov 2012
More homes in the pipeline
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: A record supply of new homes will come on-stream into Singapore’s property market, with over 100,000 private housing units in the pipeline, said the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).AsiaOne reported that the upcoming residential supply will comprise 83,975...
Continue Reading • 5 Nov 2012
Roxy-Pacific posts Q3 profit growth
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:Property firm Roxy-Pacific Holdings Limited posted substantial earnings growth across all its business segments in Q3 2012, leading to a net profit increase of 116 percent to S$8.2 million. The group’s profit before tax, excluding fair value gains, also jumped 63...
Continue Reading • 5 Nov 2012
An affordable alternative to Sentosa Cove
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Senibong Cove (pictured), the latest mega waterfront development in Johor Bahru is set to target Singaporeans who cannot afford to buy high-end waterfront properties in the city-state, reported The Business Times. While there are some similarities between Senibong Cove...
Continue Reading • 5 Nov 2012
Uncertainty over impact of loan regulations
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: It is still unclear whether the new home loan regulations from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) will affect mortgage lending in the country, which grew 10 percent year-to-date, said Piyush Gupta, Chief Executive of DBS.Nevertheless, total mortgage lending at...
Continue Reading • 2 Nov 2012
Many complaints against agents unsubstantiated: CEA
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: A large number of complaints investigated by the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) were unsubstantiated, or were beyond its purview, The Straits Times reported.During its first 18 months of operations, CEA investigated 1,080 complaints, of which 422 cases were found to...
Continue Reading • 2 Nov 2012
Property developer sentiment improves: survey
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Overall property market sentiment among senior executives in Singapore’s real estate industry continued to improve in Q3 2012, according to the latest Real Estate Sentiment Index (RESI) survey conducted by the Real Estate Developers Association of Singapore (REDAS)...
Continue Reading • 2 Nov 2012
GCB market still kicking amid new measures
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Despite the most recent property cooling measures in the form of new home loan regulations by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), demand for Good Class Bungalows (GCBs) still appears to be relatively strong, reported The Business Times.Five caveats were lodged in...
Continue Reading • 2 Nov 2012
Singapore's first post-war flats to be torn down
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Starting next month, demolition works of the two-storey Block 25 Owen Road will be carried out as the flats are no longer available for letting under the Public Rental Scheme. Built by Singapore Improvement Trust, the site is home to the first post-World War II flats in...
Continue Reading • 1 Nov 2012
Aussie mortgage growth slides to new low
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Mortgage lending growth in Australia fell to a record low, indicating that the central bank’s interest rate cuts are not really encouraging homeowners to take out more loans, the Property Observer reported.According to data from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA),...
Continue Reading • 1 Nov 2012