OUE to boost hotel management segment
Overseas Union Enterprise Ltd’s hospitality division, Meritus Hotels & Resorts (MHR), is planning to boost its hotel management segment by aggressively expanding its portfolio over the next five years. “We're trying to grow the brand. We've just signed...
Continue Reading • 10 May 2010
UE's net profit more than trebles to $28m in Q1
United Engineers' net profit for the first quarter of 2010 has more than trebled to $28.2 million, as sales of residential apartments propelled an increase in revenue. The group posted a 32 percent increase in revenue to $195.9 million. The improvements were...
Continue Reading • 10 May 2010
Business world: Calling a spade a spade
When the 2010 Global Financial Stability report was released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), it warned of problems in many Asian property markets. The closest it got to characterize the markets as bubbles was when they were described as overheating and "by some measures, valuations...
Continue Reading • 10 May 2010
Cubik - the newest condo development for homebuyers
The 2,118-sq-m Cubik from EG development is the newest freehold condo attraction in the East Coast area. The property, which is situated at Lorong K Telok Kurau, is comprised of one- and three-bedroom units and two-bedroom penthouse.The 24-unit condo, located near...
Continue Reading • 10 May 2010
Proposed privatization of Lagoon View likely to spur en bloc sale
Lagoon View is looking to privatize the entire estate, which could trigger a possible en bloc sale, after its neighbour Laguna Park proposed a collective sale last week. During a special general meeting held yesterday, the Lagoon...
Continue Reading • 10 May 2010
Demand for Mickey Mouse flats still hot
The robust sales of small apartments – Mickey Mouse flats – has continued through the year.Based on caveats lodged with the Urban Redevelopment Authority's Realis system, 696 flats of 500 sq ft or less in size were sold in 2009 – the highest level since such records started in...
Continue Reading • 10 May 2010
Asia Pacific cities see steady office rents in Q1
Office rents across most Asia Pacific cities stayed flat or increased during the first three months of the year, indicating that the worst may be over for the commercial market, according to report by Colliers International. The property consultancy firm found rents...
Continue Reading • 7 May 2010
Mortgage lending in the UK down in March
Based on data released by the Bank of England, the number of mortgages sold to home buyers during the first three months of the year decreased by 20 percent compared to the previous quarter. The decline in mortgage numbers indicated that the recovery in the housing market has stopped....
Continue Reading • 7 May 2010
PLife REIT's DPU up 9.7% in Q1
Parkway Life Real Estate Investment Trust (PLife REIT) saw its distribution per unit (DPU) for Q1 increase 9.7 percent to 2.07 cents, from 1.89 cents in the last quarter. This translates to an annualized DPU of 8.28 cents and an annualized distribution yield of 6.09...
Continue Reading • 7 May 2010
Sing Holdings issues earnings warning for its Q1 performance
Property developer Sing Holdings has issued an earnings warning, as it expects to post a net loss in its Q1 results ending March. In a filing to the Singapore Exchange, the developer says that the loss is attributed to showflat and marketing expenses for "The...
Continue Reading • 7 May 2010
FCT keen to buy Malaysian malls
According to Frasers Centrepoint Trust (FCT), it is planning to purchase malls in Malaysia to diversify its business and is confident of maintaining historical revenue growth rates. FCT, which has four suburban malls in Singapore, reported a 7.5-percent annual...
Continue Reading • 7 May 2010
NTUC Choice Homes eyeing land site launches
NTUC Choice Homes, the property development arm of Singapore's labour movement, has been keeping an eye on the release of land sites, although it has no confirmed development plans yet. “The release of land parcels for housing has been quite intense,” said...
Continue Reading • 7 May 2010
Fragrance Properties places top bid for Tampines residential site
The state tender for a 99-year leasehold plot along Tampines Road has attracted a total of 16 bids from property developers. This was higher than the 14 bids attracted from developers for the land parcel at Lakeside Drive and Boon Lay Way when the public tender closed...
Continue Reading • 7 May 2010
Keppel Land to develop 550 homes in Boon Lay Way site
URA has awarded the tender for a residential site located at Boon Lay Way and Lakeside Drive to Keppel Land Mayfair. The developer submitted the highest tender for the residential site at S$302.9 million, or around S$5,370 psm per gross floor area.In a prepared...
Continue Reading • 7 May 2010
MND proposes new statutory board to curb errant agents
The Ministry of National Development (MND) will set up a new statutory board to better safeguard consumer interest and enhance the professionalism of the property agency industry.The proposed statutory board – the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) – will enforce a new framework to...
Continue Reading • 7 May 2010
OCBC posts record profit in Q1
OCBC Bank has posted a record quarterly net profit of $676 million during the first three months of 2010, exceeding analysts' estimates of about $500 million for Q1. Net profit was up 24 percent on-year on the back of a significant reduction in allowances and...
Continue Reading • 6 May 2010
Profits up 77% for Millennium & Copthorne Hotels
Hotelier Millennium & Copthorne has recorded a profit of 12.2 million pounds or S$25.5 million in the first quarter, up 77 percent from the same quarter last year. The Q1 profit of the hotel group was attributed to the signs of recovery in some market segments led...
Continue Reading • 6 May 2010
Mortgage stress in Australia affecting 40% of recent homebuyers
According to a new research, the rapid increase in the mortgage rates in Australia means that a growing number of recent first-time homebuyers are suffering with huge mortgage debt, and could even lose their homes. An exclusive study conducted by financial services...
Continue Reading • 6 May 2010
Wearnes subsidiary to acquire 78% stake in China property firm
Shenyang Huaxin International Realty Co Ltd (SHIR), a subsidiary of WBL Corporation Limited (Wearnes) has entered into a RMB 400-million joint venture agreement to acquire a 78-percent interest in Suzhou Industrial Park Jian Wu Heng Ye Property Development Co Ltd. The...
Continue Reading • 6 May 2010
Asian office and investment property markets remain buoyant in Q1
Office and investment property markets across Asia remained strong in Q1 2010, as the positive sentiment among investors were sustained, said CBRE. The steady flow of small- and medium-size transactions seen in H2 2009 in the investment market continued through this...
Continue Reading • 6 May 2010