Idle developers in China banned from land auction bids
The Ministry of Land and Resources will prevent some companies from acquiring more land in future auctions after several of their sites went undeveloped.The ministry highlighted 26 undeveloped sites on the mainland, alongside the firms and parent companies that own them. One of the companies on...
Continue Reading • 4 Jan 2011
Luxury home prices hit new high
High-end and luxury home prices hit a new all-time record in the fourth quarter of 2010. Non-landed home prices in the Core Central Region (CCR) micro-market, which comprises prime districts like Sentosa Cove and Marina Bay, were up 2.3 percent in Q4, compared to the 1.6 percent increase in the...
Continue Reading • 4 Jan 2011
Economic growth momentum to continue this year
Singapore’s economic growth momentum is expected to remain intact in 2011, even as the pace of the gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to slow sharply from last year’s nearly-15 percent.Economists said the full-year growth for 2010 is likely to be revised up to 15 percent from...
Continue Reading • 4 Jan 2011
UK mortgage affordability on the rise
Mortgage affordability in the UK has increased, according to new figures released by Halifax. The figures showed that affordability in the UK mortgage market now stands at a 12-year high, with 40 percent of local authorities being branded as affordable for first-time property buyers.This...
Continue Reading • 4 Jan 2011
HK property deals to fall in 2011
The number of property transactions in Hong Kong's resale market will likely decline this year, as the government continues to curb speculation in the red-hot property market, according to real estate agency Centaline.The number of private home deals in the resale market will decline to 90,000...
Continue Reading • 4 Jan 2011
Private residential property prices up 2.7% in Q4
Private residential property prices climbed 2.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010, based on flash estimates released by the URA.Prices rose to 194.8 points in Q4 from 189.6 points in the previous quarter. However, the increase was lower than the 2.9 percent increase in Q3.For the whole year...
Continue Reading • 4 Jan 2011
Chinatown Point to get $75m revamp
The Chinatown Point retail and office complex is set to receive a $75 million face-lift. In July 2010, a consortium of investors, which includes German fund manager SEB, Singapore Press Holdings and FairPrice Co-operative, acquired four office units and 283 strata-titled retail units in the...
Continue Reading • 3 Jan 2011
Singapore economy expands 14.7% in 2010
The Singapore economy expanded by 14.7 percent last year, said the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), adding that a 15 percent growth forecast was expected for the year.Advance estimates showed that the economy grew 12.5 percent in Q4 last year, rebounding from a 10.5 percent growth in Q3....
Continue Reading • 3 Jan 2011
CapitaLand to develop Raffles City Changning
CapitaLand, together with CapitaMalls Asia (CMA) and three other partners, will develop an integrated mixed-use property in Shanghai under the Raffles City brand at a development cost of about 8.1 billion yuan.CapitaLand expects to record a net gain of about $132 million through a series of stake...
Continue Reading • 3 Jan 2011
Keppel Land China expands with site in Nantong
Merryfield Investment Pte Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Keppel Land China, has acquired a 17.2-hectare site in the city of Nantong, Jiangsu province, for RMB1.04 billion for a lakefront residential development.The maiden property development of Keppel Land China is situated in the town centre...
Continue Reading • 3 Jan 2011
US foreclosures jump in Q3
The number of US home owners who received help either from government programmes or banks fell 17 percent in Q3 to 470,000, according to a report released by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and Office of Thrift Supervision.The federal government’s Home Affordable Modification...
Continue Reading • 3 Jan 2011
Aussie property market one of the strongest this year
Australia’s housing market was one of the world’s strongest in 2010, but expected interest rate hikes may ease growth, according to the Global Real Estate Trends report released by Canada's Scotiabank.The report tracked the housing markets in 12 advanced economies in 2010.While home...
Continue Reading • 30 Dec 2010
China may double housing supply next year
China may have to build more affordable homes in 2011 than the 10 million units planned, as the target may not be enough to meet the country’s demand, said the International Strategy & Investment Group (ISI).The central government intends to nearly double the supply of affordable...
Continue Reading • 30 Dec 2010
Errant real estate agents weeded out
Following the government’s moves to regulate the real estate industry, the number of property agents in Singapore has fallen but not as much as initially feared.So far, the number of approved property-sales agents is 27,754, higher than the 20,000 estimated by property agency owners quoted...
Continue Reading • 30 Dec 2010
British homeowners cut mortgage debt
British homeowners have reduced their outstanding mortgage debt by £6.1 billion in the third quarter, driven by record low mortgage rates and the fears of tough times ahead.The Q3 figure was the highest net injection of equity people have made into their homes since the beginning of...
Continue Reading • 30 Dec 2010
Wilmar in joint bid to acquire more China sites
Wilmar International, together with Shangri-La Asia and Kerry Properties will submit a joint bid to acquire six land sites in China that could spur a total investment of 7.5 billion yuan (S$1.4 billion).The company said it will hold a 35 percent stake in the JV, or about 2.63 billion yuan, while...
Continue Reading • 30 Dec 2010
China to continue property tightening next year
China will continue to curb property speculation next year, and will strengthen the implementation of measures to curtail rising home prices, said a local report, quoting Housing Minister Jiang Weixin.Chinese officials present in the ministry's year-end work meeting noted that “it remains...
Continue Reading • 30 Dec 2010
No plans to establish Reits, GuocoLand
Singapore-listed property developer GuocoLand has clarified that it currently has no plans to set up a real estate investment trust (Reit), after a report in The Business Times yesterday said that the developer may be looking at floating two REITs, in the office and retail market, with assets of...
Continue Reading • 30 Dec 2010
Mass-market prices grow faster than high-end condos
Non-landed private home prices in Singapore’s Central region, which comprises districts 1 to 4 and 9 to 11, have risen 7.9 percent in the first 11 months of the year from the end of 2009, based on the latest flash estimates for November from the National University of Singapore (NUS). The...
Continue Reading • 29 Dec 2010
HK mortgage loans drawn down increase 11.1%
New mortgage loans drawn down in Hong Kong rose 11.1 percent to HK$27.9 billion (US$3.58 billion) in November, according to data released by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA).The value of new loans approved in November jumped 22 percent to HK$37.6 billion from the previous month.However,...
Continue Reading • 29 Dec 2010