Jervois Road residential site awarded for S$118.9m
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has awarded a residential site at Jervois Road (pictured) to S.L. Development Pte Ltd, after it submitted the highest bid of S$118.9 million in a public tender that closed on 2 February 2012.Launched for sale on 22 December 2011 under the 2H2011 Government...
Continue Reading • 9 Feb 2012
Knight Frank appoints new research manager for Asia-Pac
Nicholas Holt (pictured) has been appointed the new Research Manager for Knight Frank Asia Pacific. He will oversee operations in the region to further strengthen and grow the research and consultancy business. Holt has extensive experience suited to the new regional role. He...
Continue Reading • 9 Feb 2012
En bloc deals may accelerate
En bloc sales have seen a notable increase in the last few weeks, with a total of eight sites up for en bloc sale since January.However, analysts claimed the figures were still not positive compared to the prospects, with the demand for such sites staying soft. In fact, collective sales on...
Continue Reading • 8 Feb 2012
S'porean buyers beware say London agents
Singaporean property buyers and investors have been urged to be cautious when buying property in London amid on-going concerns they are sometimes paying too much for homes in undesirable locations.Buyers from Southeast Asia are currently responsible for more than 40 percent of off-plan purchases...
Continue Reading • 8 Feb 2012
CapitaLand launches social responsibility campaign
Property firm CapitaLand launched its 'Because iCare' campaign during its annual Lunar New Year reception.“The launch of Because iCare reinforces our ‘Building People’ credo and strengthens our commitment towards the people we build and the people we build for. Through this...
Continue Reading • 8 Feb 2012
UK home loan affordability hits new low
Home loan payments for new borrowers in the UK reached their lowest level in the second half of last year, according to recent research published by Halifax.The lender said that the typical loan for new borrowers, both first-timers and home movers, stood at 27 percent of disposable earnings in Q4...
Continue Reading • 8 Feb 2012
S'pore consumer confidence remains low
Consumer confidence in Singapore remains at a two-year low, with the country ranking the fifth most pessimistic of the 14 Asia Pacific nations, according to Nielsen's Q4 global online consumer confidence index.Based on the findings, Singapore started the previous year with 109 points in the...
Continue Reading • 8 Feb 2012
Property agent jobs losing appeal in HK
Fewer people are now interested in becoming property agents in Hong Kong, as the real estate market remains weak.According to Estate Agents Authority, the number of registered candidates for the qualifying examinations dropped 45 percent to 1,877 this month, from 3,417 over the same period last...
Continue Reading • 8 Feb 2012
Credo data suggests pattern in property prices
Credo Real Estate’s historical data revealed that the odds against Singapore property prices seem to have been fixed. Following a pattern of several quarters of price moderation, negative residential price corrections were last reflected in 1983, 2000 and 2008. Notably, this pattern became...
Continue Reading • 8 Feb 2012
Australand optimistic despite lower earnings
AustraLand, CapitaLand’s business arm in Australia, suffered a 15 percent loss in net profit for the fiscal year 2011, but remains optimistic that earnings this year will likely improve despite volatile market conditions.“Despite the near-term challenges, the group remains cautiously...
Continue Reading • 8 Feb 2012
London's One Commercial Street launching in Singapore
Redrow Homes London, one of the UK's leading residential and mixed-use property developers, has announced that it will launch the One Commercial Street mixed-use development project in Singapore on 18 and 19 February 2011 at Shangri-La Hotel.“Large scale projects built by leading UK...
Continue Reading • 7 Feb 2012
Donald Han joins HSR as special adviser
Donald Han, Vice Chairman for Cushman & Wakefield’s Singapore operations, has joined HSR Property Group as special adviser, with the aim of helping to expand the company’s property services and portfolio by venturing overseas.“We could expand into other professional property...
Continue Reading • 7 Feb 2012
Luxury Italian furniture brand hits Singapore's shores
Internationally acclaimed furniture brand Cassina is bringing its Italian excellence to Singapore, as it collaborates with its local partner, Dream Interiors.The 15,000 sq ft Dream Interiors showroom features the most innovative furniture brands that “best represent the timeless appeal of...
Continue Reading • 7 Feb 2012
Aussie banks making massive mortgage losses
Banks in Australia could become cautious with their lending activities after recording huge losses on mortgages over the past four months, according to a recent report.“We estimate the banks are currently losing money on new mortgages written in the current funding environment,” said...
Continue Reading • 7 Feb 2012
More buyers shifting to non-HDB homes
An increasing number of home buyers are now turning to non-HDB homes, with ECs becoming their top choice, according to R'ST Research.Purchases for non-HDB homes such as landed, non-landed private and EC units hit a record of 13,910 units in 2011, up from 13,769 units in 2010. ECs now account for...
Continue Reading • 7 Feb 2012
Brisk sales continue at mass market projects
Mass market residential units have continued to receive overwhelming response, with The Tampines Trilliant executive condominium (EC) and Parc Rosewood condo boasting brisk sales.At Sim Lian’s The Tampines Trilliant showflat (pictured), 149 units have been sold since bookings opened last...
Continue Reading • 7 Feb 2012
Negative side effects of ABSD temporary, say consultants
Although the additional buyer's stamp duty (ABSD) was placed on foreign buyers recently, expatriates still continue to search for good property deals, according to consultants.“International buyers are still looking to buy,” said Jacqueline Wong, Head of Residential and National...
Continue Reading • 6 Feb 2012
International buyers dominate in London
International buyers have been key players in the London residential market, according to a recent report by Savills Research. “The amount of international equity flowing into prime London's newly built market continues to increase, with UK buyers a minority,” it noted.Savills said...
Continue Reading • 6 Feb 2012
EC demand remains healthy
Subscription rates for executive condominium (EC) units will remain healthy despite the bleak economic outlook, as the climate for such housing will likely stay, according to property analysts.“We have a very good mixture of first-timers and second-timers, and we do see that there’s a...
Continue Reading • 6 Feb 2012
REDAS gives a dull note on property sentiment
January recorded plenty of new private home sales but an industry body has warned that market sentiment may be duller.Wong Heang Fine (pictured), President of the Real Estate Developers' Association of Singapore (REDAS), said the strong number of private homes sold in January must be viewed in...
Continue Reading • 6 Feb 2012