Buangkok Drive site awarded for S$301m
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: A residential site (pictured) at Buangkok Drive / Sengkang Central has been awarded to White Haven Properties Pte Ltd, according to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). The firm submitted the highest bid of S$301 million for the plot. The 99-year leasehold site has a...
Continue Reading • 18 Jun 2012
Far East to give special discounts
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: To celebrate its strong sales, property developer Far East Organization will be offering small discounts this month, ranging from one to three percent for several projects, including euHabitat. Far East achieved a new sales record of 2,200 units for the first...
Continue Reading • 18 Jun 2012
Real estate blamed for Spanish woes
By Andrew Batt: German Chancellor Angela Merkel has blamed the rising price of Spanish real estate as a key reason behind the country’s current financial troubles.She highlighted "… the Spanish property bubble of the last ten years …" as a trigger, rather than...
Continue Reading • 18 Jun 2012
Singapore buyers go back to school
By Andrew Batt: EXCLUSIVE: Sales of U.K. student accommodation property investments have been on the rise in Singapore, with possibly as many as 100 transactions involving this property asset class happening in the city state every month.Kevin Caldwell, property consultant with Singapore-based...
Continue Reading • 18 Jun 2012
China real estate the world's most important sector
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: The performance of the world’s luxury housing markets in 2011 was highlighted by the flight of capital markets from emerging economies to new safe havens. In Asia, however, the media spotlight focused on a potential property crash in China. Knight Frank and Citi...
Continue Reading • 15 Jun 2012
Singapore home sales plunge 32%
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: TOP NEWS: Private home sales in Singapore saw a big decline of 23 percent month-on-month in May.Excluding executive condominiums (ECs), the drop in sales was even more significant at 32 percent from the previous month. In the CCR (Core Central Region), 135 new homes, or...
Continue Reading • 15 Jun 2012
30% drop in UK mortgage borrowing
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Mortgage borrowing in the UK fell 30 percent month-on-month in April to 36,000 loans valued at £5.3 billion (S$10.5 billion), according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).The sharp drop occurred after the deadline for stamp-duty concession ended on 24 March,...
Continue Reading • 15 Jun 2012
New vision for Kallang
By Cheryl Tay: In a bid to rejuvenate the Kallang area, the Singapore government is keen to review existing development plans for the precinct. Smaller development sites may be integrated into larger ones to transform them into major mixed-use development projects. In addition, the unoccupied...
Continue Reading • 15 Jun 2012
Thai developers adopt cautious approach
By Andrew Batt:Thailand’s property market has seen developers slowing their acquisitions of low-rise housing development in areas which were submerged during last year’s floods.The Q1 2012 Thailand Investment Market View report, published by CBRE Thailand, noted that developers have...
Continue Reading • 15 Jun 2012
Developers to be cautious on land bids
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: With external volatility being a major concern, the risk appetite for investors is expected to remain low in the near term, noted DBS. Additionally, developers are likely to exercise caution when selecting sites and making land bids. “With the ongoing global...
Continue Reading • 15 Jun 2012
Luxury property market has 'practically collapsed' - economist
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Given present market conditions, it is less likely that the government will roll out new property cooling measures, said economist Chua Hak Bin from Bank of America Merrill Lynch (Singapore). “A fragile economic outlook and softness in the broader property market...
Continue Reading • 15 Jun 2012
China property sales climb amid easing rumour
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Property transaction volumes have grown in major Chinese cities, including Shenzhen, Nanjing and Hangzhou, according to a media report.This comes after authorities tried to quell rumours that the central government is set to loosen its grip on property cooling measures...
Continue Reading • 14 Jun 2012
Growth risks loom larger than inflation concerns
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: While economists have upgraded their growth forecasts for the year, inflation is expected to worsen. But figures alone do not reflect the current sentiment of economists who believe that concerns over growth risks are looming larger than inflation. According to a new...
Continue Reading • 14 Jun 2012
CapitaLand to help 5000 needy children
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: CapitaLand Hope Foundation (CHF), the philanthropic arm of property developer CapitaLand, will partner with the Community Development Council (CDC) and the People’s Association (PA) for the second Green for Hope @ CapitaLand initiative. The tie-up aims to reach...
Continue Reading • 14 Jun 2012
GLS sites to boost affordable housing: experts
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Following the announcement of the 2H2012 Government Land Sales (GLS) Programme yesterday, it appears that the government is committed to satisfy demand for more affordable private homes. The majority of sites in the confirmed list are located in the Outside Central...
Continue Reading • 14 Jun 2012
Aussie banks slash mortgage rates
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Major banks such as ANZ, Westpac, CBA and NAB, along with second tier lenders, have reduced their standard variable rates after Australia’s central bank implemented a cash rate cut last week.ANZ slashed its rates by 0.25 percent to 6.8 percent, while...
Continue Reading • 14 Jun 2012
PropertyGuru to hold inaugural TIPS event this weekend
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: PropertyGuru, Asia’s leading property portal, will showcase a number of exciting overseas properties at its inaugural The International Property Showcase (TIPS) 2012. Taking place this weekend (16 and 17 June), from 10am to 7pm daily on Levels 2 & 3 of the...
Continue Reading • 14 Jun 2012
Thai buyers tempted by London property
By Andrew Batt: EXCLUSIVE: Thai property buyers and investors are being tempted by London properties in ever-increasing numbers. London property exhibitions, which take place almost every weekend in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong, have so far been a relatively rare sight in Bangkok. But as...
Continue Reading • 14 Jun 2012
CapitaLand strikes off dormant resort unit
By Romesh Navaratnarajah CapitaLand, Southeast Asia’s largest property group, announced that it has removed its dormant wholly-owned subsidiary, CapitaLand Integrated Resorts (CIR) from the Register of Companies.In a release, CapitaLand Limited noted that the CapitaLand...
Continue Reading • 13 Jun 2012
ASEAN must tackle foreign ownership laws
By Andrew Batt ASEAN countries must do more to tackle foreign property ownership laws or risk losing out to regional counterparts where the buying process is less onerous.Those were the words of Suphin Mechuchep, Managing Director of Jones Lang LaSalle Thailand, who spoke at the recent...
Continue Reading • 13 Jun 2012