High-spec space loses its appeal with tenants
High-spec industrial space has lost its appeal with tenants over the last few months. Some firms have returned to leasing commercial space as office rents have plunged, said Colliers International.In turn, the move has reduced rents for high-spec space. The average gross rent of high-spec...
Continue Reading • 12 Nov 2009
REITs must hold AGM by December 2010
All Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) must hold an Annual General Meeting (AGM) by 31 December 2010 under a revision introduced by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).The MAS issued the requirement that will take effect by January 2010, under the REITs’ revised Property Funds...
Continue Reading • 12 Nov 2009
Heeton Group acquires Mitre site for about $121m
The Heeton Holdings Group has signed an agreement to purchase the Mitre Hotel, a freehold residential site located at Killiney Road, for around $121–122 million. The price works out to nearly $1,100 per square foot of potential gross floor area, which includes a $770,000 estimated...
Continue Reading • 12 Nov 2009
DBS Bank grants S$74m term loan facilities to A-I Trust
DBS Bank has granted term loan facilities amounting to about S$74 million to Ascendas India Trust, a Singapore-listed business trust. Two subsidiaries of the trust acquired the said loan.The facilities will carry a 10 percent interest rate every year and will mature in December 2015. These will...
Continue Reading • 11 Nov 2009
Ascott clinches contract to manage KL serviced residence
The Ascott Group, the serviced residential unit of CapitaLand, has secured a contract to manage a new premium serviced residence located in Kuala Lumpur.Ascott did not disclose the value of the contract, which was granted to a property developer under the Gapurna Group.The serviced residence,...
Continue Reading • 11 Nov 2009
Singapore's Perennial acquires Katong Mall
Singapore's Perennial Katong Retail Trust has acquired Katong Mall for S$247.55 million. The company also said that it would spend an additional S$55 million for the redevelopment of the property.Pua Seck Guan, former retail unit head of CapitaLand, is the current head of Perennial. According to...
Continue Reading • 11 Nov 2009
Managing unpredictable property cycles
Singapore’s property cycles are hard to foresee but the government will try every possible way to minimize the changing patterns in the real state market, said Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam.“We will keep our eyes on the ball and use every tool at our disposal in a calibrated...
Continue Reading • 11 Nov 2009
Asian property markets fear a real estate bubble
Growing prices of residential properties in Asia may cause mini real estate bubbles and stimulus packages from governments may be pulled out to cool down the market. Finance ministries and central banks in several countries like Singapore and China are discussing and setting up measures to...
Continue Reading • 10 Nov 2009
HLF reduces rates for HDB home loans
Hong Leong Finance (HLF) has reduced its rates for HDB home loans in a bid to compete better in an environment of low interest rates. However, it appears that some banks are even quicker on the draw.HLF revealed the previous day that its latest rate for HDB home loans are down by 0.50...
Continue Reading • 10 Nov 2009
MCL and Ho Bee sell 51 units at Parvis condo
MCL Land and Ho Bee Investment last week sold a total of 51 units at their Parvis condominium located at Holland Hill at an average price of $1,480 per sq ft (psf).What happened at Parvis was far from the recent trend, wherein the smallest units of a certain project are sold out first. At Parvis,...
Continue Reading • 10 Nov 2009
Central Bank wary of property market speculations
The central bank of Singapore warned on Monday that it may need more measures to control the risk of renewed property market speculations, which is being driven by prospects of an economic recovery and low borrowing costs."As Singapore emerges from recession and with the market...
Continue Reading • 10 Nov 2009
Singapore works to calm property fever
The Singapore government gave a clear sign yesterday that it plans to keep private homes affordable, by declaring its land sales programme intended for the first half of 2010 at an earlier time.With the introduction of 10 new residential sites through the reserve and confirmed lists, developers...
Continue Reading • 9 Nov 2009
Foreign buyers stream back to private home market
A growing number of foreigners, particularly those from China are streaming back into the private home market.Recent research conducted by Savills Singapore, a property consultancy, showed that foreign buyers accounted for 22.7 percent of private home sales in the third quarter. The...
Continue Reading • 9 Nov 2009
AEW to deploy around $1 billion to Asian property
AEW Capital Management, a $43 billion real estate investment manager of listed securities and real estate private equity, is on the process of deploying a PE fund worth $560 million, targeting Asian property. With leverage, the firm which is based in Massachusetts can deal out around $1 billion...
Continue Reading • 6 Nov 2009
Parkway Life REIT’s DPU up 12.1% in Q3
Parkway Life, a Singapore-listed Real Estate Investment Trust, reported that its Q3 distribution per unit (DPU) hit 1.91 cents, 12.1 percent higher than the previous year.Its net property income for the three months ended September also increased by 23.3 percent to S$15.4 million.According to...
Continue Reading • 6 Nov 2009
MCL, Ho Bee to launch Parvis condo
As other property developers deliberate if they will launch new projects this year or hold back until next year, MCL Land and Ho Bee have already decided to launch their newest project, Parvis condo located at Holland Hill.According to a property consultant, the selling price for the units is...
Continue Reading • 6 Nov 2009
Standard Chartered’s performance overtakes HSBC's
Standard Chartered Plc, the United Kingdom’s third largest bank in terms of market value, plans to conduct business almost exclusively in Asia as well as in emerging markets. Executives who dare to go away from this strategy risks the fury of Mike Rees, the CEO for Corporate...
Continue Reading • 5 Nov 2009
Difference in the two home sale booms
This year, property developers are set to duplicate their sales records from 2007.However, as of now the total value of new private homes is just half of that in 2007, emphasizing the difference between the two property booms.The shift is partly due to a dramatic increase in sales of smaller,...
Continue Reading • 5 Nov 2009
Singapore’s economy continues to stabilize
Singapore’s economy is likely to continue recovering from the global recession and is not expected to have another plunge in the near future, revealed Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday.But a dramatic upturn is not expected, as the country’s growth still depends on the...
Continue Reading • 5 Nov 2009
Vincom to sell $150 million international bond
Vincom, a property developer in Vietnam, plans to generate up to $150 million profit through a first international bond released to fund property projects, reported Vietnam's state media yesterday.To underwrite the bonds, which would be listed on the Singapore stock exchange and sold in November,...
Continue Reading • 5 Nov 2009