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<p><img alt="Long-tail boats along Phuket in Thailand. martinho/Shutterstock" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_250098484-compressor.jpg/82105e8c-3b7e-471d-bf7b-38355a678012?t=1523441197563" style="width: 740px; height: 490px;" />The coasts of Southeast Asia are garlanded with some of the most beautiful beaches on earth, drawing visitors by the millions every year. Some of those visitors have decided to stay a little longer, cornering prime beachfront parcels to call home.</p> <p>For 13 years, the <a href="http://asiapropertyawards.com" target="_blank">PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards</a> series has recognised some of the region’s most well-designed, sustainable&nbsp;seaside residential properties. The following are just a sampling of the more memorable waterfront&nbsp;projects to have sprung around Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Cambodia, and Vietnam in recent years.</p> <p>Who says you can’t be at the beach every week with these amazing properties?</p> <h4>1. Twinpalms Residences MontAzure</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/TWINPALMS-RESIDENCES-MONTAZURE-2.5-compressor.jpg/da64c645-1dba-4213-959e-50b7583d8440?t=1523440395019" style="width: 740px; height: 444px;" /></p> <p>Winner of Best Mixed-Use Development and a Special Recognition in Sustainable Development&nbsp;at the <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/propertyguru-thailand-property-awards-2018-embraces-high-growth-niche-segments-in-13th-ye-5" target="_blank">Thailand Property Awards</a>&nbsp;last year, MontAzure is a 450-rai project (72 hectares) along Kamala Beach in the west coast of Phuket. Winner of Best Condo Development (Phuket) in 2016, TwinPalms Residences is the first residential phase of the development, offering 75 low-rise condominium units with 100 metres of beach frontage.</p> <p>Surrounded&nbsp;with a range of onsite resort facilities, the main structure of the beachfront condominiums was completed last month. More than 70 percent of the units are already sold out, with potential for significant capital appreciation upon completion. In addition to Twinpalms Residences, MontAzure features an exclusive village for retirees (Kamala Senior Living), a plush hotel (InterContinental Phuket Resort), and a world-renowned beach club (Café Del Mar).&nbsp;</p> <h4>2. The Residences at Mandarin Oriental, Bali</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/MANDARIN-RESIDENCES-BALI-compressor.jpg/2d5b0b83-2821-46ef-9ab8-f3af0d9bb080?t=1523440624514" style="width: 740px; height: 371px;" /></p> <p>Beautiful villas are a dime a dozen in Bali but this project will have you eating, praying, and loving your way to the Indonesian island in no time. The Residences at Mandarin Oriental Bali is a cluster of 91 villas&nbsp;laid out on a gently sloping hillside in the Bukit Peninsula of&nbsp;Bali. Situated at the southernmost point of the island, the villas open to unobstructed, panoramic views of the Indian Ocean. The Residences, part of the 150-hectare luxury integrated project Bukit Pandawa Resort &amp; Golf, won several design honours at the <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/fourth-propertyguru-indonesia-property-awards-2018-to-celebrate-benchmark-setting-real-esta-3" target="_blank">Indonesia Property Awards</a> last year, including Best Luxury Landscape Architectural Design.</p> <h4>3. The Seagate Suite</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Cambodia-mixed-use-Seagate-Suite-compressor.jpg/76fff33c-76f3-4037-bcaa-bbea30ac8303?t=1523269094000" style="width: 740px; height: 396px;" /></p> <p>Standing sentinel above Victory Beach in Sihanoukville, The Seagate Suite boasts views of both the sea and the Cambodian boomtown. The tropical breeze permeates through the 1,118 units of the 43-storey project, designed in styles ranging from northern European and luxurious baroque to minimalist. Winner of Best Residential Development for Sihanoukville at the <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/2018-propertyguru-cambodia-property-awards-the-winners-list" target="_blank">Cambodia Property Awards</a>, The Seagate Suite has&nbsp;a range of smart home products installed in every unit. If the sand and surf of Victory are not up to par, the building offers an infinity pool on the eighth floor with resplendent views of Sihanoukville.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/6-cool-reasons-why-niseko-luxury-is-on-top-of-the-wor-6" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;6 cool reasons why Niseko is on top of the world</strong></a></p> <h4>4. 8 Newport Boulevard</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/8-NEWTOWN-BOULEVARD-%281%29-compressor.jpg/95185182-9747-4554-bde4-6199bdfe9d30?t=1523440431200" style="width: 740px; height: 416px;" /></p> <p>Mactan Newtown&nbsp;is the&nbsp;first&nbsp;major&nbsp;township&nbsp;development with its own beach outside Metro Manila. Conceived by Megaworld, a pioneer in the development of live-work-play communities in the Philippines, the 30-hectare township offers nine high-end condominium towers. The first residential cluster in the township, 8 Newtown Boulevard, was the most decorated Cebuano project at the 2016 <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/propertyguru-philippines-property-awards-2017-winners-hope-for-a-green-future" target="_blank">Philippines Property Awards</a>, winning Best Condo Development in Cebu as well as two Highly Commended honours. Eight Newtown Boulevard features panoramic views of the Hilutungan Channel and Magellan Bay. The amenity deck is a joy to be in,&nbsp;featuring Japanese-inspired gardens and courtyards, plus an onsen spa. Residents may choose between the white-sand beach outside the building or the 60-metre infinity pool.&nbsp;</p> <h4>5. Queens Residences Q1&nbsp;</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Queens-3-compressor.jpg/4d1721aa-fe95-4a6a-ad5f-38d4951ce411?t=1523440073480" style="width: 740px; height: 528px;" /></p> <p>Queens Residences Q1 won Best Condo Development for Penang at last year's <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/elite-shortlist-of-nominees-for-2018-propertyguru-asia-property-awards-malaysia-unveiled" target="_blank">PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia)</a>. Situated in front of Bayan Bay, the 500-unit project gives residents generous views of Pulau Jerejak and Penang’s landmark bridges. The project will come with its own marina, with water taxis conveying residents to Straits Quay and other points along the bay. One of the project's quirks? A&nbsp;frameless glass infinity pool that should give you literally immersive views of the sea.</p> <h4>6. Panorama Nha Trang</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/PANORAMA-%281%29-compressor.jpg/212065a7-878a-4ddc-937d-a82c4db8e2f2?t=1523439751075" style="width: 740px; height: 416px;" /></p> <p>Panorama Nha Trang took home the highly coveted Best Condo Development trophy at the <a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/the-winners-list-propertyguru-vietnam-property-awards-2017" target="_blank">Vietnam Property Awards</a> last year, in addition to a gong for Best Condo Architectural Design. The project is truly one-of-a-kind, offering 1,112 condotel units by Nha Trang Bay. The tower is only a few steps away from the beach but residents are likely to enjoy the saltwater infinity sky pool. Unlike most others, the pool&nbsp;contorts to the building’s unique ellipse shape, intended to make the most of the gorgeous Nha Trang&nbsp;views.</p>
6 award-winning beachfront properties in Southeast Asia
<p><img alt="Aerial view of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Tonkinphotography/Shutterstock" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_759434539-compressor.jpg/cbcba15c-d056-410c-a6a8-545a189e171e?t=1523349946752" style="width: 1000px; height: 667px;" />Ho Chi Minh City may expect tens of thousands of units in new apartment supply in the next four years, according to the most recent quarterly briefing from Savills Vietnam.</p> <p>Around 93 projects are set to contribute more than 122,000 units to Vietnam’s largest property market through 2020, the consultancy stated in the report.</p> <p>Over 10,500 units from 13 new projects in the city were launched in the first quarter of 2018 alone. These include advanced phases of nine active projects.</p> <p>Overall, primary supply&nbsp;in the city stood at 28,600 units as of Q1 2018, down 32 percent year-on-year and 13 percent quarter-on-quarter.</p> <p>District 9, one of the city’s more progressive suburban enclaves, will account for 32 percent of future supply until 2020, Savills Vietnam predicted. Around 61 percent of the new homes will be grade C units.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/top-brands-behind-the-annual-propertyguru-vietnam-property-awards-2018-gala-dinner-unveil-1" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Top brands behind the annual PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards 2018 unveiled</strong></a></p> <p>Already, sales of grade C units took up 62 percent of sales in Q1 2018. However, sales performance across all grades have been strong, increasing 51 percent year-on-year to 13,500 deals, although this constituted a drop of 11 percent quarter-on-quarter.&nbsp;</p> <p>The first quarter also saw the addition of over 770 townhouses and villas. From Q2 2018 to 2020,&nbsp;supply of townhomes and villas could top 17,000 dwellings or plots, the consultancy noted, with most situated in the city's eastern districts will&nbsp; dominate with 60% market share.</p> <p>More than 1,100 serviced apartment units will hit the city in the&nbsp;last nine months of 2018.</p> <p>The Vietnamese economy has been benefiting from an upswing in overseas buyers, thanks to a raft of housing laws introduced in 2015 that streamlined processes for foreigners to buy property in the country.</p>
Record apartment supply to hit Ho Chi Minh City
<p><img alt="Phnom Penh in the early morning of 3 April. noomcpk/Shutterstock" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_1063211387-compressor.jpg/b43759c6-f4c3-4971-839f-e5fdafc96da6?t=1523268530000" style="width: 740px; height: 494px;" />Standalone projects are fast becoming a thing of the past&nbsp;in Cambodia.</p> <p>If the results of the PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards in March were any foreshadowing of the future of Khmer real estate, developers are angling for mixed-use projects more than ever in the kingdom.</p> <p>From Phnom Penh and Siem Reap to Sihanoukville, developments are integrating residential, commercial, retail and hospitality components in a single site — to the pleasure of discerning home seekers and property investors.</p> <p>Cambodia has seen a&nbsp;22 percent year-on-year increase in construction investment during the past year, causing land prices to rise and the urban landscape in Phnom Penh to transform from a low-rise capital into a high-rise hub. “The real estate industry has indeed played a vital role in Cambodia’s economic growth. In recent years, it has evolved so rapidly, attracting major investors from around the region to invest in Cambodia’s real estate and construction sectors,” noted Sorn Seap, founder and director of Key Real Estate Co., Ltd., the returning chairman of the judging panel.</p> <p>Here are some amazing mixed-use developments to look forward to in Cambodia:</p> <h4><strong>Greater Euro Ville</strong></h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Cambodia-mixed-use-Greater-Euro-Ville-compressor.jpg/b0532e24-1518-4343-89d8-3ae469318d52?t=1523268987111" /></p> <p>This 30-hectare project has been adjudged the kingdom’s Best Mixed Use Development at the 2018 Cambodia Property Awards. The development is in good hands, having been conceived by the night’s biggest winner, Borey Peng Huoth Group, which won Best Developer for the third consecutive year. Inspired by historical European architecture with just enough hints of Khmer heritage, Greater Euro Ville consists of a spacious MICE centre (Euroville Convention Hall), a thematic leisure park (EuroPark), a shopping promenade (Euroville Retail Boulevard), and a housing component (Euroville Residencies).</p> <h4><strong>One Park by GRED </strong></h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Cambodia-mixed-use-One-Park-compressor.jpg/49ca16a5-17b8-4c78-bf51-7e9b00b6d36c?t=1523269018480" /></p> <p>This brainchild of Graticity Real Estate Development Co., Ltd won Best Mixed Use Landscape Architectural Design for good reason. Its landscape area stretches for more than 33,000 square metres, covering more than 50 plant species and over 1,000 trees, criscrossed by meandering walkways and jogging paths. A 650-square-metre network of water features simulate rivers, waterfalls and lakes through this lush vegetation, with 1,370 square metres allotted for multiple swimming pools. There are eight themed gardens, in addition to&nbsp;sky gardens atop the tower blocks strewn across the lot. Half of the project's 79,000-square-metre land area is devoted to greenery, a rarity in Cambodia.</p> <h4><strong>CEO KT Pacific </strong></h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Cambodia-mixed-use-CEO-KT-Pacific-compressor.jpg/01e4a851-ee58-4385-8ad0-7521e5095dbe?t=1523269042817" /></p> <p>LIXIN Construction was one of the biggest winners at this year's awards. Its bragging rights? Three gongs for CEO KT Pacific, its sprawling mixed-use collaboration with KT Pacific Group. CEO KT Pacific rises 36 storeys high, topped with a 30-meter-long infinity pool, sky bar, and scenic runway that command nonpareil views of central Phnom Penh. Below, the building offers&nbsp;106 well-equipped office units and a slew of residential products, including&nbsp;842 one- and two-bedroom apartments.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/propertyguru-cambodia-property-awards-2018-honours-maturing-property-market-aspiring-for-best-practi-16" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards 2018 honours maturing property market</strong></a></p> <h4><strong>The Parkway </strong></h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Cambodia+mixed-use+The+Parkway+%281%29.jpg/29cb86f4-0e97-46ae-b935-19bcace8d4b4?t=1523269066676" /></p> <p>Parkway Investments Co., Ltd. is aiming big with its eponymous development, which is being called the largest mixed-use complex under construction in the Phnom Penh valley. Sprawling for 12,000 square metres, The Parkway combines high-end, earthquake-resistant office towers and apartment buildings. Prospective residents can choose from apartments in sizes ranging up to 300 square metres.&nbsp;Visitors can traipse around the 5,000-square-metre gardens on the roof of the podium with an infinity sky pool. The facilities deck stretches for 1,500 square metres, while every alternative floor offers a public green space. The area will give rise to various supermarkets, department stores,&nbsp;F&amp;B options, entertainment venues, healthcare facilities, and so much more.</p> <h4><strong>The Seagate Suite </strong></h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Cambodia-mixed-use-Seagate-Suite-compressor.jpg/76fff33c-76f3-4037-bcaa-bbea30ac8303?t=1523269094835" /></p> <p>Flying the flag high for Sihanoukville is KHCN Investment and Development Co., Ltd., which won Best Residential Development in the Khmer resort town with its Seagate Suite project. Envisioned as a symbol of the spirit of Cambodia, the USD200 million project has 1,118 homes on offer, in addition to 280 hotel keys and 3,000 square metres of leasable office and retail space. Each residential unit in the project maximises views of the fast-growing city, thanks to painstaking computer simulations during the design process by Shenzhen-based architecture studio Depus. Residents also have the best possible views of Sihanoukville from the eighth-floor infinity pool, which is lined with an artificial beach. The Seagate Suite has its own spa, plus a multi-functional conference centre and international banquet hall.</p> <h4><strong>Phnom Penh City Center </strong></h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Cambodia-mixed-use-Eden-Park-compressor.jpg/4dbf2bfb-2270-496d-ae50-5e04030269c7?t=1523269120379" /></p> <p>Last year’s big winner made an encore appearance in this year’s awards with its Eden Garden component taking home Best Retail Development and Best Universal Design Development. Eden Garden is unique in that it is the first outdoor retail strip in Phnom Penh to operate 24 hours a day. It boasts a good tenant mix of cinemas, bars, clubs, and restaurants, in addition to sprawling public green spaces. The project is within easy reach of aspiring entrepreneurs, with rental prices averaging at USD25 per square metre.</p>
Where to find Cambodia’s most exciting mixed-use developments
<p><img alt="Ron Bakker" src="/documents/10204/0/Ron-Bakker-lead-compressor+1.5.jpg/6dbd70c5-488b-49b3-ad42-9224a225feca?t=1522147695999" />Renowned architect Ron Bakker is expected to grace the second outing of the <a href="http://asiarealestatesummit.com" target="_blank">PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit</a> in November at The Athenee Hotel in Bangkok.</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522818563176_389">The founding partner of PLP will attend the high-level conference on 9 November to discuss the London-based architecture firm’s groundbreaking work on The Edge, the world's most sustainable and smartest building.</p> <p>The famed Amsterdam edifice uses 30,000 sensors that feed into a central smart system, allowing it to intelligently manipulate lighting, humidity, and other conditions, keeping utility costs low.&nbsp;A net-zero energy building, The Edge generates all the clean power it needs.&nbsp;</p> <p>Mounted by Asia’s foremost online property company PropertyGuru, the two-day Asia Real Estate Summit will gather top-level business leaders and decision-makers to exchange empowering ideas on disruption, digital innovation, smart cities and buildings, automation, blockchain, fintech and proptech.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/8-things-we-learned-about-smart-cities-at-the-asia-real-estate-sum-12" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;8 things we learned about smart cities at the Asia Real Estate Summit</strong></a></p> <p>Joining Bakker in the summit is Anthony Arundell, director of smart cities and sustainability for One Bangkok, a new mixed-use development in the Thai capital. He will be speaking in a highly anticipated panel discussion on big data.</p> <p>Sigrid Zialcita, managing director for Asia Pacific research at Cushman &amp; Wakefield, is returning&nbsp;this year to deliver a talk on intelligent facilities management.</p> <p>Ani Bhalekar, the head of Accenture’s Internet of Things and mobile practices for its ASEAN division, is also confirmed to be in attendance.</p> <p>Last year, the Asia Real Estate Summit series welcomed more than 500 delegates and members of the press&nbsp;and 60 expert speakers and thought leaders.</p> <p>Previous keynote speakers and expert speakers at the summit include Dr. Liu Thai Ker, Singapore’s former master architect-planner; Shailesh Rao, board director at Jones Lang LaSalle and former vice-president at Twitter; former Thailand Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij; and Malaysian Deputy Finance Minister YB Dato’ Lee Chee Leong.</p> <p>Held across three cities – Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Singapore – the 2017 Summit series enjoyed the support of top global brands such as Kohler, THAI Airways, Regus, Techsauce, and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).</p>
This is your chance to catch smart building architect Ron Bakker in Bangkok
<p><img alt="Simon Rawlings has served as creative director of David Collins Studio since 2007" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-PORTRAIT-2-compressor.jpg/3afb0046-004a-47f4-9be9-45ec33d3bd45?t=1521543410804" />It takes a designer on Simon Rawlings’ level to know the perfect finished product needs to go beyond a choice of attractive furnishings, textures and materials. An empathic understanding of the client shines through in the Welsh-born interior stylist’s critically acclaimed, star-studded oeuvre.</p> <p>Rawlings has been at the artistic helm of David Collins Studio since its eponymous founder’s passing in 2013. As the London-based design firm’s creative director since 2007, Rawlings led a string of projects that went on to win&nbsp;coveted honours&nbsp;including the coveted Prix Versailles 2016 for Alexander McQueen, Paris and multiple Best Bar in the World gongs for the Artesian at The Langham, London.</p> <p>Rawlings, who has worked for David Collins Studio since the late 1990s, recently put his firm’s stamp on the Ritz-Carlton Residences, a 209-unit luxe residential project lodged in&nbsp;<a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/thailand-real-estate-relentless-expensive-and-highly-desira-13">MahaNakhon</a>, Thailand’s tallest edifice. The residential component of the 76-storey tower, with its Jenga-like, pixelated form,&nbsp;initially presented a challenge to Rawlings but eventually became a showcase of the designer’s penchant for the unexpected.</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">Emotion is very much a part of my design process. I want people to feel different as they come through the door</div> <p>A plan to <a href="https://www.1stdibs.com/introspective-magazine/david-collins-abcdcs-book-review/" target="_blank">create a postcard-size snapshot</a> of the MahaNakhon project evolved into a monograph, ABCDCS, published in 2014. It features a foreword by Madonna, just one of the studio’s famous clients.</p> <p>Whether he is designing a shoe store, sandwich shop, or luxury residences, Rawlings takes into account the power of human feeling into his commissions. His designs aim to please, factoring in practicalities of space to give customers, diners and residents alike the most ambient levels of comfort.&nbsp;</p> <p>Property Report caught up with Rawlings on a recent tour of the Ritz-Carlton Residences at MahaNakhon:</p> <h4><strong>How do you feel about this project now that your role is&nbsp;finished?</strong></h4> <p>What's really amazing about this building is that because of the pixelated design, every apartment layout is almost unique. At the beginning it was a real challenge, but it's actually a very appealing feature. When you visit your neighbor,&nbsp;it’s a completely different apartment.</p> <p>I think the loft-living style that is so common in apartments now is a bit difficult to live in. Very few people want just one big space, so I’ve applied the rules of a house here, with a hallway and separate rooms you can close off.</p> <p><img alt="Rawlings' eye for fashion inspired the unusual combination of muted greens and blues in the shared lounge " src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-2-compressor+%281%29.jpg/c799dc02-c771-4340-8297-6cee973151c8?t=1521546238505" /></p> <h4><strong>Do you have a design philosophy?</strong></h4> <p>The way I approach every project is the same – whether it be private homes, retail, restaurant or hotel design. I first try to understand the feeling I’m looking to create. Emotion is very much a part of my design process. I want people to feel different as they come through the door. I hope there is a feeling of having arrived somewhere special but not intimidating.</p> <p>Then I think about how a space works, and the practicalities of living in it. In a building the size of MahaNakhon I have to be very careful. I want to remember that if you're coming in and out four or five times a day, there would be nothing worse than having a 15-minute walk from the front door to the elevator.</p> <p>The final piece of the puzzle is really giving it a cultural relevance. I always spend time in the country where the project is, embracing and understanding how people live and the materials, the colors, the textures, and how they all come together. Then it evolves into the finished design.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/meet-hong-kong-s-smartest-archite-9" target="_blank"><strong>More: Meet Hong Kong's smartest architect&nbsp;</strong></a></p> <h4>How did you give a sense of cultural relevance in these residences?</h4> <p>I think it’s really important that you wake up knowing where you are in the world. While I certainly didn’t want the design to feel themed or overly Thai, little things like carved tables, the rattan&nbsp;and Thai silk furnishings give you that sense of place.</p> <p>All the art we’ve used is by Thai artists, many of which I found at Chatuchak market and commissioned, briefing them on the design and colour pallet. We've also referenced a panel system a lot, which can be seen in a lot of old Thai architecture and is really beautiful.&nbsp;</p> <h4><strong>You’ve used quite quirky colour combinations in the common areas, how do you know what will work?</strong></h4> <p>I refer a lot to fashion when it comes to colour combinations, because in the world of fashion you can be a little bit braver. While I’ve been a bit bold in the colour selection, they are slightly muted tones, so they have a lovely balance. If I had used sharp colours it wouldn’t work as well.</p> <p>I like to think that I've put together colors in these public areas for people to enjoy that they wouldn't necessarily be brave enough to do in their own apartments.</p> <h4><strong>What’s your biggest challenge when it comes to designing?</strong></h4> <p>We live in a world of crazy social media influence, and with every new project I always remind my team that we’re designing interiors – not photographs. So many images on Instagram look amazing because they have been designed as a photograph, but I want to create spaces for people to live in. People should feel proud to bring friends and family home, but also comfortable enough to take their shoes off and put their feet up. I don’t want it to be precious, I want it to be liveable.&nbsp;</p> <p><em>More images of the Ritz-Carlton Residences below:</em></p> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-3.3-compressor.jpg/7395d1ed-8723-409c-a4d7-5dae41a4cd33?t=1521543890969" /></strong></p> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-8.8-compressor.jpg/384e4803-132c-4d8d-a43a-50f84b7343a0?t=1521628023404" /></p> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-4.4-compressor.jpg/a270c03d-fc34-4bdb-880e-95d99aa9a0f9?t=1521544003384" /></strong></p> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-6.6-compressor.jpg/a85f250c-4ef8-4f23-9ba8-03f1a87f62b6?t=1521544226000" /></p> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-5.5-compressor.jpg/6db119db-d8df-4d7d-8231-30d83bbafe6c?t=1521544119251" /></p> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-7-compressor+%281%29.jpg/617ca9c1-d0c9-4a90-8ef0-185fd59d69b5?t=1521545356647" style="cursor: default; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></p>
A conversation with interior designer to the stars, Simon Rawlings
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/vietbeach.jpg/7964e1f6-99db-428c-8360-7abcd80a2330?t=1523508628636" style="width: 1440px; height: 665px;" /></p> <p>From Myanmar to Vietnam, Southeast Asia’s emerging markets are increasingly opening to foreign investment.&nbsp; Brisk economic growth, improving infrastructure and quality of life are all contributing to growing interest from property buyers looking for a relative bargain.</p> <p>An abundance of new flights to China and thriving tourism sectors have opened up destinations such as Cambodia’s coastal city <a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/6-award-winning-beachfront-properties-in-southeast-a-21">Sihanoukville</a> and Danang in central Vietnam, both of whose property industries are thriving.</p> <p>Yet the lure of being at the forefront of the next property craze is not without risk. Red tape, corruption and onerous regulations continue to represent significant hurdles to smooth investment.</p> <p>In Vietnam, there has been a marked shift in the supply of mid and high end residential property. In the first nine months of 2017, the mid-end residential segment grew to occupy 40 percent of total supply from about 30 percent in 2012, according to Dung Duong, CBRE’s country head of research and consulting services.</p> <p>Conversely, since 2015 there has been a slowdown in high-end properties launched after an intense few years that saw a flurry of premium units hit the market.</p> <p>“Entering 2017, developers have been very cautious and have tended to delay launching high-end products, focusing instead on mid-range properties,” says Duong. “We see there are more and more [purchases] from end users rather than investors.”</p> <p>While Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi are still Vietnam’s most attractive and active property markets, buyers are being drawn to the coastal destinations of Da Nang, Nha Trang and Phu Quoc where the government is on a drive to boost investment and tourism.</p> <p>Danang has grown significantly this year, says Duong, where a string of new condominium and villa launches has fed into “impressive” growth and a robust tourism industry that saw 1.7 million visits in the first nine months this year, up 49 percent on the prior year period.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/why-southeast-asia-is-still-prime-quarry-for-chinese-investors"><strong>More: Southeast Asia is still a prime target for Chinese investors&nbsp;</strong></a></p> <p>Likewise, in Cambodia, the property market in Sihanoukville, the southwestern coastal province, has exploded in the last couple of years as Chinese investors pump money into hotels and casinos.</p> <p>“Land prices within Sihanoukville have rapidly appreciated during the past 12 months… and in recent years, accumulated investment value has reached USD310 million,” according to mid-year review of the province by CBRE Cambodia.</p> <p>Although the Sihanoukville condominium market may still be in its infancy – the first high-rise project was launched there in 2015 – two residential-led projects comprising a total of 1,324 condominium units were announced and both are set to commence construction before the end of 2017.&nbsp;</p> <p>But as Sihanoukville heats up, Phnom Penh’s real estate market is cooling down.</p> <p>The capital’s condominiums have been rising at a remarkable pace in the last few years, etching new shapes in the skyline almost weekly and drawing warnings that the market was overheating – which seem to be now ringing true.</p> <p>“There is an oversupply in the high-end segment of the market, which most Cambodians just simply cannot afford – thus it has been mainly foreign investors buying. Obviously there is a finite number of foreign investors and hence sales have slowed significantly over the last year,” says Ross Wheble, Knight Frank country director for Cambodia.</p> <p>“To be sustainable, the market needs to be driven by domestic demand and developers have now shifted to more affordable projects,” he adds. “We have seen increasing interest from Cambodians for units priced below USD50,000.”</p> <p><img alt="Once a predominantly low-rise city, Phnom Penh is now studded with ambitious skyscrapers" src="/documents/10204/0/phnom+penhytdydt.jpg/9e0e75f1-acda-4462-af25-e62f9f416fec?t=1523507830358" /></p> <p>In Myanmar, where investment poured into Yangon after the country opened and the prices of land and apartments rocketed, the government’s adjusting of the market has made the situation less worrisome, Serge Pun, executive chairman of multinational real estate firm SPA Group, told local media early this year.</p> <p>The country’s 2,000-odd kilometre stretch of coastline, remote and untouched by developers, offers huge potential for tourism and business – if people can get there. Currently, flights and transport to areas such as Dawei, which boasts more than 20 spectacular beaches, is limited.&nbsp;</p> <p>Naturally, developers have a keen interest in land along the almost untouched coast but the area’s ports, roads, power supply and other infrastructure need to be upgraded first.</p> <p>“People are eyeing up the islands in the archipelago,” Hugo Slade, managing director of Slade Property Services, says. “The coastline here is one of Myanmar’s most prized assets, not just for resort development but for the potential in shipping [to China, India, and Bangladesh].”</p> <p>Still, nobody expects Dawei and its coastal counterparts to become an overnight Phuket – or at all for that matter.</p> <p>“Myanmar is such a conservative place,” Slade adds. “So, with any development we don’t believe we will witness the same tourist traits you see in the rest of Southeast Asia.”</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/255811" target="_blank">Issue No. 145 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
In Depth Asia Apr 12, 2018
Why Southeast Asia's beach cities are a major draw for property investors BY George Styllis
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Dubai+investment+lead.jpg/aafa71e2-436a-4ff5-8132-5b38abfe8e97?t=1522240644948" style="width: 1439px; height: 621px;" />Of all the phrases that were aired with the most conviction at Cityscape 2017, the UAE’s annual real estate and infrastructure showcase that took place over five days in late September, “hitting bottom” must have achieved something close to top billing.&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_976">Whether uttered as much in hope as expectation, it was everywhere: in speeches, breakout sessions, sales pitches and lunch-break conversations, as though sentiment alone might be sufficient to drag the city’s property market out of what has been a sluggish period.&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_817">If Cityscape itself is any barometer, though, there are certainly signs that a 36-month period in which values have declined 14 percent on average – and up to 30 percent in the luxury sector – might be nearing a conclusion.&nbsp;</p> <p>The Dubai Land Department reported that off-plan sales at last year’s event, which attracted an impressive 45,500 participants, totalled more than USD236 million, with more sales expected in the subsequent weeks.&nbsp;</p> <p>Most of the headlines focused on the anonymous buyer of a penthouse in Omniyat’s luxury One Palm development for USD27.8 million. But perhaps more indicative of a general upswing was the announcement from Azizi Developments that it had sold out phase one of its USD3.25 billion waterfront project in Dubai.&nbsp;</p> <p>Aldar Properties, whose return to show after a five-year absence was a positive by itself, sold out the first phase of its new Water’s Edge project on Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island, which equates to USD109 million-worth of sales.&nbsp;</p> <p>“We saw a dramatic leap in the number of registered Land Department transactions made for off-plan units,” Lynnette Abad, partner and head of Property Monitor, a UAE-based real estate portal, says. “Permission to sell during the show has acted as a catalyst for investors in the region, and has resulted in a noticeable increase of activity.”</p> <p>The last point is certainly one to take on board. Event-specific deals and innovative packages such as Al Mazaya Holding offering the keys to properties in its Q-Line development in Dubailand with just 20 percent down and a five-year post-handover payment plan does suggest it remains a buyer’s market.&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">Many investors have identified Expo 2020 as the key for driving the market forward</div> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_850">Yet with a raft of new projects and masterplans revealed at the show there was an undeniably more positive mood at last year’s event.&nbsp; Big reveals included the USD2.2 billion, 15,000-unit rejuvenation of Dubai Motor City, a joint venture by Union Properties and the China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC). There was also Klieindhorst Group’s announcement of a “Floating Venice”, a USD680 million island that aims to recreate St Mark’s Square off the coast of Dubai.&nbsp;</p> <p>According to Cityscape Global’s exhibition director Tom Rhodes two factors are responsible for the renewed sense of optimism. “Many investors have identified Expo 2020 as the key for driving the market forward,” he says. “Over the past year, more than 1,200 contracts have been awarded for the Expo 2020 with 47 construction contracts worth AED11 billion (USD3 billion) awarded in January alone.&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_878">“We have also seen the impact that Brexit has had on the regional real estate market. Such is the turbulent geopolitical climate in Europe, the UAE could be viewed as an increasingly attractive market for a safe investment from foreign markets.”</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_880"><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/buyer-blues-in-indone-23" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Buyer blues in Indonesia</strong></a></p> <p>The better news is starting to be reflected in the wider real estate sector. While Faisal Darrani, head of research at property consultants Clutton’s, prefers the word “stabilise” to the phrase “hitting bottom”, he is keen to underline that Dubai is only half-way through its second full property cycle.&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_904">Aside from headline-grabbing figures and announcements at property shows, he paints a more complex picture based on a combination of affordability, location and the value a developer can create in a project.</p> <p>“We’ve experienced three years of price declines in residential capital values and since the last market peak in Q3 2008, values are 30 percent down,” Darrani says. “But those figures mask a much more complex picture. The luxury end of the market is still correcting and units in Burj Khalifa [the world’s tallest building], are as much as 70 percent down from that peak, and villas on The Palm [Jumeirah: a massive manmade archipelago off the Dubai coast] are 33 percent down.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Yet certain locations haven’t moved at all. Anything that is priced under AED800-1,000 per square foot transacts well. And that’s where we’re seeing values hold.”</p> <p><img alt="Unashamedly flashy, the United Arab Emirates offers numerous lifestyle benefits as well as real estate supply that play towards buyers' ideas of how luxury living should be realised" src="/documents/10204/0/2-compressor.jpg/978602b4-8bd1-48a4-b31a-a52d1b2a4f5a?t=1522241086000" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" /></p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_389">Indeed, stability does seem to be entering the very top-end, too, at least in the secondary market. High-end property brokerage<a href="https://www.luxhabitat.ae/"> Luxhabitat </a>has reported that the average price per square foot in the prime segment – which it identifies as units in 12 districts including Al Barari, Downtown Dubai, Dubai Marina, Emirates&nbsp;Hills, Jumeirah, Jumeirah Beach Residences, The Palm Jumeirah and The Lakes – remained at around the USD392 per square foot mark, with a total volume of transactions at USD520 million.</p> <p>As Cityscape underlined, though, it’s the off-plan sector that is bucking most of the trends. In Q1 2017, for instance, leading developer Emaar sold USD1.65 billion worth of property in Dubai, a 44 percent year-on-year increase, while Damac, another property titan, reported a 29 percent rise in off-plan sales between Q4 2016 and Q1 2017. In the depressed market of 2015-2016, analysts Reidin claim that off-plan sales accounted for half of all activity.&nbsp;</p> <p>The economic picture explains most of this data. Dubai has endured a challenging three years, impacted by a fall in the price of oil (on which many companies based in the city rely, even if the city itself no longer does), a rising dollar (against which the Emirati dirham is pegged), and declining GDP, all of which have resulted in large redundancy programmes in the finance, banking, energy and aviation sectors.&nbsp;</p> <p>And although growth predictions for 2017 have been trimmed from 2.5 to 1.5 percent, the International Monetary Fund has indicated the UAE’s economy will grow by 2.5 percent in 2018, driven by rebound in investment, manufacturing and trade. Then there’s Expo 2020, which has already resulted in USD3 billion in infrastructure spending which in turn will create more than 300,000 jobs over the next three years.&nbsp;</p> <p>Adding to all this mix comes an influx of buyers from Asia, and particularly China. Since 2013, Chinese buyers have poured USD2.72 billion into Dubai’s real estate market, while Chinese real estate website juwai.com reports an 80 percent increase in enquiries for UAE properties between 2015 and 2016.</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">Brexit will only enhance the UAE’s prominence within the Middle East as the premier destination</div> <p>According to Bernie Morris, president of the UK, Europe and the Middle East for juwai.com, there is both a push and a pull factor for this upsurge in interest: Brexit reducing the appeal of long-favoured London and the range of opportunities in Dubai itself.&nbsp;</p> <p>“[Brexit] will only enhance the UAE’s prominence within the Middle East as the premier destination,” he says. “With its high-quality new residential construction, the UAE has the perfect product for those Chinese investors who prefer to invest in off-plan or new build property.”</p> <p>Indeed, the prices in Dubai’s prime locations, which hover around USD400 per square foot, certainly look like a better deal than Hong Kong (USD3,000 psf), Singapore (USD1,200) or London (USD2,000).</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/what-you-need-to-know-about-asia-s-final-frontie-4" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;What you need to know about Asia’s final frontiers</strong></a></p> <p>There are other reasons, too. China is the UAE’s second largest trading partner, and there have been numerous high-level joint investments as part of Beijing’s “One Belt, One Road” economic initiative launched in 2013.&nbsp;</p> <p>There is now, for instance, the USD10 billion UAE-China Joint Investment Fund managed by Mubadala Capital, while China’s Cosco Shipping Ports is in the process of launching a dedicated container terminal at Khalifa Port in Abu Dhabi.</p> <p>For those looking to enter this market, there is not only a dizzying array of new properties in the pipeline, but also entire new districts set for completion in the next five years.&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="With grand land reclamation projects like Palm Jumeirah providing room to manoeuvre, there's no chance that Dubai will have any shortage of space for development anytime soon" src="/documents/10204/0/dubai+investment+3.jpg/b19ccd0b-464b-4768-b4ba-e6bc8714d280?t=1522241178400" style="width: 739px; height: 445px;" /></p> <p>Among the most intriguing are Emaar’s Dubai Hills Estate, part of the Mohammed Bin Rashid City project, which comprises villas, townhouses and residential towers, that will, when completed, offer 24,000 homes – and prices are already hovering around USD320 per square foot for the villas, which are set for completion in 2019.<br /> .<br /> Dubai Creek Harbour, also by Emaar, is located on a six-square-kilometre area of land behind the Ras Al Khor Wetland Reserve and will be home to the largest skyscraper in the world and a huge plethora of residential towers and villas.&nbsp;</p> <p>“These premises with views of the new tower are going for USD435 to USD490 per square foot,” says Clutton’s Darrani. “It’s a good example of how developers in Dubai are creating value now, by building billion-dollar monuments, essentially, and more waterfront properties.”</p> <p>Importantly, though, with the population of Dubai expected to climb to nearly five million by 2030, the construction in this phase is more about meeting need than creating it.&nbsp;</p> <p>The pre-crash philosophy of “build it and they will come” has been replaced by a more measured, albeit less quotable philosophy: build it where there’s a need at prices that make sense for as wide a customer base as possible.&nbsp;</p> <p>The ongoing equalisation between supply and demand, in combination with a more promising economic outlook, ought to provide the stability the international investor needs.</p> <h3>Potential flashpoints</h3> <p>Although the overall economic outlook for Dubai looks more positive, there are two key factors that could affect real estate prices in the short-term, says Darrani of Clutton’s:</p> <p><em>On oil price</em></p> <p>“Although it contributes less than 4-5 percent of the country’s GDP, the UAE is home to many jobs that depend on oil, whether directly in the oil and gas sector, to allied industries such as logistics and finance. We’ve seen this impact the job market, especially at the key manager and C-level.”</p> <p><em>On the Qatari diplomatic crisis</em></p> <p>“The UAE’s Gulf neighbour has traditionally been among the top three regional investors into the Dubai real estate market, piling into luxury developments. But that market is now cut off from them. Should the diplomatic tensions persist, it might damage the reputation of the Gulf as a political safe haven – which, of course, has set it apart from the rest of the region.”</p> <h3>Crypto thinking</h3> <p>Considering the recent clampdown on cryptocurrency exchanges in China, perhaps Bitcoin devotees in Asia might be tempted to spend them on The Aston Plaza &amp; Residences.&nbsp;</p> <p>The twin-towered development in Dubai Science Park from British entrepreneur Baroness Michelle Mone is the first in the city to accept Bitcoin as a payment – which coincides with the Dubai Land Registry using blockchain technology to record all local real estate contracts.</p> <p>“Dubai is an exciting place to be if you are interested in blockchain technology and cryptocurrency,” says Mone’s partner Doug Barrowman. “Aston Plaza apartments will be the first property purchase that is 100 percent end-to-end on the blockchain. The transaction starts with a blockchain-based cryptocurrency payment, it finishes with a record of the property purchase on a blockchain-based land-registry ledger.”</p> <p>Prices for the apartments currently start at 32 Bitcoin, although one might expect that to change a few times before a contract is signed.</p> <h3>Dubai's most exciting projects</h3> <h4>One Palm</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/ONE+AT+PALM+JUMEIRAH+3.2.jpg/d8ba2782-526a-4125-9f59-79a7519aa8c5?t=1522244186097" style="width: 740px; height: 276px;" /></p> <div>Developer: Omniyat</div> <div>Unit size: 4,331-29,800 sq ft (402-2,770 sqm)</div> <div>Number of units: 90</div> <div>Price: AED14.8-102 million (USD4-27.7 million)</div> <div>Location: Palm Jumeirah</div> <div>Completion date: 2018</div> <div>X-factor: private jetties for yachts, exquisite views of the Dubai skyline</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h4>The Aston Plaza &amp; Residences</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/ASTON-2-compressor.jpg/e403a304-0196-4a6a-bb1a-126b048568c8?t=1522244219354" style="width: 740px; height: 415px;" /></p> <div>Developer: Aston Developments Ltd</div> <div>Unit size: From 493 sq ft (46 sqm)</div> <div>Number of units: 1,133</div> <div>Price: From 33 bitcoins (USD203,000)</div> <div>Location: Dubai Science Park</div> <div>Completion date: 2019</div> <div>X-factor: first major residential development to accept payment in cryptocurrency</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h4>Dubai Hills Estate</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/DUBAI-HILLS-ESTATE-3-compressor+%281%29.jpg/f45c9cf1-0087-4ac2-8aad-7fc41538802e?t=1522244247527" style="width: 740px; height: 417px;" /></p> <div>Developer: Emaar, Meraas Holding</div> <div>Unit size: 605-3535 sq ft (56-328 sqm)</div> <div>Number of units: 24,000</div> <div>Price (avg): USD320 per sq ft (villas)</div> <div>Location: Mohammed Bin Rashid (MBR) City</div> <div>Completion date: 2019</div> <div>X-factor: 18-hole championship golf course, high-end retail centres</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h4>Oia Residences</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/OIA-RESIDENCE-2-compressor.jpg/481c77d9-b3d1-430d-993b-ad4fbdb2ed53?t=1522244271474" style="width: 740px; height: 444px;" /></p> <div>Developer: Union Properties</div> <div>Unit size: 810-2,930 sq ft (75-272 sqm)</div> <div>Number of units: 269</div> <div>Total development value: AED450 million (USD122 million)&nbsp;</div> <div>Location: Dubai Motor City&nbsp;</div> <div>Completion date: 2018</div> <div>X-factor: contemporary Greek-inspired design, proximity to Dubai Autodrome</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h4>Creek Rise</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/CREEK-RISE-2-compressor.jpg/958625a3-19c6-47cf-99fd-4426ce5b2a5c?t=1522244295440" style="width: 740px; height: 535px;" /></p> <div>Developer: Emaar</div> <div>Unit size: From 831 sq ft (77 sqm)<span style="white-space:pre"> </span>&nbsp;</div> <div>Number of units: 524</div> <div>Price: From AED957,888 (USD261,000) SD490 per square foot,”</div> <div>Location: Dubai Creek Harbour</div> <div>Completion date: 2021</div> <div>X-factor: The Tower, a 928-metre-high structure with rotating observation deck</div> &nbsp; <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/255811" target="_blank">Issue No. 145 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
Rest of Asia In Depth Mar 28, 2018
Why Dubai is still proving popular with overseas buyers BY John Hamilton

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With more than 40 years experience spearheading some of the biggest real estate developers in Thailand and Hong Kong, Chris Delaney is better placed than most to ponder on the current state of Thailand’s property market. Now leading the line at Sunplay Bangsaray, a high-end lifestyle community on Thailand’s Eastern Seaboard, he spoke to us about the benefits of being ahead of the game and targeting one of the region’s fastest-growing consumer markets: the over 50s. 

Chris Delaney, Managing Director of Sunplay Asia

1. How have buyer expectations changed over the years for luxury real estate in Thailand? 

Consumers nowadays are well-informed and discerning. Having more high-end choices raises the bar for everyone, and competition has definitely improved the way developers approach the market. Product standards are therefore far more cosmopolitan than they were 10 years ago, which reflects current market expectations for sophistication, elegance, innovative design and superlative service.

2. What impact have these heightened expectations had on how developers approach projects? 

Detailed research is necessary prior to determining target market segment requirements. Attention to detail in software resources, such as concierge services and discreet billing systems, is now paramount and represent the norm rather than the exception. Simply selecting talented architects and delivering high-end finishes are no longer sufficient; the end product must be as seamless an experience as a stay in a five-star hotel, with continuity guaranteed. Buyers need to trust that the lifestyle and services they invest in will be delivered consistently over time. 

3. How do you balance targeting both local and international buyers and what are the biggest obstacles? 

We are no longer in the business of selling bricks and mortar, but rather creating a lifestyle targeting a mature client base that values not only quality but also consistency and continuity. The little touches that say “welcome home” such as having the staff greet you by name and preparing your favourite flowers and foods in your residence before you arrive, are appreciated by all clients, whether local or international. Ultimately we all want the same things from a lifestyle investment – peace of mind, the feeling of being in a home away from home and knowing that we have made a sound investment.  

More: Could this be Thailand's next investment hotspot?

4. Why is senior living finally taking off in Thailand and Southeast Asia?

People are living longer and staying healthier thanks to general awareness and advances in medical sciences. In this respect, Thailand is fortunate to have a favourable cost of living and world-class medical facilities, as well as being an excellent transportation hub. Add to that the outdoor sports-friendly climate and hospitality-minded Thai nature, and it is clear that the Kingdom ticks all the boxes for a very pleasant retirement. The Thai government recognises this growth trend, and now offers retirement visas catering specifically to this growing market.

5. How can developers capitalise on this trend? 

Developer awareness of changing trends within the very broad retirement category and government initiatives to support industry growth will benefit those who catch the wave and respond to the changes in a timely manner.

Investing well on Thailand’s Eastern Seaboard

From the paradisiacal islands in the Andaman Sea to the vibrant Eastern Seaboard, Thailand has long been regarded as Asia’s premier resort property destination. Nowadays, many affluent investors not only look for luxury real estate in a prime location, but also require amenities that support an action-packed lifestyle.
 
Whether for sport or fitness, personal development or health, relaxation or fun,  Sunplay Bangsaray — an active lifestyle community for the over-50s located on Thailand’s Eastern Seaboard with stunning views of the coast — provides plenty of lifestyle options complemented by a full range of modern luxury facilities. The onsite Sunplay Club features a superbly equipped fitness centre, yoga studio, and large freeform swimming pool.
 
Bangsaray is an emerging destination that offers a variety of activities and attractions for residents fond of watersports and physical activities, with 10 golf courses in the area, as well as multiple options for sailing, biking, running and hiking. 

For more information on one of the Eastern Seaboard’s most exclusive lifestyle communities, visit sunplay.asia

<p>With more than 40 years experience spearheading some of the biggest real estate developers in Thailand and Hong Kong, Chris Delaney is better placed than most to ponder on the current state of Thailand’s property market. Now leading the line at Sunplay Bangsaray, a high-end lifestyle community on Thailand’s Eastern Seaboard, he spoke to us about the benefits of being ahead of the game and targeting one of the region’s fastest-growing consumer markets: the over 50s.&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="Chris Delaney, Managing Director of Sunplay Asia" src="/documents/10204/0/CVN_5994.jpg/d9e6fc3b-07d0-4aa9-8f6f-9906f0bc2912?t=1522053739534" /></p> <h3><strong>1. How have buyer expectations changed over the years for </strong><strong>luxury</strong><strong> real estate in Thailand?&nbsp;</strong></h3> <p>Consumers nowadays are well-informed and discerning. Having more high-end choices raises the bar for everyone, and competition has definitely improved the way developers approach the market. Product standards are therefore far more cosmopolitan than they were 10 years ago, which reflects current market expectations for sophistication, elegance, innovative design and superlative service.</p> <h3>2. What impact have these heightened expectations had on how developers approach projects?&nbsp;</h3> <p>Detailed research is necessary prior to determining target market segment requirements. Attention to detail in software resources, such as concierge services and discreet billing systems, is now paramount and represent the norm rather than the exception. Simply selecting talented architects and delivering high-end finishes are no longer sufficient; the end product must be as seamless an experience as a stay in a five-star hotel, with continuity guaranteed. Buyers need to trust that the lifestyle and services they invest in will be delivered consistently over time.&nbsp;</p> <h3>3. How do you balance targeting both local and international buyers and what are the biggest obstacles?&nbsp;</h3> <p>We are no longer in the business of selling bricks and mortar, but rather creating a lifestyle targeting a mature client base that values not only quality but also consistency and continuity. The little touches that say “welcome home” such as having the staff greet you by name and preparing your favourite flowers and foods in your residence before you arrive, are appreciated by all clients, whether local or international. Ultimately we all want the same things from a lifestyle investment – peace of mind, the feeling of being in a home away from home and knowing that we have made a sound investment.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/could-this-be-thailand-s-next-investment-hotsp-10"><strong>More: Could this be Thailand's next investment hotspot?</strong></a></p> <h3>4. Why is senior living finally taking off in Thailand and Southeast Asia?</h3> <p>People are living longer and staying healthier thanks to general awareness and advances in medical sciences. In this respect, Thailand is fortunate to have a favourable cost of living and world-class medical facilities, as well as being an excellent transportation hub. Add to that the outdoor sports-friendly climate and hospitality-minded Thai nature, and it is clear that the Kingdom ticks all the boxes for a very pleasant retirement. The Thai government recognises this growth trend, and now offers retirement visas catering specifically to this growing market.</p> <h3>5. How can developers capitalise on this trend?&nbsp;</h3> <p>Developer awareness of changing trends within the very broad retirement category and government initiatives to support industry growth will benefit those who catch the wave and respond to the changes in a timely manner.</p> <h3>Investing well on Thailand’s Eastern Seaboard</h3> <p>From the paradisiacal islands in the Andaman Sea to the vibrant Eastern Seaboard, Thailand has long been regarded as Asia’s premier resort property destination. Nowadays, many affluent investors not only look for luxury real estate in a prime location, but also require amenities that support an action-packed lifestyle.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Whether for sport or fitness, personal development or health, relaxation or fun,&nbsp; Sunplay Bangsaray — an active lifestyle community for the over-50s located on Thailand’s Eastern Seaboard with stunning views of the coast — provides plenty of lifestyle options complemented by a full range of modern luxury facilities. The onsite Sunplay Club features a superbly equipped fitness centre, yoga studio, and large freeform swimming pool.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Bangsaray is an emerging destination that offers a variety of activities and attractions for residents fond of watersports and physical activities, with 10 golf courses in the area, as well as multiple options for sailing, biking, running and hiking.<span style="font-family: &quot;bentonsans cond&quot;; font-size: 17px;">&nbsp;</span></p> <p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 10px 0px 30px; line-height: 1.42857; font-family: &quot;bentonsans cond&quot;; font-size: 17px;"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">For more information on one of the Eastern Seaboard’s most exclusive lifestyle communities, visit&nbsp;</em></strong><a href="http://sunplay.asia/" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(170, 33, 33); text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">sunplay</em></strong></a><a href="http://sunplay.asia/" style="box-sizing: border-box; background-color: transparent; color: rgb(170, 33, 33); text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><strong style="box-sizing: border-box;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box;">.asia</em></strong></a></p>
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Thailand Interviews Mar 26, 2018
Five minutes with one of Asia’s most experienced developers
Quick-fire insights into Thai real estate, retirement properties and savvier consumers
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<p><img alt="Hong Kong's obvious appeal has made it one of the hottest and highest-priced real estate markets on the planet" src="/documents/10204/0/cool-run-ins-lead-2-compressor.jpg/51af3b06-8f41-4aa7-a817-fd681f0e1520?t=1524115986650" style="width: 1439px; height: 677px;" />It would be fair to say that Singapore’s famously stringent cooling measures haven’t always made those inside the country’s real estate sector feel warm and fuzzy.&nbsp;</p> <p>But as the market in the Lion City displays signs of improving vitality while showing demonstrable value, fairness and sustainability – especially in comparison to regional rivals such as Hong Kong – there have been converts to the cooling measures cause.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>When the country’s government first started using a firmer hand to stabilise the market, property prices were escalating at a dramatic rate, rising by up to 60 percent between 2009 and 2013.</p> <p>The government’s application of icy water on the overheating market through measures such as raising the rates for Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) was strong and decisive – and resulted in home prices dropping for a record 15th quarter in June 2017.&nbsp;</p> <p>Despite pressure from developers and others who accuse the government of presiding over a sector that shows only very timid signs of life, cooling measures are likely to be in place for some time to come.&nbsp;</p> <p>In March this year, the Singapore government reduced stamp duty imposed on sellers and some mortgage restrictions. That helped stoke optimism that the country’s property market is rebounding, with home sales jumping and developers showing more aggression at land auctions.&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/inside-one-of-singapore-s-strangest-hom-8" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Inside one of Singapore's strangest homes</strong></a></p> <p>Ravi Menon, managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, however, quashed any notion that cooling measures were on their way out. “Mortgage rates are very low,” he says at the release of the bank’s annual report in June. “And the risk of a renewed unsustainable surge in property prices is not trivial.”</p> <p>Indeed, few would argue that the government has not achieved what it set out to when it stepped in to apply some correction to the market.</p> <p>“Despite the rolling out of tax-based and other restrictive policies by various governments in other countries to cool their housing markets, Singapore seems to be the only major market where prices are effectively contained,” says Christine Li, director and head of research at Cushman &amp; Wakefield Singapore.</p> <p>“As of 2016, Singapore’s housing price to income ratio of 4.8 is the lowest among the global “superstar” cities such as New York, London and Hong Kong – the latter has a ratio of 18.1 – thus making Singapore an attractive market in terms of value.”</p> <p>“The cooling measures have been very successful,” adds Alex Shlaen, managing director at Panache Management, a luxury brands and investment advisor. “Probably even over-successful. The government dealt with a shortage of supply by adding significantly to the HDB (Housing Development Board) government-subsidised public housing. It was the luxury market which was the main target and the main victim. But the prices of luxury properties are now among the lowest in the world relative to similar top locations.”</p> <p><img alt="The Singapore government's attempts to cool the country's property sector are widely viewed as being successful" src="/documents/10204/0/cool-run-ins-singapore-compressor.jpg/bccc90f0-8edf-4118-85ac-93e073b2f90e?t=1524115427281" /></p> <p>Yet while even the strongest critics of Singapore’s cooling measures at least acknowledge their efficacy, it’s a hugely different story in Hong Kong where attempts to restore sanity to an overheated market have largely failed. In the view of many experts, in fact, the demand suppression measures enacted by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority have only succeeded in making matters more problematic.</p> <p>“They have failed to rein in property prices,” says Denis Ma, head of research for JLL Hong Kong. “And, in our opinion have made the situation worse by shutting down the secondary market.”</p> <p>Housing prices in Hong Kong have increased by as much as 80 percent since the government started introducing cooling measures in late 2009. These include an array of stamp duty levies and reduced borrowing capacity in the form of lower LTV ratios and stress-tests of debt-servicing ratios.&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">While even the strongest critics of Singapore’s cooling measures at least acknowledge their efficacy, it’s a hugely different story in Hong Kong</div> <p>However, these measures have disproportionately affected buyers in the secondary market, notes Christopher Dillon, author of the real estate guide Landed Hong Kong.</p> <p>"Developers now offer financing packages that are outside the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's regulations,” he says. “These packages make new homes far more attractive than pre-owned ones. That's crushed volumes in the secondary market.”</p> <p>“Housing prices and volumes use to correlate well,” agrees Ma. “However, since the government introduced these measures, this relationship has been distorted; volumes down but prices up!&nbsp;</p> <p>“The biggest problems with the government’s measures is clearly that they’ve been ineffective and have locked out a lot of people from getting on the housing ladder. And for a lot of these people, it’s not necessarily that they don’t have the ability to service a mortgage. Rather it’s the significant increase in upfront transaction costs that sends them to the sidelines.”</p> <p>Hong Kong’s cooling measures have also missed a key target. “Tighter mortgage regulations have little effect on cash buyers,” observes Dillon.</p> <p>Cooling measures, by their very nature, are not intended to excite. They are specifically designed as a way of placing barriers in front of speculators and developers: hardly a sexy recipe. Nevertheless, if applied correctly and consistently, they can provide a necessary pressure valve. In Singapore, this valve seems to be having its intended impact. In Hong Kong, the apparatus appears too flimsy to handle the heat.</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/255811" target="_blank">Issue No. 145 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
Cooling measures in Hong Kong and Singapore: what works, what doesn't
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/vietbeach.jpg/7964e1f6-99db-428c-8360-7abcd80a2330?t=1523508628636" style="width: 1440px; height: 665px;" /></p> <p>From Myanmar to Vietnam, Southeast Asia’s emerging markets are increasingly opening to foreign investment.&nbsp; Brisk economic growth, improving infrastructure and quality of life are all contributing to growing interest from property buyers looking for a relative bargain.</p> <p>An abundance of new flights to China and thriving tourism sectors have opened up destinations such as Cambodia’s coastal city <a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/6-award-winning-beachfront-properties-in-southeast-a-21">Sihanoukville</a> and Danang in central Vietnam, both of whose property industries are thriving.</p> <p>Yet the lure of being at the forefront of the next property craze is not without risk. Red tape, corruption and onerous regulations continue to represent significant hurdles to smooth investment.</p> <p>In Vietnam, there has been a marked shift in the supply of mid and high end residential property. In the first nine months of 2017, the mid-end residential segment grew to occupy 40 percent of total supply from about 30 percent in 2012, according to Dung Duong, CBRE’s country head of research and consulting services.</p> <p>Conversely, since 2015 there has been a slowdown in high-end properties launched after an intense few years that saw a flurry of premium units hit the market.</p> <p>“Entering 2017, developers have been very cautious and have tended to delay launching high-end products, focusing instead on mid-range properties,” says Duong. “We see there are more and more [purchases] from end users rather than investors.”</p> <p>While Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi are still Vietnam’s most attractive and active property markets, buyers are being drawn to the coastal destinations of Da Nang, Nha Trang and Phu Quoc where the government is on a drive to boost investment and tourism.</p> <p>Danang has grown significantly this year, says Duong, where a string of new condominium and villa launches has fed into “impressive” growth and a robust tourism industry that saw 1.7 million visits in the first nine months this year, up 49 percent on the prior year period.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/why-southeast-asia-is-still-prime-quarry-for-chinese-investors"><strong>More: Southeast Asia is still a prime target for Chinese investors&nbsp;</strong></a></p> <p>Likewise, in Cambodia, the property market in Sihanoukville, the southwestern coastal province, has exploded in the last couple of years as Chinese investors pump money into hotels and casinos.</p> <p>“Land prices within Sihanoukville have rapidly appreciated during the past 12 months… and in recent years, accumulated investment value has reached USD310 million,” according to mid-year review of the province by CBRE Cambodia.</p> <p>Although the Sihanoukville condominium market may still be in its infancy – the first high-rise project was launched there in 2015 – two residential-led projects comprising a total of 1,324 condominium units were announced and both are set to commence construction before the end of 2017.&nbsp;</p> <p>But as Sihanoukville heats up, Phnom Penh’s real estate market is cooling down.</p> <p>The capital’s condominiums have been rising at a remarkable pace in the last few years, etching new shapes in the skyline almost weekly and drawing warnings that the market was overheating – which seem to be now ringing true.</p> <p>“There is an oversupply in the high-end segment of the market, which most Cambodians just simply cannot afford – thus it has been mainly foreign investors buying. Obviously there is a finite number of foreign investors and hence sales have slowed significantly over the last year,” says Ross Wheble, Knight Frank country director for Cambodia.</p> <p>“To be sustainable, the market needs to be driven by domestic demand and developers have now shifted to more affordable projects,” he adds. “We have seen increasing interest from Cambodians for units priced below USD50,000.”</p> <p><img alt="Once a predominantly low-rise city, Phnom Penh is now studded with ambitious skyscrapers" src="/documents/10204/0/phnom+penhytdydt.jpg/9e0e75f1-acda-4462-af25-e62f9f416fec?t=1523507830358" /></p> <p>In Myanmar, where investment poured into Yangon after the country opened and the prices of land and apartments rocketed, the government’s adjusting of the market has made the situation less worrisome, Serge Pun, executive chairman of multinational real estate firm SPA Group, told local media early this year.</p> <p>The country’s 2,000-odd kilometre stretch of coastline, remote and untouched by developers, offers huge potential for tourism and business – if people can get there. Currently, flights and transport to areas such as Dawei, which boasts more than 20 spectacular beaches, is limited.&nbsp;</p> <p>Naturally, developers have a keen interest in land along the almost untouched coast but the area’s ports, roads, power supply and other infrastructure need to be upgraded first.</p> <p>“People are eyeing up the islands in the archipelago,” Hugo Slade, managing director of Slade Property Services, says. “The coastline here is one of Myanmar’s most prized assets, not just for resort development but for the potential in shipping [to China, India, and Bangladesh].”</p> <p>Still, nobody expects Dawei and its coastal counterparts to become an overnight Phuket – or at all for that matter.</p> <p>“Myanmar is such a conservative place,” Slade adds. “So, with any development we don’t believe we will witness the same tourist traits you see in the rest of Southeast Asia.”</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/255811" target="_blank">Issue No. 145 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
Why Southeast Asia's beach cities are a major draw for property investors
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Precious-China-lead-2-compressor.jpg/2e22a5e6-c9a5-4c1a-9848-0f98d3e07499?t=1522906993622" style="width: 1439px; height: 661px;" />The flag-waving Chinese tour guides that flood Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports typically follow a tightly marshalled route around Thailand.&nbsp;</p> <p>Nearly all are herded onto buses and out of the capital to Hua Hin or Pattaya, just a few hours away. Many then catch a flight to Chiang Mai or Phuket. Some 9.5 million Chinese were expected to visit Thailand in 2017, according to the Ministry of Tourism – a staggering increase on the less than three million than visited only five years ago.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Much of the sales in Thailand are riding on the back of tourism,” says Cobby Leathers, head of international business at Sansiri, a leading Thai developer, which opened three new China offices this year. “One thing that stands out with our Chinese buyers is that we see them purchasing across all of our key local markets, namely Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Hua Hin, Pattaya and Phuket.”</p> <p>Although Chinese property portal Juwai.com reported that growth in Chinese inquiries across all markets slowed this year after Beijing began strictly enforcing controls on cash flows out of the country, Southeast Asia – and particularly Thailand and Vietnam – are still prime quarry for investors from the Middle Kingdom.</p> <p>Thailand jumped three places to third on the list of top destinations for Chinese buyers in the second quarter – only the US and Australia rank higher – while Vietnam has made a surprising leap in popularity as a property investment destination among mainlanders.&nbsp;</p> <p>Enquiries for Vietnam by Chinese grew a staggering 442 percent between January and May in 2017, Juwai.com data shows. Although geographically close, Vietnam was the subject of a flurry of negative headlines in China the year before after anti-Chinese riots over a territorial dispute in the South China Sea left more than 20 people dead and over 100 injured.&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/what-you-need-to-know-about-asia-s-final-frontie-4" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;What you need to know about Asia’s final frontiers</strong></a></p> <p>Although many Chinese cancelled their holidays to Vietnam in the immediate aftermath, three years on and the negative sentiment appears to have somewhat subsided, according to Juwai.com’s CEO Carrie Law.</p> <p>“There is always some impact, because angry headlines tend to make some buyers cautious. However, buyer demand has nonetheless continued to grow strongly,” she says. “Vietnam has catapulted from the thirty-third most popular country for Chinese international property buyers to the tenth over the past two years.”</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">Aside from Thailand, only Malaysia ranks higher than Vietnam in terms of Chinese interest</div> <p>Newly relaxed property laws have proven a major market incentive. In 2015, the central government passed a law that means anyone with a valid visa can now buy property with a lease of up to 50 years. Previously, foreign buyers were required to hold a work visa and had to have already lived in the country for one year.&nbsp;</p> <p>Aside from Thailand, only Malaysia ranks higher than Vietnam in terms of Chinese interest, but it’s been a mixed year for property sales on the Malay Peninsula.&nbsp;</p> <p>Although analysts report robust Chinese demand, particularly in Kuala Lumpur, the huge Chinese developments in Johor at Iskandar facing Singapore – dubbed the ‘next Shenzhen’ – have reportedly faced sluggish demand as buyers have struggled to get their yuan out of the country amid tighter controls by Beijing.&nbsp;</p> <p>Forest City by Country Garden – the biggest of them all with 700,000 new inhabitants targeted by 2050 – has faced the bulk of negative headlines as many Chinese buyers desperately try to recoup their deposits after struggling and failing to make payment instalments.</p> <p><img alt="Areas such as Johor in Malaysia have gone the extra mile to attract Chinese investment by easing the way for joint venture developments" src="/documents/10204/0/Precious-China-2-compressor.jpg/61d2427d-fa53-434e-b1dd-09c1cd04ddb4?t=1522907048624" /></p> <p>Country Garden has advertised the project based on the key selling point that it lies just a few kilometres from Singapore, a market which retains appeal for Chinese due to its wealth, stability and Mandarin-speaking population.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>“I think it is important to note that Forest City represents a long-term vision for the region with an expected build-out of 20 to 30 years,” said Michael Grove, director of the Shanghai office of Sasaki which designed the project, which includes four man-made islands.</p> <p>Singapore, despite its tiny size, itself ranks as the fourth-most popular investment destination in Southeast Asia among Chinese buyers. After that, the archipelago nations of Indonesia and the Philippines come in as the next most popular among Chinese buyers, and then emerging markets Cambodia and Laos.</p> <p>Chinese have traditionally been heavy investors in Cambodia’s main export industry – garments – building and running dozens of factories on the outskirts of Phnom Penh, but until recently housing development was dominated by South Korean firms, not Chinese. That’s changing quickly, says Ross Wheble, director of Knight Frank’s Phnom Penh office.</p> <p>“It’s only over the last 18 months or so that we’ve seen an increasing number of Chinese developers entering the market and thus there has been an increase in the number of Chinese investors buying condominiums,” he adds.</p> <p>While Chinese visitors may not flock other regional airports in quite the same way they do in Thailand, there’s little doubt that the country’s investors remain intent on planting their flags in property markets around Southeast Asia.&nbsp;</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/255811" target="_blank">Issue No. 145 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
Southeast Asia is still a prime target for Chinese property investors
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Dubai+investment+lead.jpg/aafa71e2-436a-4ff5-8132-5b38abfe8e97?t=1522240644948" style="width: 1439px; height: 621px;" />Of all the phrases that were aired with the most conviction at Cityscape 2017, the UAE’s annual real estate and infrastructure showcase that took place over five days in late September, “hitting bottom” must have achieved something close to top billing.&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_976">Whether uttered as much in hope as expectation, it was everywhere: in speeches, breakout sessions, sales pitches and lunch-break conversations, as though sentiment alone might be sufficient to drag the city’s property market out of what has been a sluggish period.&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_817">If Cityscape itself is any barometer, though, there are certainly signs that a 36-month period in which values have declined 14 percent on average – and up to 30 percent in the luxury sector – might be nearing a conclusion.&nbsp;</p> <p>The Dubai Land Department reported that off-plan sales at last year’s event, which attracted an impressive 45,500 participants, totalled more than USD236 million, with more sales expected in the subsequent weeks.&nbsp;</p> <p>Most of the headlines focused on the anonymous buyer of a penthouse in Omniyat’s luxury One Palm development for USD27.8 million. But perhaps more indicative of a general upswing was the announcement from Azizi Developments that it had sold out phase one of its USD3.25 billion waterfront project in Dubai.&nbsp;</p> <p>Aldar Properties, whose return to show after a five-year absence was a positive by itself, sold out the first phase of its new Water’s Edge project on Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island, which equates to USD109 million-worth of sales.&nbsp;</p> <p>“We saw a dramatic leap in the number of registered Land Department transactions made for off-plan units,” Lynnette Abad, partner and head of Property Monitor, a UAE-based real estate portal, says. “Permission to sell during the show has acted as a catalyst for investors in the region, and has resulted in a noticeable increase of activity.”</p> <p>The last point is certainly one to take on board. Event-specific deals and innovative packages such as Al Mazaya Holding offering the keys to properties in its Q-Line development in Dubailand with just 20 percent down and a five-year post-handover payment plan does suggest it remains a buyer’s market.&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">Many investors have identified Expo 2020 as the key for driving the market forward</div> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_850">Yet with a raft of new projects and masterplans revealed at the show there was an undeniably more positive mood at last year’s event.&nbsp; Big reveals included the USD2.2 billion, 15,000-unit rejuvenation of Dubai Motor City, a joint venture by Union Properties and the China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC). There was also Klieindhorst Group’s announcement of a “Floating Venice”, a USD680 million island that aims to recreate St Mark’s Square off the coast of Dubai.&nbsp;</p> <p>According to Cityscape Global’s exhibition director Tom Rhodes two factors are responsible for the renewed sense of optimism. “Many investors have identified Expo 2020 as the key for driving the market forward,” he says. “Over the past year, more than 1,200 contracts have been awarded for the Expo 2020 with 47 construction contracts worth AED11 billion (USD3 billion) awarded in January alone.&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_878">“We have also seen the impact that Brexit has had on the regional real estate market. Such is the turbulent geopolitical climate in Europe, the UAE could be viewed as an increasingly attractive market for a safe investment from foreign markets.”</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_880"><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/buyer-blues-in-indone-23" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Buyer blues in Indonesia</strong></a></p> <p>The better news is starting to be reflected in the wider real estate sector. While Faisal Darrani, head of research at property consultants Clutton’s, prefers the word “stabilise” to the phrase “hitting bottom”, he is keen to underline that Dubai is only half-way through its second full property cycle.&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_904">Aside from headline-grabbing figures and announcements at property shows, he paints a more complex picture based on a combination of affordability, location and the value a developer can create in a project.</p> <p>“We’ve experienced three years of price declines in residential capital values and since the last market peak in Q3 2008, values are 30 percent down,” Darrani says. “But those figures mask a much more complex picture. The luxury end of the market is still correcting and units in Burj Khalifa [the world’s tallest building], are as much as 70 percent down from that peak, and villas on The Palm [Jumeirah: a massive manmade archipelago off the Dubai coast] are 33 percent down.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Yet certain locations haven’t moved at all. Anything that is priced under AED800-1,000 per square foot transacts well. And that’s where we’re seeing values hold.”</p> <p><img alt="Unashamedly flashy, the United Arab Emirates offers numerous lifestyle benefits as well as real estate supply that play towards buyers' ideas of how luxury living should be realised" src="/documents/10204/0/2-compressor.jpg/978602b4-8bd1-48a4-b31a-a52d1b2a4f5a?t=1522241086000" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" /></p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522838893232_389">Indeed, stability does seem to be entering the very top-end, too, at least in the secondary market. High-end property brokerage<a href="https://www.luxhabitat.ae/"> Luxhabitat </a>has reported that the average price per square foot in the prime segment – which it identifies as units in 12 districts including Al Barari, Downtown Dubai, Dubai Marina, Emirates&nbsp;Hills, Jumeirah, Jumeirah Beach Residences, The Palm Jumeirah and The Lakes – remained at around the USD392 per square foot mark, with a total volume of transactions at USD520 million.</p> <p>As Cityscape underlined, though, it’s the off-plan sector that is bucking most of the trends. In Q1 2017, for instance, leading developer Emaar sold USD1.65 billion worth of property in Dubai, a 44 percent year-on-year increase, while Damac, another property titan, reported a 29 percent rise in off-plan sales between Q4 2016 and Q1 2017. In the depressed market of 2015-2016, analysts Reidin claim that off-plan sales accounted for half of all activity.&nbsp;</p> <p>The economic picture explains most of this data. Dubai has endured a challenging three years, impacted by a fall in the price of oil (on which many companies based in the city rely, even if the city itself no longer does), a rising dollar (against which the Emirati dirham is pegged), and declining GDP, all of which have resulted in large redundancy programmes in the finance, banking, energy and aviation sectors.&nbsp;</p> <p>And although growth predictions for 2017 have been trimmed from 2.5 to 1.5 percent, the International Monetary Fund has indicated the UAE’s economy will grow by 2.5 percent in 2018, driven by rebound in investment, manufacturing and trade. Then there’s Expo 2020, which has already resulted in USD3 billion in infrastructure spending which in turn will create more than 300,000 jobs over the next three years.&nbsp;</p> <p>Adding to all this mix comes an influx of buyers from Asia, and particularly China. Since 2013, Chinese buyers have poured USD2.72 billion into Dubai’s real estate market, while Chinese real estate website juwai.com reports an 80 percent increase in enquiries for UAE properties between 2015 and 2016.</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">Brexit will only enhance the UAE’s prominence within the Middle East as the premier destination</div> <p>According to Bernie Morris, president of the UK, Europe and the Middle East for juwai.com, there is both a push and a pull factor for this upsurge in interest: Brexit reducing the appeal of long-favoured London and the range of opportunities in Dubai itself.&nbsp;</p> <p>“[Brexit] will only enhance the UAE’s prominence within the Middle East as the premier destination,” he says. “With its high-quality new residential construction, the UAE has the perfect product for those Chinese investors who prefer to invest in off-plan or new build property.”</p> <p>Indeed, the prices in Dubai’s prime locations, which hover around USD400 per square foot, certainly look like a better deal than Hong Kong (USD3,000 psf), Singapore (USD1,200) or London (USD2,000).</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/what-you-need-to-know-about-asia-s-final-frontie-4" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;What you need to know about Asia’s final frontiers</strong></a></p> <p>There are other reasons, too. China is the UAE’s second largest trading partner, and there have been numerous high-level joint investments as part of Beijing’s “One Belt, One Road” economic initiative launched in 2013.&nbsp;</p> <p>There is now, for instance, the USD10 billion UAE-China Joint Investment Fund managed by Mubadala Capital, while China’s Cosco Shipping Ports is in the process of launching a dedicated container terminal at Khalifa Port in Abu Dhabi.</p> <p>For those looking to enter this market, there is not only a dizzying array of new properties in the pipeline, but also entire new districts set for completion in the next five years.&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="With grand land reclamation projects like Palm Jumeirah providing room to manoeuvre, there's no chance that Dubai will have any shortage of space for development anytime soon" src="/documents/10204/0/dubai+investment+3.jpg/b19ccd0b-464b-4768-b4ba-e6bc8714d280?t=1522241178400" style="width: 739px; height: 445px;" /></p> <p>Among the most intriguing are Emaar’s Dubai Hills Estate, part of the Mohammed Bin Rashid City project, which comprises villas, townhouses and residential towers, that will, when completed, offer 24,000 homes – and prices are already hovering around USD320 per square foot for the villas, which are set for completion in 2019.<br /> .<br /> Dubai Creek Harbour, also by Emaar, is located on a six-square-kilometre area of land behind the Ras Al Khor Wetland Reserve and will be home to the largest skyscraper in the world and a huge plethora of residential towers and villas.&nbsp;</p> <p>“These premises with views of the new tower are going for USD435 to USD490 per square foot,” says Clutton’s Darrani. “It’s a good example of how developers in Dubai are creating value now, by building billion-dollar monuments, essentially, and more waterfront properties.”</p> <p>Importantly, though, with the population of Dubai expected to climb to nearly five million by 2030, the construction in this phase is more about meeting need than creating it.&nbsp;</p> <p>The pre-crash philosophy of “build it and they will come” has been replaced by a more measured, albeit less quotable philosophy: build it where there’s a need at prices that make sense for as wide a customer base as possible.&nbsp;</p> <p>The ongoing equalisation between supply and demand, in combination with a more promising economic outlook, ought to provide the stability the international investor needs.</p> <h3>Potential flashpoints</h3> <p>Although the overall economic outlook for Dubai looks more positive, there are two key factors that could affect real estate prices in the short-term, says Darrani of Clutton’s:</p> <p><em>On oil price</em></p> <p>“Although it contributes less than 4-5 percent of the country’s GDP, the UAE is home to many jobs that depend on oil, whether directly in the oil and gas sector, to allied industries such as logistics and finance. We’ve seen this impact the job market, especially at the key manager and C-level.”</p> <p><em>On the Qatari diplomatic crisis</em></p> <p>“The UAE’s Gulf neighbour has traditionally been among the top three regional investors into the Dubai real estate market, piling into luxury developments. But that market is now cut off from them. Should the diplomatic tensions persist, it might damage the reputation of the Gulf as a political safe haven – which, of course, has set it apart from the rest of the region.”</p> <h3>Crypto thinking</h3> <p>Considering the recent clampdown on cryptocurrency exchanges in China, perhaps Bitcoin devotees in Asia might be tempted to spend them on The Aston Plaza &amp; Residences.&nbsp;</p> <p>The twin-towered development in Dubai Science Park from British entrepreneur Baroness Michelle Mone is the first in the city to accept Bitcoin as a payment – which coincides with the Dubai Land Registry using blockchain technology to record all local real estate contracts.</p> <p>“Dubai is an exciting place to be if you are interested in blockchain technology and cryptocurrency,” says Mone’s partner Doug Barrowman. “Aston Plaza apartments will be the first property purchase that is 100 percent end-to-end on the blockchain. The transaction starts with a blockchain-based cryptocurrency payment, it finishes with a record of the property purchase on a blockchain-based land-registry ledger.”</p> <p>Prices for the apartments currently start at 32 Bitcoin, although one might expect that to change a few times before a contract is signed.</p> <h3>Dubai's most exciting projects</h3> <h4>One Palm</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/ONE+AT+PALM+JUMEIRAH+3.2.jpg/d8ba2782-526a-4125-9f59-79a7519aa8c5?t=1522244186097" style="width: 740px; height: 276px;" /></p> <div>Developer: Omniyat</div> <div>Unit size: 4,331-29,800 sq ft (402-2,770 sqm)</div> <div>Number of units: 90</div> <div>Price: AED14.8-102 million (USD4-27.7 million)</div> <div>Location: Palm Jumeirah</div> <div>Completion date: 2018</div> <div>X-factor: private jetties for yachts, exquisite views of the Dubai skyline</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h4>The Aston Plaza &amp; Residences</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/ASTON-2-compressor.jpg/e403a304-0196-4a6a-bb1a-126b048568c8?t=1522244219354" style="width: 740px; height: 415px;" /></p> <div>Developer: Aston Developments Ltd</div> <div>Unit size: From 493 sq ft (46 sqm)</div> <div>Number of units: 1,133</div> <div>Price: From 33 bitcoins (USD203,000)</div> <div>Location: Dubai Science Park</div> <div>Completion date: 2019</div> <div>X-factor: first major residential development to accept payment in cryptocurrency</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h4>Dubai Hills Estate</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/DUBAI-HILLS-ESTATE-3-compressor+%281%29.jpg/f45c9cf1-0087-4ac2-8aad-7fc41538802e?t=1522244247527" style="width: 740px; height: 417px;" /></p> <div>Developer: Emaar, Meraas Holding</div> <div>Unit size: 605-3535 sq ft (56-328 sqm)</div> <div>Number of units: 24,000</div> <div>Price (avg): USD320 per sq ft (villas)</div> <div>Location: Mohammed Bin Rashid (MBR) City</div> <div>Completion date: 2019</div> <div>X-factor: 18-hole championship golf course, high-end retail centres</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h4>Oia Residences</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/OIA-RESIDENCE-2-compressor.jpg/481c77d9-b3d1-430d-993b-ad4fbdb2ed53?t=1522244271474" style="width: 740px; height: 444px;" /></p> <div>Developer: Union Properties</div> <div>Unit size: 810-2,930 sq ft (75-272 sqm)</div> <div>Number of units: 269</div> <div>Total development value: AED450 million (USD122 million)&nbsp;</div> <div>Location: Dubai Motor City&nbsp;</div> <div>Completion date: 2018</div> <div>X-factor: contemporary Greek-inspired design, proximity to Dubai Autodrome</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h4>Creek Rise</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/CREEK-RISE-2-compressor.jpg/958625a3-19c6-47cf-99fd-4426ce5b2a5c?t=1522244295440" style="width: 740px; height: 535px;" /></p> <div>Developer: Emaar</div> <div>Unit size: From 831 sq ft (77 sqm)<span style="white-space:pre"> </span>&nbsp;</div> <div>Number of units: 524</div> <div>Price: From AED957,888 (USD261,000) SD490 per square foot,”</div> <div>Location: Dubai Creek Harbour</div> <div>Completion date: 2021</div> <div>X-factor: The Tower, a 928-metre-high structure with rotating observation deck</div> &nbsp; <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/255811" target="_blank">Issue No. 145 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
Why Dubai is still proving popular with overseas buyers
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/science-friction-songdo-lead-compressor.jpg/d5a79166-f1c5-4786-b5e0-479dc65e2eb0?t=1520760636520" style="width: 1435px; height: 697px;" />This was supposed to be the future. Songdo, an instant city built on 600 hectares of reclaimed land along the Incheon waterfront near the South Korean capital Seoul, has ridden wave after wave of eco- and techno-utopian hype that started before its first brick was laid.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> It was initially meant to be an “aerotropolis”, a futuristic international business hub tied to Incheon International Airport that would allow global access to one-third of the world’s population with 3.5 hours – a sort of purpose-built Hong Kong or Singapore to lure Western multinationals to set up shop.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> It has also been billed as the world’s first smart city with the latest in connected technology to create an environment that is safer, greener, more convenient and more efficient.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> But the reasons for its grandiose billing aren’t overly evident upon visiting. Songdo is exceedingly, well, nice. It’s pleasant. It’s clean. Not the deserted techno-dystopian misfit it’s been made out to be by some critics, but neither is it a city that seems plucked from the wildest realms of sci-fi.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Kids are getting out of school buses. Young mothers are pushing strollers and people are walking dogs along luxuriously wide pavements. Cyclists are utilising Songdo’s 25 kilometres of bike lanes and joggers move purposefully through Central Park, the 41-hectare centrepiece of the downtown Songdo International Business District (IBD).<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Yet there is more going on than meets the eye. The brains of the city can be found in its massive networks of connected sensors that monitor everything from traffic accidents to pollution levels along with a Big Brother-like video surveillance system anchored in the U-Life Centre where a wall of screens streams real-time footage. Inside every home in the IBD, meanwhile, an automation system on a digital control panel allows residents to monitor their energy use.&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="Songdo was heralded as the world's first smart city" src="/documents/10204/0/science-friction-2-compressor.jpg/6d49adae-6dad-48a8-b6c3-999496519138?t=1520569757337" /><br /> &nbsp;</p> <p>Songdo was conceived in 2001 as a public-private partnership between New York-based Gale International, Korea-based POSCO E&amp;C and Incheon Metropolitan City. Construction began in 2005, and it is now in a third phase of development. Some 45,000 people call the well-designed high-rise buildings of IBD home, while the greater metropolitan area has grown to more than about 130,000 residents.&nbsp;<br /> &nbsp;<br /> The city even has its landmarks, including Incheon Bridge, Korea’s longest at 21 kilometres, which connects Songdo directly to the airport, and the 68-story Northeast Trade Tower, the second highest building in Korea.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> And yet Songdo appears to have had many more misses than hits on the tech front, as it has cycled through numerous technology partners from LG to Microsoft, leaving behind a scrap heap of failed ideas. Cisco Systems, which provides much of the city’s networking infrastructure, was hoping to make it the showpiece for a consumer-facing version of its TelePresence video-conferencing system, envisioning a screen in every home that would connect residents to each other and a world of interactive learning and content. But that too didn’t move beyond an extremely limited implementation.</p> <p><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/the-world-s-first-truly-smart-city-must-take-flight-with-its-peop-1" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;The world’s first truly smart city must take flight with its people</strong></a><br /> &nbsp;<br /> Part of the problem, says Greg Lindsay, a senior fellow of the New Cities Foundation, an international non-profit organisation focused on urban planning solutions and policies, comes from an overly top-down approach.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> “These are corporations that are driving whatever vision they have at that moment,” said Lindsay. “It's singular, it's not broad enough, it's not based enough in what people actually want. If you want to harness the capabilities of a smart city, you need a lot of bottom-up uptake and you need people to be able to design their own uses for things.”</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">That's the biggest problem with the whole smart cities paradigm: you can't align the cycle of the slow rate of change of urbanism with the hyper-accelerated rate of change in tech</div> <br /> &nbsp;<br /> The problems of designing a smart city also are apparent in two very mismatched timeframes – while implementing things on a city-wide scale is a long-term process, technology is infinitely more nimble and fast-moving. For example, Cisco’s planned TelePresence rollout in Songdo was scuppered by the emergence of the smartphone – an innovation that instantly rendered TelePresence obsolete. <p>“That's the biggest problem with the whole smart cities paradigm,” adds Lindsay. “You can't align the cycle of the slow rate of change of urbanism with the hyper-accelerated rate of change in tech and so you end up getting misalignment constantly.”</p> <p>Indeed, Songdo is far from the only smart city in the world to have experienced serious growing pains. Brasilia, the capital of Brazil, and Naypyidaw in Myanmar are among other “instant cities” criticised for their impersonality and overly planned feel.&nbsp;</p> <p>Other ambitious plans are also facing strong pushback from housing and land rights groups. India’s Smart Cities mission, a plan to create 100 smart Indian cities by 2020, has faced intense criticism for focusing on flagship developments while failing to address basics such as provision of electricity and sanitation in poorer urban areas.</p> <p>Another issue surrounding smart cities is what is being done with all the data collected. Concerns about privacy and surveillance remain a major concern, with visions of panopticons and predictive policing stoking 1984-style fears.</p> <p>While there’s little doubt that big data, the Internet of Things and sensor technologies will continue to reshape the future of cities, many of the most successful implementations to date seem to be coming from an incremental and more human-scale approach.</p> <p>If Songdo was Smart City 1.0, newer iterations seem to be learning and adapting from its hits and misses. The idea of greater data sharing and open APIs in a smart city environment is gaining traction – Australia’s Digital Transformation Office, for instance, positions itself as a “platform” for innovation, “to support flexible design of systems and, in many cases, public access and re-use,” according to its mission statement.</p> <p>Many of the most successful smart city implementations have managed to find the right balance of innovation and practical application. Barcelona, for example, is widely lauded for its use of IoT to enhance everyday life from parking to traffic to energy efficiency in city lighting systems. At the same time, the city has used its focus on smart-city projects to foster its local technology industry. The city’s 22@Barcelona district sees startups putting public data to use in new applications and developing IoT technologies.</p> <p><img alt="While most of the 45,000 people who call Songdo's international business district home are satisfied by their lifestyles, critics of the Korean smart city say it has failed to hit expected heights of technological advancement" src="/documents/10204/0/science-friction-3-compressor.jpg/196851af-5aac-400b-9dc2-d251ad98272e?t=1520569845397" style="width: 740px; height: 555px;" /><br /> &nbsp;</p> <p>Back in Korea, few would argue that Songdo has been an overwhelming success. Nevertheless, residents are quick to point out the merits of the place. “I live here because of the beautiful park, and because it’s close to the sea,” says Kim Seung-ho, a designer who works in Seoul, which is 56 kilometres away.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Such testimony acts as a counterpoint to critics such as Chungha Cha, chairman and founder of the Seoul-based Re-Imagining Cities Foundation, who says: “I never considered Songdo to be a smart city or an eco-city. I think it’s a little bit of a marketing thing. As such, I don’t know why it’s getting so much publicity.”&nbsp;</p> <p>But, if it’s not the futuristic sci-fi eco-efficient ideal that it was billed as, Songdo can still point to some pretty impressive stats on its achievements thus far.</p> <p><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/5-minutes-with-a-barcelona-smart-city-expe-7" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;5 minutes with a Barcelona smart city expert</strong></a></p> <p>One of its key features is a pneumatic waste disposal system with 55 kilometres of tubes that route trash to several collection points for recycling. The city also has more than 22 million square feet of LEED-certified space in 118 buildings, and was designed with 40 percent green space. Citywide water recycling is projected to reach 40 percent and waste recycling 76 percent by the year 2020.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Developers claim that overall energy use in Songdo IBD is up to 40 percent less per person than an average city thanks to smart technology and use of insulation and high-performance glass.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> While it started with grand visions, Korea’s supposed smart city showpiece has emerged as something perhaps more modest than initially planned. The city of international globetrotters has instead become a quiet, well-designed community of families and young professionals.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> Whether you see that as a failure, a surprising success or something in-between depends on how you chose to look at it.<br /> &nbsp;<br /> “There are multiple overlapping levels and expectations,” concludes Lindsay.&nbsp; “It’s what you want to make of it.”</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/245413" target="_blank">Issue No. 144&nbsp;of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
Songdo: trailblazer or cautionary tale?
<p><img alt="Although it is backed by inhospitable mountains and empty steppes, Ulaanbaatar has become a hub for real estate due to it's status as the capital of resource-rich Mongolia" src="/documents/10204/0/Ulaanbaator2.jpg/f766fdfe-4013-43ba-a32d-44e38be93cd6?t=1518163592913" style="width: 1440px; height: 640px;" /></p> <p>Steamy, noisy and overpopulated, Karachi is – at least to those with unfair preconceptions of Pakistan – the epitome of a dysfunctional South Asian conurbation.&nbsp;</p> <p>Although it is known as one of the most liberal cities the country, and is a long-term hub for trade and commerce, the third most populous metropolis on the planet and home to over 23 million souls is not exactly the most obvious bet for investment in real estate.&nbsp;</p> <p>It is beset by chronic air pollution; the streets are often blocked due to choked sewerage lines and observance of traffic rules on the teeming roads is sketchy at best. Despite these issues, however, the city by the Arabian Sea has become one of the shining lights of a housing boom that has seen Pakistan serve notice of its status as a key potential market for international developers.</p> <p>There are numerous reasons why analysts are tipping developers to beat a path to Pakistan’s door – not least initiation of work on the USD46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. According to property web portal Zameen.com, average land prices in Karachi rose 23.4 percent in 2016. In Lahore, meanwhile, land prices increased 13.6 percent in the same year.&nbsp;</p> <p>Indeed, confirmation of the country’s status as a rising star came in May 2017 when Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) announced the upgrade of its classification to the emerging market (EM) from the frontier market (FM) in its semi-annual review. The reclassification is set to result in greater inflows of funds from global investors who now have access to a huge EM pool of USD1.5-USD1.7 trillion.</p> <p>Considering the improving security situation in Pakistan, institutions like the World Bank, the IMF, Moody’s and S&amp;P have also upgraded the country’s status.</p> <p>“Local investors who were previously investing in markets like Dubai are now willing to invest instead in Pakistan,” says Hammad Rana, associate director of sales and investment advisory for Colliers Pakistan. “If the security situation continues to improve we foresee demand increasing across the board. All this bodes well for the market and for any potential foreign investors or developers looking to enter.”</p> <p>Pakistan is far from the only nation in the region that carries the promise of significant returns for intrepid developers and investors willing to brave the inherent risks of entering relatively virgin territory.&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">International developers often need to consider the possibility that a prospective goldmine can just as easily become a veritable minefield</div> <p>In South Asia, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are both picking up a head of steam. Elsewhere countries such as Mongolia, Myanmar and even Cambodia – despite a troublesome glut of supply in the capital Phnom Penh – present significant allure due to their untapped potential.&nbsp;</p> <p>Yet with glittering opportunities come significant pitfalls. Collectively the less developed real estate markets in the region can blithely be grouped in the “up and coming” bracket. However, each one presents its own political, legislative and macro-economic challenges, from opaque governance and lax controls to arcane policies that protect the status quo. Therefore, international developers often need to consider the possibility that a prospective goldmine can just as easily become a veritable minefield.&nbsp;</p> <p>When it comes to the simplicity of doing business as an international developer, certain markets score better than others. Mongolia, for instance, is widely known for the foreigner-friendly regulations of its real estate market.&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/mongolia-s-former-pro-wrestler-president-could-save-its-ailing-property-sec-11" style="font-weight:bold;" target="_blank"><strong>More: Mongolia's former pro-wrestler president could save its property sector</strong></a></p> <p>“Put simply, Mongolia has some of the most conducive real estate investment laws in Asia,” says Oliver Nicoll of Asia Pacific Investment Partners (APIP), a frontiers market specialist agency.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Capital gains and stamp duty for purchasers is set at zero. Income tax rates are notably low and there is no distinction between locals and foreigners in terms of ownership of immoveable property. Combined with latent demand for housing, investors and developers benefit from a supportive environment when developing in the country.”&nbsp;</p> <p>Indeed, experts have long identified the landlocked nation as a star among Asia’s emerging markets due to the vast mineral wealth – estimated at as much as USD2.5 trillion – that lies beneath its endless grassy steppes.&nbsp;</p> <p>Although the economy in the country has been battered in recent times due to the worldwide crash in commodities, analysts believe that the nation’s long-term wealth (and, therefore, the growth potential for real estate supply in the capital Ulaanbaatar) is assured.</p> <p>“Taking a long view, it seems likely Mongolia will benefit from the kind of wealth and investment experienced by other commodity rich nations,” adds Nicoll.</p> <p>Not every nation is fortunate enough to be sitting on a goldmine like Mongolia is, but other emerging markets around Asia have their own trump cards to play.&nbsp;</p> <p>Myanmar has opened itself up for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) after being closed to the outside world by the former military dictatorship. Sri Lanka offers 1,600 kilometres of pristine coastline and an ever-improving infrastructure. Cambodia, meanwhile, has become known for its stability under strongman leader Hun Sen, its consistent economic growth of around 7 percent annually and for its expanding middle class – especially in the capital Phnom Penh.&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="Stable governance and relaxed regulations make Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh a favourite among Asia's emerging real estate markets" src="/documents/10204/0/Phnom+penh.jpg/226954cc-3c11-4406-b336-ac9389ef1d32?t=1518167763000" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" /></p> <p>Linking all these nations – as well as other, more developed, markets in the region is China’s One Belt, One Road initiative, with its multi-trillion dollar bid to reshape the world through a new network of maritime and landside links.&nbsp;</p> <p>Even better for international developers is the fact that, in many of these nations, a lack of experience and chops on the part of local developers opens up some serious opportunities.&nbsp;</p> <p>Nevertheless, the process of entering an unfamiliar market – with its myriad regulations, cultural sensitivities and quirks – is rarely plain sailing.&nbsp;</p> <p>In Pakistan, the arrival of big international developers including Emaar, Meinhardt and Al-Ghurair was greeted with much fanfare. Local investors believed that foreign companies would deliver better quality and deliver on time. That has not been the case.&nbsp;</p> <p>For example, Crescent Bay, Emaar’s showpiece project in Karachi was launched in 2008 with the promise of delivery of the first two apartment towers by 2011. As of December 2017, not a single apartment has been delivered.&nbsp;</p> <p>Foreign developers elsewhere have achieved better results. Despite its huge potential, Myanmar is regarded as one of the more difficult markets in Asia. There are numerous disadvantages to doing real estate business in the huge nation – the largest in mainland Southeast Asia – according to experts. These include a lack of middle class, limited availability of capital for buyers, little access to quality materials and no allowance for international developers.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/the-rise-of-southeast-asia-s-sleepiest-capi-10" style="font-weight:bold;">More: The rise of Southeast Asia's sleepiest capital</a>&nbsp;</strong></p> <p>These barriers, however, failed to deter Singaporean developer Keppel Land, which marks 25 years of doing business in Myanmar next year after entering the country in 1993. The firm currently has a 40 percent stake (alongside Myanmar conglomerate Shwe Taung Group) in Junction City Tower, a 23-storey office tower that is part of Junction City, a mixed-use development which will also comprise the five-star Pan Pacific Hotel, a shopping centre and residential towers. It also has a 40 percent stake (again with Shwe Taung Group) in phase two of the Junction City project, which will offer a gross floor area of around 50,000 square metres via premium serviced residences and offices.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Through the years, we have been steadfast and have since developed keen market insights, understanding of the local culture as well as forged strong relationships with local partners, contractors and the local government,” says Sam Moon Thong, President Regional Investments for Keppel Land of its strategy for success in Myanmar. “This puts us in good stead to participate in Myanmar’s growth in the years to come.”</p> <p>In Sri Lanka, meanwhile, the biggest noise in terms of foreign developer activity has been from China. CHEC Port City Colombo, a subsidiary of state owned China Communications Construction Company is investing USD1.5 billion in reclaiming 270 hectares of new development land adjacent to Colombo Port for a new city within a city – the biggest and most controversial infrastructure project in Sri Lanka’s history due to its informal association with the One Belt, One Road initiative.&nbsp;</p> <p>Chinese developer Avic International, meanwhile, is behind Astoria, a large four-tower residential project in Colombo. It’s not just Chinese firms looking to get a slice of the action in the booming island nation though. Indian developer Indocean, Japanese firm Belluna and Singaporean company Silverneedle Group are all involved – either individually or as part of a joint venture – in projects in Colombo.</p> <p><img alt="Although there has been controversy about the extent of Chinese influence, projects such as the reworking of Colombo's port area are indicative of the growing status of Sri Lanka as a property player" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_580878883.jpg/e723599d-ff4b-4ecd-aa53-c1e6b218e8c2?t=1518167071000" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" /></p> <p>Although some analysts contend that the Colombo market – especially at the highest end – is nearing the point of saturation, there is a feeling that Sri Lanka’s growing geo-political significance and its potential for tourism could make it a major player in years to come.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Sri Lanka poses a whole raft of challenges for new-to-the-country real estate developers,” says Steven Mayes, managing director of JLL Sri Lanka. “These include a very conservative government lacking in transparency and consistency and somewhat arcane policies that protect, rather than challenge the status quo. Other challenges include high interest rates, a lack of skilled labour and the need to import the bulk of construction materials.”</p> <p>On the other hand, Sri Lanka is rapidly gaining in geo political significance as China invests heavily and as regional investors jockey for prominence, opening-up vast tracts of the country with new infrastructure, there are tremendous opportunities for the more adventurous developers, particularly in the hospitality sector.”</p> <p>Indeed, this push and pull between extreme negative and outstandingly positive conditions encapsulate the gameplay in Asia’s emerging nations. From Lahore to Ulaanbaatar, Kandy to Karachi, property development is a high-stakes hand. Numerous elements ranging from security concerns to labyrinthine regulations mean there’s always a risk of folding. But, for those who play their cards cannily, the prize pots can be vast.&nbsp;</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/" target="_blank">Issue No. 146 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
What you need to know about Asia’s final frontiers
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/uk-investment-feature-lead-image-compressor.jpg/3123e153-f9c1-4d2c-a5d2-6b6617741fc3?t=1518151158000" style="width: 1439px; height: 685px;" />Imagine watching a time-lapse film showing the changing face of London’s skyline. An endless succession of construction sites would appear alongside the River Thames, cranes and diggers coming and going, gleaming steel and glass buildings rising into the air.<br /> <br /> The redevelopment of areas such as Canary Wharf and South Bank is central to London’s modern-day identity. And, over the years, investors from Singapore to Russia have proven willing buyers for the city’s ever expanding portfolio of prime property, be it terraced townhouses in Chelsea or new-build penthouse apartments in Battersea.</p> <p>But in June 2016 a political event shook the UK, bringing with it a new addition to the English language: Brexit.</p> <p>The electorate narrowly voted to leave the European Union after 23 years as a member and &nbsp;negotiations regarding the exit deal are ongoing, but the result is likely to result huge change on many levels; political, economic, social and cultural.</p> <p>The property market in the capital is of course not immune to the fallout.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">Uncertainty fuelled by Brexit and a weakened government mandate since the June election means sentiment is fragile</div> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Prices for luxury homes in central London .... will flat line for the next 24 months as Brexit uncertainty and tax changes affect the market, according to a report published by global real estate agency Savills in September.</p> <p>“Uncertainty fuelled by Brexit and a weakened government mandate since the June election [when the ruling Conservative Party failed to win an outright majority that many had deemed as inevitable] means sentiment is fragile,” Lucian Cook, head of UK residential research at Savills, says.<br /> <br /> The slowdown is especially pertinent to London, given its position at the top of the UK luxury property tree. Savills estimates there were 394,000 properties worth GBP1 million (USD1.33 million) or more across the UK in 2016 – and almost two-thirds of those homes are in London. In Kensington and Chelsea in west London, almost half of all privately owned homes exceed the GBP1 million mark.</p> <p>The Savills report does predict that prices will start to recover towards the end of 2019, rising by 2 percent, with a stronger bounce back of 8 percent in 2020.&nbsp;</p> <p>David Galman is director of sales at Galliard Homes, which has spearheaded successful property developments in areas including the Docklands, Bermondsey, and Shoreditch.<br /> <br /> Galman acknowledges that Brexit “is an uncertainty” but cites other factors that were already affecting the prime property market including the introduction, in early 2016, of higher rates of stamp duty on additional residential properties, such as buy-to-let properties and second homes.<br /> <br /> “But, demand is stronger than I’d have anticipated. And this is across the board, all the way up to the prime market,” he says.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/amanda-levete-wins-the-jane-drew-pri-3" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Architect Amanda Levete wins the Jane Drew Prize</strong></a><br /> <br /> “There's a different volume of demand. I might get 20 viewings a week for a property at a quarter of a million pounds, and two viewings a week for a scheme at two million pounds. And that makes obvious economic sense, there is less demand at the top. There is still movement in the prime market, especially in regeneration areas and near to transport links.”</p> <p>Current popular prime London locations include St John’s Wood, Wapping, Shoreditch, the redeveloped King’s Cross area, and Canary Wharf, with the latter two having the added appeal of being near Crossrail, a cross London service which will connect Berkshire, Essex and Heathrow Airport with the capital, which opens fully in 2018.</p> <p>According to Galman, demand from Asia remains strong. Singaporeans, Malaysians and investors from Hong Kong have long been London-centric in terms of buying property. In more recent years, interest from Chinese buyers has inevitably been on the increase. About 25 percent of Galliard Homes’ business currently comes from Asia, he adds.<br /> <br /> “I think that will increase in the next few years because they will want to take advantage of the weaker pound, which is probably here to stay. And it's a huge advantage for investors outside of the UK.”</p> <p>The current exchange rate certainly presents a mix of fortunes depending on perspective; it’s a gloomy outlook for those who trade and buy in sterling, but great news for investors from around the world. Following a wobble in 2016, there has been renewed interest from investors outside the UK thanks to the low pound.</p> <p>“Overseas investors have been encouraged by the favourable exchange rate and canny buyers have been waiting to see if the exchange rate gets any lower,” Jennet Siebrits, head of residential research at CBRE, says. “And they’ve found that, more or less, the rate has reached its floor.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/malaysian-consortium-to-sell-stake-in-apple-s-future-london-headquarters-buildi-7" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Malaysian consortium to sell Apple’s future London headquarters building</strong></a><br /> <br /> “We are definitely in a better place than 2016 and Brexit doesn’t appear to be a major factor for our buyers.”<br /> <br /> These notes of optimism are perhaps best understood when examining the context of London’s rise to global player in the property field. Between 1979 and 2014 the prime central London market delivered average annual house price growth of 5.7 percent above the rate of inflation. The so-called ‘promotion’ phase from 1979 was characterised by the emergence of London as a premier world financial centre. The deregulation of the financial sector in 1986 enabled a massive expansion and business owners, bankers and traders started to arrive from overseas, boosting demand for homes in the city centre.</p> <p>As London developed as a world city, so it became a magnet for increasingly wealthy individuals from around the globe. Although its property market took a severe hit during the financial crisis in 2007, a secure foundation aided its recovery.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">I was having lunch with a client in Canary Wharf, and we were looking out at all of these gleaming towers. The headlines suggest that people are going to up sticks and move to Frankfurt or Paris, but it's a bit of a myth</div> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Galman believes that weathering financial storms is part and parcel of the property development business.</p> <p>“We’ve enough experience to know that, despite Brexit or the like, the market can and will turn,” he says. “And I don’t feel too worried about it. I was having lunch with a client last week at my office in Canary Wharf, and we were looking out at all of these gleaming towers.<br /> <br /> “The headlines suggest that people are going to up sticks and move to Frankfurt or Paris, but it's a bit of a myth. Economically it makes sense for them to have their HQ here and for them to work here, and so they're going to want to buy property here. The fact is, London still has a very strong draw.”</p> <p>CBRE’s Siebrits says she is optimistic for two main reasons. “Firstly, I’m an economist. I look at evidence of the past and how the market has gone up and down. We always say to our investors, look at the long term. Property is not a liquid asset and you need to be able to withstand the shocks. There may be downturns but if you hold onto a property for 10 years you’ll get growth.</p> <p>“The other thing is, we’re actually a very resilient economy. There’s a lot of talk at the moment about financial services and how they are at risk from Brexit. Actually this sector is a small part of our economy. Since the financial crisis, there has been a blossoming in the technical and creative industries in London. There are more than 440,000 employees in these sectors. These people need places to live.”</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/uk-ownership-register-to-bring-out-concerns-among-asian-investo-4" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Should Asian investors worry about the upcoming UK ownership register?</strong></a></p> <p>Also keeping the London market regular is healthy demand from Hong Kong and China, largely on the back of education. Five percent of overseas students in London are from China, according to Siebrits.<br /> <br /> Although Brexit will continue to have an influence on the prime property market, other factors – with pros and cons – are also at play. And while there is always potential for upheaval, there is always room for recovery.</p> <p>“London will almost certainly remain a key global financial centre and can develop as a key European hubs for the growing tech sector,” Savills’ Cook says.</p> <p>“This means London’s prime housing stock will continue to benefit from new sources of domestic wealth generation, as well as attracting wealthy overseas buyers. Returns in the future will reflect this low-risk world status.”</p> <p>It would appear that when prime London real estate once again represents identifiably good value and the fog of uncertainty clears, further growth is inevitable. In other words, the time-lapse movie is a long way from completion.</p> <h3>Millionaire’s club</h3> <p>The smallest GBP1 million homes are found in Kensington and Chelsea, where a seven-figure price tag will on average pay for only 806 sq ft. South of the Thames, the same price-tag will stretch to just over 1,200 sq ft in Wandsworth and around 1,300 sq ft in Richmond. For London’s biggest GBP1 million homes, buyers will need to look east to Havering in Essex where the average is almost 2,500 sq ft. Beyond the capital, GBP1 million will go much further. Oxford and Cambridge are the two most popular choices, where investors will get twice as much space for their money. Similarly, in the established commuter hotspots of Elmbridge and St Albans, buyers can expect to find a property of 1,800 sq ft and 1,740 sq ft respectively. For those willing to look further afield, Bristol and Bath both offer around 2,500 sq ft for GBP1 million, while in Harrogate, Rushcliffe and Stratford-upon-Avon, this figure will stretch to about 3,000 sq ft.</p> <h3>Making tracks</h3> <p>London’s population is booming and is estimated to reach 30 million by 2030. With the city’s much-loved tube system already stretched to breaking point, hopes are being pinned on the new Crossrail project to ease congestion and take the strain off existing transport infrastructure. The first phase of the project, better known as the Elizabeth Line, is due open fully from December 2018. When complete, the 118-kilometre long line will run from Berkshire in the west through central London to Essex in the east. A second phase of the Crossrail initiative – known as Crossrail 2 – is currently in the consultation process. If approved, it would provide a rail link across London between Surrey in the south west to Hertfordshire in the northeast.&nbsp;</p> <h3>London's most exciting projects</h3> <h4>No. 1 Grosvenor Square</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Grovesnor-Square-compressor.jpg/f5793195-2ac2-4391-875f-8653b3846107?t=1518170877408" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" /></p> <p>Developer: Lodha Group<br /> Total area: 135,000 sq ft (12,542 sqm)<br /> Number of units: 44<br /> Price:&nbsp; From GBP7.5m (USD9.9m)<br /> Location: Mayfair W1&nbsp;<br /> Completion date: 2019<br /> X-factor: one of Mayfair’s most prominent buildings, once home to the high commissioners of the US and Canada</p> <h4>West End Gate</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/West-End-Gate-compressor.jpg/3b27b6ac-11b4-442c-8a30-033a89cec2d1?t=1518170930089" style="width: 740px; height: 567px;" /></p> <p>Developer: Squire and Partners<br /> Unit size: 452-1,394 sq ft (42-129 sqm)<br /> Number of units: 652<br /> Price: From GBP680,000 (USD898,000)<br /> Location: Paddington W2&nbsp;<br /> Completion date: 2020<br /> X-factor: energy-efficient design and prime, central location</p> <h4>Chelsea Barracks</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Chelsea-Barracks-compressor.jpg/8f552ad6-4845-471d-9d15-476da7813100?t=1518170965560" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" /></p> <p>Developer: Qatari Diar<br /> Unit size (avg): 4,200 sq ft (390 sqm) for phase 1<br /> Number of units: 448<br /> Price: GBP2-50m (USD2.6-66m)<br /> Location: Chelsea SW3&nbsp;<br /> Completion date: 2024<br /> X-factor: five acres of green space inspired by Belgravia’s traditional garden squares</p> <h4>Rathbone Square</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Rathbone-Square-compressor.jpg/c963a8cb-d838-4fab-89cf-92b95f11d7bd?t=1518171179955" style="width: 740px; height: 555px;" /></p> <p>Developer: Great Portland Estates<br /> Unit size: From 546 sq ft (51 sqm)<br /> Number of units: 162<br /> Price: From GBP7.1m (USD9.3m)<br /> Location: Fitzrovia W1&nbsp;<br /> Completion date: 2017<br /> X-factor: very close proximity to Facebook’s London HQ</p> <h4>Goodluck Hope</h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Goodluck-Hope-compressor.jpg/ae4402e5-bd18-4f8f-85b4-f8878176d899?t=1518171259674" style="width: 740px; height: 555px;" /></p> <p>Developer: Ballymore<br /> Unit size: 417-1,200 sq ft (39-111 sqm)<br /> Number of units: 804<br /> Price: GBP335,000-1.6m (USD442,000-2.1m)<br /> Location: Leamouth Peninsula E14<br /> Completion date: Q3 2019<br /> X-factor: located in a leading arts and cultural destination</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/255811" target="_blank">Issue No. 145 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
Is the London property market ready to banish the Brexit blues?
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/indonesia-feature-144-lead-compressor.jpg/44713b9c-266e-4836-85f1-84493fa1598b?t=1517826563749" style="width: 1440px; height: 695px;" />Straddling the equator for almost 3,000 kilometres, Indonesia is one of Asia’s wildest rides.&nbsp;</p> <p>No year is a slow news year in the diverse and often divided nation – the world’s most populous Muslim country – but 2015 was particularly lively.&nbsp;</p> <p>The&nbsp;year began in tragic fashion with divers recovering the flight data recorder from the crashed Indonesia AirAsia Flight 8501, a disaster that claimed the lives of 155 passengers. The archipelago continued to hit the headlines throughout the year, with the executions of the Bali Nine drug smuggling gang and raging forest fires attracting press far beyond the country’s borders.</p> <p>With all this going on, it was easy to ignore a less dramatic – but equally impactful (at least in a domestic sense) – 2015 trend that has continued to reverberate through the nation’s real estate market.</p> <p>For it was the year that marked the end of a supercharged housing boom that some had predicted would carry on indefinitely and the start of a period of protracted stagnation: a malaise that has been most pronounced in the higher echelons of the market.</p> <p>“It was a difficult year across the board for real estate in Indonesia, for a variety of reasons,” explains James Taylor, head of research for JLL Indonesia. “A new president (current incumbent Joko Widodo) had just entered office with his own political and economic agenda.&nbsp;</p> <p>“What’s more the Indonesian rupiah was depreciating and economic growth was sub 5 percent. People here have very vivid memories of the Asian Financial Crash and when they saw the rupiah sliding like it was, it definitely scared more than a few people off.”</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/here-are-all-the-winners-from-the-3rd-propertyguru-indonesia-property-awards-20-1" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Here are all the winners from the 3rd PropertyGuru Indonesia Property Awards 2017</strong></a></p> <p>Another legacy of 2015 that wealthy investors found – and continue to find – frightening was the ramping up of taxes on luxury property under President Widodo’s regime.&nbsp;</p> <p>A large portion of Widodo’s initial appeal was based on his populist agenda. He was voted into power in 2014 armed with promises of vast public spending on infrastructure projects throughout the nation. His government also vowed to slash Indonesia’s budget deficit.&nbsp;</p> <p>The country’s booming property sector, which was then witnessing year-on-year price rises of up to 17 percent on new condominiums, especially in the capital Jakarta, was a convenient revenue source.&nbsp;</p> <p>As such, a 20 percent luxury tax on the sales price was made applicable on houses with a sale price of IDR20 billion (USD1.5 million) and apartments priced at IDR10 billion or more.&nbsp;</p> <p>As if the tax wasn’t bad enough. The slump in global oil and gas prices resulted in an exodus of expatriates from Indonesia, denying investors in luxury property an obvious source of rental income. And, with yields on high-end units in Jakarta currently sitting at a meagre – considering the outlay required – 3-5 percent, there appears to be little-to-no appetite from investors to return to the luxury fray.&nbsp;</p> <p>“There’s been a feeling among investors that an apartment worth IDR10 billion is – while expensive by the standards of ordinary Indonesians – not exactly high up there in the luxury bracket,” Taylor says. “Therefore, with the 20 percent government levy and low rental yields, it’s hardly surprising that demand is virtually non-existent at this end of the market.</p> <p>“It will take the scrapping of the luxury tax, or a more scaled version of it, to really change sentiment in this part of the market.”</p> <p>It’s a remarkable turnabout from the pre-2015 years when Jakarta was one of the world’s hottest markets for luxury property. And while experts cite historically low inflation levels of around 4.5 percent, low interest rates and pent-up demand among investors as indicators of a possible recovery, there’s unlikely to be any repeat of the 37.7 percent appreciation on prices for high-end homes witnessed in 2013.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">I think that we won’t start to see the market really pick up until after the next presidential election</div> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>It seems instead that the real estate sector in Jakarta and across Indonesia is going through a period of retrenchment in the years leading up to the next presidential election in 2019.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Market conditions remain soft and challenging and will continue to be so in 2018,” says Hendra Hartono, CEO of Leads Property Services Indonesia, and chairman of the PropertyGuru Indonesia Property Awards judging panel. “I think that we won’t start to see things really pick up until after the next presidential election. Also, by that time, major infrastructural projects will be completed or near completion in Jakarta and other major cities and we’ll see a growth in demand around in where those are a factor: such as neighbourhoods serviced by MRT and LRT lines in Jakarta for instance.”</p> <p>Despite the ongoing malaise in the top tier of the sector, analysts point to several factors as antidotes to the tidings of doom and gloom that are a usual consequence of market stagnation.&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/sinar-mas-land-group-ceo-to-be-honoured-at-propertyguru-indonesia-property-awards-ga-1" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Sinar Mas Land group CEO to be honoured at PropertyGuru Indonesia Property Awards gala</strong></a></p> <p>“While it’s correct to say that speculative investment has been very minimal, transactions have been driven by real demand,” says Mina Ondang, ‎director at PT Cushman &amp; Wakefield Indonesia. “Just because the luxury market has fallen off a cliff, it doesn’t mean that everything has ground to a halt. Instead, developers are tapping into Indonesia’s rapidly expanding middle class, its growing urbanisation and changing lifestyle demands. The population and middle class are still growing and these are cornerstones underlying demand.”</p> <p>And while a current average sales rate of 67 percent in the greater Jakarta area pales in comparison to the 80 percent recorded in the middle of 2015, it is – as Taylor of JLL reiterated in a recent interview with the Jakarta Post – “better than other countries in Asia.”</p> <p>The consensus view certainly chimes with the feeling that macro-economic conditions have turned back in Indonesia’s favour. High-profile infrastructure projects including the Jakarta MRT and LRT, the JORR2 (Jakarta Outer Ring Road 2: a planned toll road circling greater Jakarta) and the Jakarta to Bandung High Speed Rail have all been beneficiaries of the government’s drive to reinvigorate the nation’s creaking infrastructure.&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">We are seeing demand from people who enjoyed Bali 15 years ago on Lombok</div> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>The government too has issued several policies to stimulate real property performance, including amending loan to value percentage from 70 to 80 percent for housing loans and cutting income tax rate from property sales from 5 to 2.5 percent.</p> <p>With mass-transit systems and new roads likely to ease and help circumnavigate the worst of Jakarta’s notoriously hellish traffic, analysts predict growth in developer activity in areas outside the city’s CBD.&nbsp;</p> <p>“South Jakarta and West Jakarta are both likely to grow in popularity,” says Taylor.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Things are slow, but they are stabilising,” adds Hartono. “Developers are launching projects that they can sell. Some of the most interesting investments can be found in Greater Jakarta in areas such as Tangerang, Bekasi and Bogor as property there is still very affordable. There’s also an abundance of land, which makes these areas a good bet for long term developments.”</p> <p>In fact, the profusion of available land in greater Jakarta and the relaxation in mortgage lending rules have brought developers back to the table: with many Chinese firms moving in.&nbsp; PT Sindeli Propetindo Abadi, a subsidiary of Wuzhou Investment Group, plans to develop 3,700 units in East Jakarta with an investment worth approximately USD150 billion. Other Chinese groups making a move in Indonesia include Hongkong Land, China Sonangol, China Communications Construction Group (CCCG) and Kingland Group.</p> <p>It’s quite the statement of intent, but observers doubt whether the demand-supply ratio quite adds up – at least for the moment.</p> <p>“Such immense investment to create a huge supply of property is not matched by demand from buyers,” says Cornel B Juniarto, senior partner at Hermawan Juniarto, a leading Indonesian law firm. “But as the economy grows we believe that demand will grow and the situation will achieve more of a balance.”&nbsp;</p> <p>Chinese developers are extending their reach outside Jakarta as well. CCCG, which plans to invest USD1 billion in a mixed-use project in West Jakarta, intends to expand its property business to other cities, such as Surabaya in East Java and Medan in North Sumatra: both cities with historically large populations of ethnic Chinese.&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="As Bali falls victim to overdevelopment and eye-watering rises in land prices, second-home investors are setting their sights on its near-neighbour Lombok, which offers similarly paradisiacal attributes at a more reasonable sum" src="/documents/10204/0/indonesia+feature+2.jpg/63f430de-270b-4231-8c9d-1b25d8489ff3?t=1517827725675" style="width: 740px; height: 331px;" /></p> <p>Elsewhere in the archipelago, secondary cities such as Bandung, Makassar and Manado have all been recording strong growth in demand in their residential sectors. Meanwhile, Bali and Lombok – the nation’s two most popular holiday islands and favourites for second-home buyers – are experiencing quite different conditions.&nbsp;</p> <p>The Bali market is, some say, a victim of its own success, with buyers shying away from eye-watering land prices, overbuilding and uncontrolled and polluting developments. Lombok, contrastingly, is hitting a sweet spot with investors due to its natural attributes and value relative to its neighbour across the Lombok Strait.</p> <p>“We are seeing demand from people who enjoyed Bali 15 years ago and want a villa in a quieter, less crowded island for a fraction of the price they would pay on Bali or in their home country,” says Andrew Corkery, the managing partner of resort developer Selong Selo Group, which offers numerous luxury properties to buy on Lombok.&nbsp;</p> <p>From villas on idyllic palm-fringed islands to Chinese steered developments in the nether regions of Greater Jakarta, Indonesia’s amazing diversity is reflected in its real estate offerings. And if temperatures in the real estate sector are dialled down for now, the country has proved time and time again that it’s a safe bet for twists and turns.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <h3>Foreigner unfriendly</h3> <p>In late 2015, Indonesian President Joko Widodo signed a government regulation that allows foreigners who reside in Indonesia to own landed houses in the country for a period of 80 years. Theoretically, this weakening of the country’s historically strict restrictions on foreign ownership was introduced with the intention of spurring some expat investors into action. In practice, however, the barriers against foreign ownership remain prohibitive to all but the wealthiest and determined investor. For a start, foreign ownership of landed houses or apartments falls under the so-called “right-of-use” category, locally known as hak pakai, which is weaker than the “right of ownership” category granted to Indonesian citizens.&nbsp; Those wishing to purchase a property under hak pakai are ineligible for any kind of mortgage or credit. Other requirements, meanwhile, include only buying property at a fixed minimum price, only purchasing property direct from a developer and not being allowed to rent out property in Indonesia to a third party.&nbsp;</p> <h3>The amnesty impact</h3> <p>When the government granted tax amnesty to wealthy Indonesians in a bid to repatriate assets, many felt that the country’s real estate industry would be a major beneficiary. Analysts and stakeholders expected part of the asset repatriations into Indonesia to flow to property, either through ownership or development projects. Furthermore, the amnesty programme was also expected to spur investors to appreciate their property values as before they did not to avoid taxes. As of March 2017, the government has successfully clawed back IDR146 trillion. However, the impact of the programme has thus far been negligible. Nevertheless, according to the Association of Indonesian Real Estate Companies, the sector will begin to feel the benefits of the amnesty by the third to fourth quarter of 2017.&nbsp;</p> <h3>Indonesia's most exciting projects</h3> <h4><u>Jakarta</u></h4> <p><strong>Serenia Hills&nbsp;</strong></p> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SERENIA-HILLS-2-compressor.jpg/5658f1a6-2785-4ace-ab56-acc3a81f463c?t=1517829617217" style="width: 740px; height: 496px;" /></strong></p> <p>Developer: PT Intiland Development Tbk<br /> Size: 150-300 sqm<br /> Number of units: 460<br /> Price: USD1,200 per sq ft (avg)<br /> Location: Lebak Bulus<br /> Completion date: 2017<br /> X-factor: Extensive green open spaces</p> <p><strong>The Mansion at Le Parc</strong></p> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/MANSION-AT-LE-PARC-compressor.jpg/88d9156d-fdc0-42e5-a60b-d72fdea25955?t=1517829648084" style="width: 740px; height: 463px;" /></strong></p> <p>Developer: PT Putragaya Wahana<br /> Size: 1,050 sqm (avg)<br /> Number of units: 29<br /> Price: USD5,450 per sqm (avg)<br /> Location: Thamrin<br /> Completion date: 2017<br /> X-factor: Fully integrated lifestyle and office amenities</p> <p><strong>Synthesis Residence Kemang</strong></p> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SYNTHESIS-compressor.jpg/483ecdac-58ed-4d6e-8e51-f86a99012832?t=1517829677310" style="width: 740px; height: 555px;" /></strong></p> <p>Developer: Synthesis Development<br /> Size: 70-80 sqm<br /> Number of units: 1,180<br /> Price: USD172,400 (avg)<br /> Location: Jalan Ampera Raya<br /> Completion date: 2018<br /> X-factor: Proximity to entertainment venues</p> <h4><u>Lombok</u></h4> <p><strong>Selong Selo Residences&nbsp;</strong></p> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SELONG-SELO-4-compressor.jpg/856868d6-b980-4d2a-9a29-c4ae311a80f8?t=1517829703444" style="width: 740px; height: 555px;" /></strong></p> <p>Developer: The Selong Selo Group<br /> Size: 279 sqm (avg)<br /> Number of units: 80<br /> Price: USD974 per sqm (avg)<br /> Location: Selong Belanak<br /> Completion date: 2018<br /> X-factor: Natural valley location</p> <h4><u>Makassar</u></h4> <p><strong>The St. Moritz Makassar&nbsp;</strong></p> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/ST-MORITZ-2-compressor.jpg/55c55ce9-6230-4dd1-b3fb-85a5b7a55e9a?t=1517829751738" style="width: 740px; height: 362px;" /></strong></p> <p>Developer: PT Lippo Karawaci Tbk<br /> Size: 70 sqm (avg)<br /> Number of units: 286<br /> Price: USD1,500 per sqm (avg)<br /> Location: Jalan Panakkukan<br /> Completion date: 2018<br /> X-factor: Proximity to airport</p> <h4><u>Surabaya</u></h4> <p><strong>One Icon Residences&nbsp;</strong></p> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/ONE-ICON-compressor+2.jpg/7ea8132b-f204-4997-a228-32a9d717a6e7?t=1517829945582" style="width: 740px; height: 567px;" /></strong></p> <p>Developer: PT Pakuwon Jati Tbk<br /> Size: 120 sqm (avg)<br /> Number of units: 493<br /> Price: USD3,078 per sqm (avg)<br /> Location: Tunjungan&nbsp;<br /> Completion date: 2018<br /> X-factor: Sky garden, lagoon-style pool</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/245413" target="_blank">Issue 144 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
Buyer blues in Indonesia
<p><img alt="The beach at Forest City in Johor, Malaysia. BroNrw/Shutterstock" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_488236915-compressor+%281%29.jpg/c42e52ba-1b41-436a-8fda-2cfc87a31a61?t=1517546283128" style="width: 740px; height: 466px;" />As the old philosophical question goes: "If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?"&nbsp;At Forest City, a mega-project built by Country Garden, China’s third-largest residential developer, recent silence has been deafening.</p> <p>The Guangdong-based firm announced in 2016&nbsp;its Forest City project would generate huge annual sales of CNY20 billion (USD3 billion) out of total company revenues of CNY300 billion – or nearly 7 percent of total sales.&nbsp;</p> <p>Forest City ranks as the largest residential development in Iskandar Malaysia, a special economic zone just a few miles from Singapore dubbed the “new Shenzhen” by sponsors including the Sultan of Johor after whose father Iskandar is named.</p> <p>In recent months, previously bold pronouncements have all but dried up. Beijing has announced stricter capital controls designed to shore up the faltering yuan and quell outflows of cash overseas for acquisitions deemed “irrational” in sectors including real estate.</p> <p>“The outward restrictions have really been more on the corporate side,” Andrew Polk, a founding partner of the Beijing-based investment advisory firm Trivium China, says. “But they’ve also been trying to shut down illegal forms of purchasing houses.”</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/malaysia-s-luxury-market-malaise-drags-22" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Malaysia's luxury market malaise drags on</strong></a></p> <p>As a non-convertible currency, the yuan must be converted inside China, but there’s a catch: currency can only be exchanged for approved purchases, which does not include real estate. Individual Chinese citizens are nonetheless allowed to change up to USD50,000 per year for travel and other personal expenses overseas.&nbsp;</p> <p>Eager to circumvent these strict rules, many Chinese have taken to what is known as ‘smurfing’: pooling individual currency quotas among family members and friends who then send small sums overseas to avoid scrutiny by banks and financial regulators.</p> <p>Country Garden appeared to tailor Forest City perfectly to this system. Many of its units went on sale for about USD200,000 paid for through instalments. Then Beijing started to close these loopholes. Alipay, the popular mobile payment platform, has stopped processing overseas payments under pressure from the Chinese central government. In March, UnionPay, the primary bank card platform in mainland China, followed suit as it barred mainland customers from making transactions in Hong Kong to pay for property.&nbsp;</p> <p>Many Chinese had been making overseas payments by crossing into the territory where currency restrictions are more relaxed.</p> <p>Suddenly, the flood of Chinese crossing over to Johor from Singapore has slowed. Country Garden had been flying over plane-loads of mainland Chinese, reporting that 50 percent ended up signing contracts to buy apartments. Then in March, Country Garden announced it was closing showrooms across China to comply with Beijing’s tighter capital controls.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">They try to attract tier-one and tier-two city buyers who have high purchasing power to visit projects for free. Half of the buyers are actually locals who think large numbers are going to invest in that project and earn a profit from reselling</div> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>The developer has subsequently found itself caught in a difficult spot. It wants to maintain the huge flow of potential customers from China into Johor to keep sales ticking over but must appease a government it knows can do more serious damage to its overall multi-billion-yuan business.</p> <p>This in turn has created a marketing problem. The illusion of demand – now lost – has been vital for Country Garden, according to David Hong, head of research at China Real Estate Information Corp which tracks property trends in China.</p> <p>“They get a lot of Chinese tourists to visit these projects to make them seem highly attractive so that more locals [Malaysians] and Singaporeans will come and have a look,” he says. “If you look at Country Garden in lower-tier cities in mainland China you also see a similar strategy.&nbsp;</p> <p>“They try to attract tier-one and tier-two city buyers who have high purchasing power to visit projects for free. Half of the buyers are actually locals who think large numbers are going to invest in that project and earn a profit from reselling.”</p> <p>The disappearance of Chinese buyers has pushed Country Garden to redouble its marketing and sales effort to potential customers in the likes of Thailand, Singapore and the Middle East. Meanwhile, Chinese buyers who paid a down-payment but can longer meet instalment obligations are desperately trying to get their money back.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/what-s-next-for-the-malaysian-property-market-in-201-3" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;What's next for the Malaysian property market in 2018</strong></a></p> <p>On WeChat, China’s most popular social media platform, disgruntled buyers have formed a group called ‘Quit Forest City and get refunds’, and many have tried to seek out lawyers to fight back.</p> <p>Assessing just how many Chinese buyers have been impacted and what this means for occupancy rates at Forest City remains difficult. Many in the property sector have maintained silence around a development upon which fortunes depend, including the Sultan of Johor, a joint-venture partner at Forest City alongside Country Garden. Indeed, several sources including Country Garden itself and UEM Sunrise, the biggest landowner in Iskandar, declined to comment for this article.</p> <p>Recent figures from analysts don’t make great reading. In its first half report of Malaysia’s property market Knight Frank reported a 6.8-percent decline in residential transactions in Johor. It cited Chinese capital controls as a key factor “amid a widening gap between supply and demand” for high-end condos across Malaysia.&nbsp;</p> <p>While the state of Johor, its economy and buyers at Forest City face an uncertain future, Country Garden appears largely unaffected. Its share price has soared in Hong Kong trading in 2017, prompting DBS Group – among other analysts – to upgrade the stock to ‘buy’ in August. The same month, Moody’s upheld its Ba1 rating for Country Garden without mentioning its Malaysia woes, or capital controls imposed by Beijing.</p> <p>“For projects overseas by Country Garden there would be some execution risk,” Franco Leung, a Hong Kong-based vice president and senior credit officer at Moody’s, says. “But we see that any impact from that project is manageable.”</p> <p>So at least some good news for a firm that has staked so much on Johor. But given the scale of the development and the brake on its momentum, it remains to be seen if Forest City itself will make it out of the woods.</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/255811" target="_blank">Issue 145 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
Chinese cash policy puts the squeeze on ambitious Johor project
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/proptech+144+lead+image.jpg/87517b55-d702-441c-8115-d9a3a3761ad1?t=1516786706809" style="width: 740px; height: 367px;" />In the mid-1990s, the process of building and marketing properties, whether commercial or residential, was a business model that seemed impervious to change. Construction conglomerates and architecture firms designed our urban landscapes, while high-street estate agents proliferated and profited from what was at the time a thriving property market.&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>But in Silicon Valley and beyond, technocrats were shepherding a new medium into a range of innovative ways for consumers to access information – the silent revolution that was the internet – and the earliest seeds of property technology, or proptech, were sown with a brace of home-search websites that are now household names. For the first time, these were not brick-and-mortar businesses with receptionists, display collateral or chatty agents, but online brands that enabled movers to surf detailed web pages and arrange viewings with a few clicks of a mouse.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Beyond websites, the definition of proptech has since snowballed dramatically, encompassing apps as well as virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR).</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>"The first generation of proptech, although it wasn't called it then, emerged around 2000 with the early online property listing sites. This was the first sign of the industry moving digital," says Jack Fitzgerald, founder of Disrupt Property, a leading database of proptech startups. "Then around 2010, we began to see this move beyond residential listings to include platforms like Houzz (interior design), VTS (office leasing) and Matterport (virtual reality).&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>"Now the definition of proptech is as broad as can be, with startups attempting to disrupt every part of the industry – how we build, market, transact, fund, manage and then sell property."</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">The Asia Pacific region is where proptech will make a significant leap and lead the charge, even though the United States and Europe have had a head start</div> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>As home-seekers have benefited from the automation of clerical tasks and reduced agent interaction, developers, architects and consumer internet companies have embraced the wider applications of proptech. In 2017, VR and AR are being used not just to market new buildings – public and corporate spaces as well as homes – but also to design them.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>It’s a marked shift from the millennial proptech pioneers. Back then, as global uptake of the internet began to soar, companies like the pioneering US online estate agent Realtor, which was established in 1995, were predating the impending dotcom boom. Rightmove – a joint online venture between four of the UK’s largest estate agents – established a home-search website in 2000 that despite considerable competition remains the largest such portal in the country with advertisers providing the foundation for their revenue. In Hong Kong meanwhile, Gohome.com.hk became a go-to site for tech-savvy house-hunters in 1999.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>While these pioneers have since expanded to appeal to wider marketplaces, newer companies have begun to hone in on niche services that address burdensome processes in property transactions. In the UK, firms such as Goodlord and No Agent now offer specific services such as admin simplification for tenants and easier management for private landlords.&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/7-proptech-trends-to-watch-out-for-in-20-9" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;&nbsp;7 proptech trends to watch out for in 2018</strong></a></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>"Many of the traditional online listing sites are leading the way in proptech innovation by embracing virtual reality, big data, agent rankings, neighbourhood guides and so on," Fitzgerald adds. "Property buyers now have more options and information than ever before available online and for free. They can research everything about a potential purchase: the house, the neighbourhood, the likely yield, capital growth, even walk down the street using google maps. The market is becoming increasingly transparent and with it buyers are becoming more savvy, so listing sites are responding to that by continually adding new features."</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>The way forward for home-search sites may well lie in firms like Compass, valued at more than USD1 billion – dubbed the “Pinterest of real estate” by Forbes.com. It started in 2013 as a one-stop upmarket real-estate broker in New York before expanding across the States to operate in nine desirable locations nationwide. To succeed in an industry as fraught with pitfalls as property, through a medium as inherently impersonal as cyberspace, requires a robust, people-focused strategy: accordingly, marketing has been a strong point. Compass succeeded in pinpointing a boutique niche – an O2O (online-to-offline) agency with a specific market in mind – and supplying both the tech props and people skills to realise its goal. As Compass CEO Robert Reffkin describes it, “we’re building tools for brokers.”</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>In China, one of the most fragmented and competitive housing markets in the world, Shanghai-based real-estate portal Aiwujiwu has in just three years become a leading forum for nest-seekers in mainland China and a “billion-dollar unicorn”. With a name that translates in English to “love me, love my house”, it was venture-funded by stakeholders including Singaporean holding company Temasek. The manic economic growth spurt the PRC has experienced this decade (a time in which the residential real-estate market has grown a staggering 9 percent annually), allied to an upsurge in internet usage, has led to massive demand for platforms such as giants SouFun and Leju, which offer extra services such as home furnishing.</p> <p><img alt="While hard-copy advertisements and posters for real estate are very much a thing in China and Hong Kong, the industry there is moving online at a rapid pace" src="/documents/10204/0/proptech-144-image-2-compressor.jpg/41290884-d17e-4459-a562-8dabdebc4749?t=1516786997808" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" /></p> <p>While Western and North Asian companies have led proptech’s early charge, in Southeast Asia progress in the area was comparatively slow. Only a decade ago, British tech entrepreneur Steve Melhuish together with his Finnish business partner Jani Rautiainen, set up PropertyGuru Group in Singapore, making extensive property listings – complete with specifications, photos, addresses, prices and contact details – readily available to anyone with an internet connection. The site built its profits by carrying advertising and in printed newsletters, and by charging agents a fee to use the platform – and ultimately proved a key driver in the region’s incipient proptech industry.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>“Even though Singapore’s infrastructure was impressive in 2007, technologically it was not known for products at all,” says Hari Krishnan, PropertyGuru CEO and former vice president and managing director of LinkedIn for Asia Pacific and Japan. “China, India, Japan and Korea – these are the countries that produce consumer internet companies. All the Southeast Asian majors – GO-JEK, Agoda – are from Indonesia and Thailand. Steve and Jani saw an opportunity where there was a lack of transparency and digitisation; you had to wait for your Saturday classified supplement to understand what was happening in the property space.”</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Though something of a latecomer to the table, PropertyGuru has wasted no time in broadening its scope and fending off competitors, growing to become the leading player in Southeast Asia’s proptech scene. Ten years down the line, the cyber-disruptor dominates the region’s market, attracting 17 million visitors a month and 35,000 paying clients – agents and developers – and listing 1.2 million properties. In Singapore, it enjoys 85 percent of the property website market share. The company moved into Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand in 2011; in 2016, it entered one of the fastest-growing markets, Vietnam, with minority investment in the country’s biggest real-estate website Batdongsan.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/of-clicks-and-mortar-talking-proptech-with-shailesh-r-7" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Talking proptech with Shailesh Rao</strong></a></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>“Each country has its own complexities and nuances,” says Krishnan. “In Singapore, agents and developers have extraordinary influence; developers route sales through agents. We partner with developers to get them to adopt digital technologies faster. In Thailand, consumers go directly to developers – it’s a very different ecosystem. Indonesia is the largest market, but the infrastructure is still developing. On the flipside, it has the most dynamic e-commerce space of all.”</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>The company was also an early adopter of virtual reality and Microsoft’s HoloLens augmented reality software, which Krishnan explains is allowing them to help reconceptualise marketing strategies. On a more macro level, these burgeoning technologies are beginning to shape the world around us well beyond residential real estate. Just take Singapore’s market-leading CapitaLand, which builds and manages not just premium housing but also malls and offices in the city-state. Construction of its Funan project, a versatile lifestyle space slated to open in 2019 and overseen by its CapitaLand Mall Trust arm, has relied heavily on VR, with architects, structural engineers and project managers all deploying the technology.&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>AI also features prominently in the finished version; the mixed-use complex will incorporate robotic vacuum cleaners, self-ordering food-court kiosks and a “multi-sensory” cinema. Meanwhile, marketing has moved away from traditional showrooms using physical scale-model collateral; instead, an immersive virtual-reality “simulation studio” (IVRS) has a five-wall projection system that surrounds the visitor, allowing them to explore an intensely lifelike simulacrum of the nascent attraction.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>“The show suite enables viewers, who don special goggles, to navigate Funan in a computer-generated world,” a CapitaLand spokesperson explains. “[It’s] a high-resolution, stereoscopic three-dimensional experience far superior to conventional videos on desktop monitors and projectors.”&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="Construction of Capitaland's Funan mixed-use project in Singapore relied heavily on VR, with architects, structural engineers and project managers all deploying the technology" src="/documents/10204/0/proptech-144-image-3-compressor.jpg/9a4b5a0a-76fd-48ed-83ce-d4dcb5ea1d17?t=1516787435778" style="width: 740px; height: 432px;" /></p> <p>The company also used VR in the launch and marketing of its new lyf (pronounced “life”) brand from Ascott, CapitaLand’s serviced apartments offshoot, and brought its Travel Capsule concept to London’s St Pancras station, where travellers experienced an apartment through a headset as images of European capitals flashed across a giant screen.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Global architecture firms such as Aedas – which has a portfolio that includes Singapore’s skyline-hogging icon Marina Bay Sands – has also been marketing some new projects using virtual reality, though not yet to the point where they have a bespoke team in Asia specifically charged with developing new visualisation technology. According to Bernhard Viereck, an associate at the firm who’s been exploring VR’s potential for three years, some markets are more responsive than others; in his experience, senior staff at Malaysian developers tend to be older and less inclined to trying out new toys.&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>“They don’t like wearing the headsets,” he says. “It makes them dizzy.” Meanwhile, in Cambodia’s capital Phnom Penh – a city in a state of rapid flux that’s increasingly attractive to foreign companies – it’s a different story. Aedas’ work in the city includes Exchange Square, a landmark mixed-use collaboration with Hongkong Land that comprises offices, retail outlets and parking space, where VR has been an intrinsic part of the promotional strategy.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Though its benefits are clear – particularly for younger, tech-savvy customers – bleeding-edge innovation of this sort doesn’t come cheaply. In Singapore, developers and design firms have benefited from a government agency, the Building and Construction Authority (BCA), which established an SGD800 million (USD586 million) fund to support such ventures; by end-2016 it had released SGD450 million to more than 9,000 firms to help them incorporate and implement schemes that espouse this thriving technology.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/8-things-we-learned-about-smart-cities-at-the-asia-real-estate-sum-12" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;8 things we learned about smart cities at the Asia Real Estate Summit</strong></a></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>With proptech on an inexorable upward trajectory, there remain certain sticking points. Just as not every consumer is tech-savvy enough to rent a home online, not every construction firm is willing to align with a VR startup of uncertain longevity. An industry as multi-faceted as property, spread across diverse, multilingual territories at different stages of development, is unlikely to find itself at the mercy of a one-size-fits-all behemoth such as Uber or Alibaba. Progress is bound to be smoother in a small, efficient country with government incentives and readily available tech – such as Singapore – than in one with a widely dispersed population and a multiplicity of private companies, such as India.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>“The Asia Pacific region is where proptech will make a significant leap and lead the charge, even though the United States and Europe have had a head start,” Anthony Couse, CEO of JLL Asia Pacific. The global real estate services firm recently announced the formation JLL Spark, a global business unit that will identify and deliver new technology-driven real estate services for clients.&nbsp;<br /> &nbsp;</p> <p><br /> “Some structural issues remain, of course,” he adds. “There is a smaller appetite for risk and disruption due to the infrequent nature of a property transaction as compared to something like hailing a cab or booking a hotel. The complexity of real estate, coupled with service lines going across different verticals, also makes adoption of new innovations trickier.”</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/does-thailand-have-what-it-takes-to-be-asia-s-leader-in-innovation-district-5" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Will 'innovation districts' make Thailand ASEAN's greatest startup hub?</strong></a></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Yet even on the subcontinent, illustrious performers have adopted proptech with manifest success. Mumbai’s Housing.com, launched in 2012, serves 40 Indian cities and has become one of the world’s top-earning home-search websites, while startups such as NoBroker (a fixed-fee agent), Livspace (an interior-design specialist) and Propstack (a real-estate analyst and marketer) have all made waves. In the absence of notable investment from overseas, Indian entrepreneurs have the green light to forge ahead in the industry.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Worldwide investment figures speak to this surge in optimism for proptech: in 2015 startups in the sector attracted USD1.7 billion in funding globally, a rise of 821 percent from four years earlier, with more than a quarter of that total coming from China alone. In the first quarter of 2016, that number rocketed past USD2 billion.&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>If 30 years ago a computer in the home was a prevalent material goal, in 2017 the tech paradigm has come full circle. Now, computers are not just determining which home we live in, but helping us build and manage it too – and it seems inevitable they’ll continue to dominate this, the world’s highest-valued asset class, for the foreseeable future.</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/245413" target="_blank">Issue No. 144 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a>&nbsp;</em></p>
A potted history of proptech

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Architecture & Interiors
<p><img alt="Simon Rawlings has served as creative director of David Collins Studio since 2007" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-PORTRAIT-2-compressor.jpg/3afb0046-004a-47f4-9be9-45ec33d3bd45?t=1521543410804" />It takes a designer on Simon Rawlings’ level to know the perfect finished product needs to go beyond a choice of attractive furnishings, textures and materials. An empathic understanding of the client shines through in the Welsh-born interior stylist’s critically acclaimed, star-studded oeuvre.</p> <p>Rawlings has been at the artistic helm of David Collins Studio since its eponymous founder’s passing in 2013. As the London-based design firm’s creative director since 2007, Rawlings led a string of projects that went on to win&nbsp;coveted honours&nbsp;including the coveted Prix Versailles 2016 for Alexander McQueen, Paris and multiple Best Bar in the World gongs for the Artesian at The Langham, London.</p> <p>Rawlings, who has worked for David Collins Studio since the late 1990s, recently put his firm’s stamp on the Ritz-Carlton Residences, a 209-unit luxe residential project lodged in&nbsp;<a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/thailand-real-estate-relentless-expensive-and-highly-desira-13">MahaNakhon</a>, Thailand’s tallest edifice. The residential component of the 76-storey tower, with its Jenga-like, pixelated form,&nbsp;initially presented a challenge to Rawlings but eventually became a showcase of the designer’s penchant for the unexpected.</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">Emotion is very much a part of my design process. I want people to feel different as they come through the door</div> <p>A plan to <a href="https://www.1stdibs.com/introspective-magazine/david-collins-abcdcs-book-review/" target="_blank">create a postcard-size snapshot</a> of the MahaNakhon project evolved into a monograph, ABCDCS, published in 2014. It features a foreword by Madonna, just one of the studio’s famous clients.</p> <p>Whether he is designing a shoe store, sandwich shop, or luxury residences, Rawlings takes into account the power of human feeling into his commissions. His designs aim to please, factoring in practicalities of space to give customers, diners and residents alike the most ambient levels of comfort.&nbsp;</p> <p>Property Report caught up with Rawlings on a recent tour of the Ritz-Carlton Residences at MahaNakhon:</p> <h4><strong>How do you feel about this project now that your role is&nbsp;finished?</strong></h4> <p>What's really amazing about this building is that because of the pixelated design, every apartment layout is almost unique. At the beginning it was a real challenge, but it's actually a very appealing feature. When you visit your neighbor,&nbsp;it’s a completely different apartment.</p> <p>I think the loft-living style that is so common in apartments now is a bit difficult to live in. Very few people want just one big space, so I’ve applied the rules of a house here, with a hallway and separate rooms you can close off.</p> <p><img alt="Rawlings' eye for fashion inspired the unusual combination of muted greens and blues in the shared lounge " src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-2-compressor+%281%29.jpg/c799dc02-c771-4340-8297-6cee973151c8?t=1521546238505" /></p> <h4><strong>Do you have a design philosophy?</strong></h4> <p>The way I approach every project is the same – whether it be private homes, retail, restaurant or hotel design. I first try to understand the feeling I’m looking to create. Emotion is very much a part of my design process. I want people to feel different as they come through the door. I hope there is a feeling of having arrived somewhere special but not intimidating.</p> <p>Then I think about how a space works, and the practicalities of living in it. In a building the size of MahaNakhon I have to be very careful. I want to remember that if you're coming in and out four or five times a day, there would be nothing worse than having a 15-minute walk from the front door to the elevator.</p> <p>The final piece of the puzzle is really giving it a cultural relevance. I always spend time in the country where the project is, embracing and understanding how people live and the materials, the colors, the textures, and how they all come together. Then it evolves into the finished design.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/meet-hong-kong-s-smartest-archite-9" target="_blank"><strong>More: Meet Hong Kong's smartest architect&nbsp;</strong></a></p> <h4>How did you give a sense of cultural relevance in these residences?</h4> <p>I think it’s really important that you wake up knowing where you are in the world. While I certainly didn’t want the design to feel themed or overly Thai, little things like carved tables, the rattan&nbsp;and Thai silk furnishings give you that sense of place.</p> <p>All the art we’ve used is by Thai artists, many of which I found at Chatuchak market and commissioned, briefing them on the design and colour pallet. We've also referenced a panel system a lot, which can be seen in a lot of old Thai architecture and is really beautiful.&nbsp;</p> <h4><strong>You’ve used quite quirky colour combinations in the common areas, how do you know what will work?</strong></h4> <p>I refer a lot to fashion when it comes to colour combinations, because in the world of fashion you can be a little bit braver. While I’ve been a bit bold in the colour selection, they are slightly muted tones, so they have a lovely balance. If I had used sharp colours it wouldn’t work as well.</p> <p>I like to think that I've put together colors in these public areas for people to enjoy that they wouldn't necessarily be brave enough to do in their own apartments.</p> <h4><strong>What’s your biggest challenge when it comes to designing?</strong></h4> <p>We live in a world of crazy social media influence, and with every new project I always remind my team that we’re designing interiors – not photographs. So many images on Instagram look amazing because they have been designed as a photograph, but I want to create spaces for people to live in. People should feel proud to bring friends and family home, but also comfortable enough to take their shoes off and put their feet up. I don’t want it to be precious, I want it to be liveable.&nbsp;</p> <p><em>More images of the Ritz-Carlton Residences below:</em></p> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-3.3-compressor.jpg/7395d1ed-8723-409c-a4d7-5dae41a4cd33?t=1521543890969" /></strong></p> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-8.8-compressor.jpg/384e4803-132c-4d8d-a43a-50f84b7343a0?t=1521628023404" /></p> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-4.4-compressor.jpg/a270c03d-fc34-4bdb-880e-95d99aa9a0f9?t=1521544003384" /></strong></p> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-6.6-compressor.jpg/a85f250c-4ef8-4f23-9ba8-03f1a87f62b6?t=1521544226000" /></p> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-5.5-compressor.jpg/6db119db-d8df-4d7d-8231-30d83bbafe6c?t=1521544119251" /></p> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SIMON-RAWLINGS-7-compressor+%281%29.jpg/617ca9c1-d0c9-4a90-8ef0-185fd59d69b5?t=1521545356647" style="cursor: default; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /></p>
A conversation with interior designer to the stars, Simon Rawlings
<p><img alt="Otto Ng" src="/documents/10204/0/LAAB-HEADSHOT-2-compressor.jpg/717c18ed-def4-4504-b90f-5c9cd11354a3?t=1521522647745" style="width: 737px; height: 473px;" />Designing for the tall, dense forest that is Hong Kong’s cramped skyline demands both ingenuity and efficiency. Those are two qualities that come naturally to Otto Ng, principal and founder of LAAB, a bespoke architectural firm specialising in smart design — high-tech, effectual and elegant in one lean, sleek package.</p> <p>Ng studied architecture at Hong Kong University before earning his Masters at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with a focus on designing smart cities. Upon his return, he set out to forge his own path at the vanguard of urban architecture by building a compact, tech-savvy team into a socially conscious firm committed to upgrading life in his hometown and beyond by integrating traditional design with state-of-the-art technology.</p> <p>LAAB now has about 35 full-time staff, comprising designers of various disciplines, engineers, technicians and more. “We’ve always had a lot of very passionate, young talent, and we can be very experimental with our ideas,” says Ng on where he’s coming from and where he’s going.</p> <h4><strong>What sparked your interest in smart design?</strong></h4> <p>I was born in the age of the internet. I’ve had access to the internet since I was little, and eventually I began to develop an interest in design, in coding, web design, and things like that. At a certain point, I had to choose between architecture and technology, as my interest was in both areas. In the end I chose architecture, because it’s the most natural way for me to develop ideas, but my passion for technology never went away. So, we use a lot of technical elements, and try to come up with innovative ideas about how technology can be used to improve spaces.</p> <h4><strong>Why did you decide to start your own firm at such a young age, and what were the founding principles of LAAB?</strong></h4> <p>MIT changed me a lot. It’s a very challenging environment; you need to work hard, to identify problems and figure out how to solve them, and that requires a lot research, effort and experimentation. We had to fail a lot before we found any answers, and that’s the kind of methodology I learned while I was at MIT. Of course, I also learned about lots of new ways of doing things, and I don’t just mean software, but ways that we can conceive of and develop projects. I learned the MIT way.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>I wanted to apply that learning here in Hong Kong. A few partners and I founded LAAB, and at first it was very small. We weren’t burdened by being a huge company. Our design is human-centric. You must understand people’s needs and work from there. We’re not bound by existing conventions; we always think critically about why things are the way they are, why they need to be a certain way, and how technology might be able to improve them.</p> <h4><strong>Was it difficult to gain a foothold as a small firm in a big city, pitching cutting-edge design?</strong></h4> <p>We started with some very small projects. A lot of them were public; a lot of art installations, things that were fun and built up our experience. And these projects were often in public places where everyone could see them, allowing us a lot of exposure. That brought opportunities for us over the years. Even now, our projects are still quite small compared to what large corporate firms are doing, but we maintain a very high quality.</p> <h4><strong>What are the biggest challenges in trying to integrate smart technology into more conventional architectural design?</strong></h4> <p>The biggest challenge is convincing the client that it will work. Sometimes it’s necessary to persuade them. They think, “well it’s a nice idea, but is it possible?” Our projects usually work well, but we leave a little room for recalculation and maintenance so there’s always a way to work around the hurdles. We spend a lot of time on research to find the right materials and the right people to do the job. We have engineers and consultants to make sure that what we envision is doable. For smart homes, we’re always testing out new gadgets and hardware to see what works and what doesn’t.</p> <h4><strong>How has being from Hong Kong influenced your ideas about space, temporality and tech in design?</strong></h4> <p>The obvious answer is that Hong Kong is a laboratory for urban living. It’s very high-density, and it’s very connected. Here, we are born to be experts on urban lifestyle. Hong Kong is also very adaptive to global changes such as advances in technology, accepting different cultures, things like that. Life in Hong Kong moves quickly, so we learn to adapt. We design a lot of small homes and pop-up stores, as those are both common here. And it’s exciting to work on things like that, things that aren’t permanent, because usually the project timelines are short and they need to be developed very quickly and very efficiently.</p> <h4><strong>What’s the craziest, most futuristic high-tech project you’ve presented to a client?</strong></h4> <p>I can’t tell you yet… but it’s crazy and its coming soon!</p> <h3>LAAB's most exciting projects</h3> <h4><strong>ESLITE pop-up bookstore, Hong Kong</strong></h4> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/ESLITE-compressor.jpg/dc710b8e-848e-4834-bc62-c9f124c4d5bf?t=1521522692938" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" /></strong></p> <p>Eslite is a Taiwanese bookstore chain known across Asia for its modern inventory and sleek presentation. This pop-up store was installed in Hong Kong’s City Plaza for one summer only in 2015. While the shop was meant to be a place to appreciate and buy books, its design was paperless; the entire structure was conceived using parametric modelling generated by LAAB’s Rhino/Grasshopper software, which creates a 3D model that completely bypasses the drawing stage of design. LAAB viewed the project as a sort of book fair, offering more than a selection of books to buy; they wanted to create a space that that felt like it was in a forest while it was in the middle of a shopping mall. “Our thinking was that when people go to a book fair, they aren’t just looking for cheap books,” Ng says, “they’re looking for a place to read, a culture of reading.”</p> <h4><strong>YOHO Mall,&nbsp;Yeun Long, Hong Kong</strong></h4> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/YOHO-SLIDE-compressor.jpg/09a8abae-2560-4f4e-8cae-53e568eb888c?t=1521522777154" style="width: 740px; height: 416px;" /></strong></p> <p>LAAB was enlisted by Sun Hung Kai Properties to design outdoor environments at YOHO, one of the developer’s two shopping centres in Hong Kong’s New Territories. Ng and his partners created “Playable Arts,” their unique take on playgrounds designed to encourage social interaction through collaborative fixtures and welcoming, energy efficient lighting. “In the YoHo area of Yuen Long there are lots of young families; when people first get married they often can’t afford to live in the city,” Ng says. “We were hoping to give families a chance to spend some time together.”</p> <h4><strong>F-22 Foto Space,&nbsp;Hong Kong</strong></h4> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/F22-compressor.jpg/df755a72-83c7-49b7-8589-b8112ee44c7e?t=1521522871378" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" /></strong></p> <p>F-22 Photospace is a two-story gallery set to open in Hong Kong’s Wan Chai neighbourhood in late September. Developed in collaboration with <a>an artist and Leica enthusiast</a>, the exhibition space, café and shop have been designed to look, feel, and work like an old camera body. “Camera design is both very minimal and very complex, and the body of a camera shows its use,” Ng says. “A photographer’s camera will often have marks all over it, tape in certain places, almost like scars.”</p> <p>The revolving door entering the space is a giant lens, complete with a kinetic aperture and fashioned out of brass painted black — just like an antique Leica camera — so it will age the way a camera would, through time, movement and use.</p> <h4><strong>Small Home, Smart Home, Hong Kong</strong></h4> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/SMALL-HOME-compressor.jpg/cb0d9847-f88d-4e94-8940-e6cd8aa0779a?t=1521522898472" style="width: 740px; height: 374px;" /></strong></p> <p>Michelle and Andy, a newlywed couple, approached LAAB with a problem familiar to city-dwellers: They had only 309 square feet in which to build their dream home and begin their new life. Ng says the couple had a long list of needs, such as a gym, a bathtub and a home cinema. “We were committed to giving them everything they wanted,” Ng says, explaining that after many trials LAAB ultimately designed a kinetic unit that had movable walls and other convertible features, as well as app-controlled lighting fixtures, electronic keys to enable easy access for friends to look after their beloved cats, and small, energy-efficient appliances that maximized what little space they had. “In the end it looks very simple, but it took a long time to get there,” Ng says.</p> <h4><strong>Future Hospital at HKU Medical School,&nbsp;Hong Kong</strong></h4> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/HKU-Medic-compressor.jpg/ae1b5752-92bb-4829-94df-ff4584266163?t=1521523196702" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" /></p> <p>Ng says loves working with HKU, his alma mater, so the “Future Hospital” at its distinguished medical school was among his favourite projects. “We really value education, and creating ways to maintain people’s attention was a big design goal for this project,” he says. With high ceilings and expansive windows overlooking a verdant campus, he says LAAB wanted to create an environment that was — above all — comfortable. Outfitted with state-of-the-art technology on the inside, and with a view to the natural gardens just out the windows, Ng says the space is meant to soothing for teachers, students and patients alike.</p> <h4><strong>Kaleidome, Hong Kong</strong></h4> <p><strong><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/KALEIDOME-compressor.jpg/fb2f7a18-4bd0-4661-bdd6-55dab59be37c?t=1521522946582" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" /></strong></p> <p>No two people look at Kaleidome in quite the same way. This art installation in a public park is made out of 262 pieces of polished-stainless-steel mirror, joined together in a dome-like structure to create a burst of reflective colour in a park otherwise surrounded by the concrete and glass so prevalent in the city. The structure was also created using parametric modelling, which LAAB says streamlines the design process by automatically generating mathematical solutions and minimising the use of materials during testing and fabrication. “We wanted to give people a fun, different way to look at their surroundings,” Ng says of one of his firm’s favourite art projects. “You can take a selfie with it, or you can just look through it and see the world in a different way.”</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/245413" target="_blank">Issue No. 144 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
Meet Hong Kong's smartest architect
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/_DSC3858_071.jpg/378058b6-e38f-4508-a79a-6f7f804c9b73?t=1517286902334" style="width: 1437px; height: 640px;" />You might think a man who sleeps beneath a triumphant white crown guarded by two roaring, golden lions would be pretty&nbsp;insufferable. But then you’ve probably never spent a day with Bill Bensley, architect, interior designer and landscaper extraordinaire who is one of the biggest names in resorts right now – and a gentleman who doesn’t take himself too seriously.</p> <p>Right after getting his masters from Harvard Graduate School of Design in 1984, Bensley followed his classmate and friend, Lek Bunnag – now one of Thailand’s most famed architects – to Singapore. Bunnag had a professorship at NUS, and Bensley, thinking he might teach, on day one instead got a job at Belt Collins design firm.&nbsp;</p> <p>“The next week, I was designing pool villas in Bali,” he says. He opened his own company, Bensley Design Studio, with offices in Bali and in Bangkok in 1989, and over the years has become one of the most prolific designers in the region. At any one time, he and his firm are working on 40 to 50 projects.</p> <p>His portfolio includes some of the most iconic properties in Asia, from the bucket-list standard-bearer Four Seasons Tented Camp Chiang Rai in Thailand to the new, super-buzzy J.W. Marriott Phu Quoc, Vietnam. He’s finally completed the newest royal palace of a Malaysian Sultan, one of the approximately 5-percent of his projects that are private residences – they’re bread-and-butter money-makers, he admits, but he won’t take on an assignment unless he thinks it’s going to be fun.</p> <p>Since he met his partner Jirachai Rengthong, a horticulturist, business scion and hotelier, in 1989, together they’ve worked on more than 200 projects, have launched philanthropic efforts, and are gearing up for their biggest idea yet: the Shinta Mani Wild, a 400-acre plot in the southwest corner of Cambodia to which Bensley bought the logging rights 15 years ago to protect it.&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="Bill Bensley. Image credit: Paul Lukin" src="/documents/10204/0/_DSC3858_071-compressor.jpg/bb556a57-ff4a-42a0-94fe-f22972d50e94?t=1516617424089" style="width: 740px; height: 494px;" /></p> <p>The middle of 2018 will see the opening of a tented camp along 1.5 kilometres of rivers and waterfalls that is pure-Bensley in its aim and audacity. No trees were cut down in the construction, the 100-square-metre inside-outside suites are tents on stilts that ensure the natural flow of irrigation and migration patterns, staff will come from the Shinta Mani Foundation for responsible tourism in Siem Reap, and guests will come via zipline, two of them in fact, from the area’s highest point over the trees and the river, landing in the reception area to a gin and tonic.</p> <p>The other of Bensley and Jirachai’s shared life’s work is Baan Botanica, their fanciful yet comfortable home in a quiet neighbourhood in far-upper Sukhumvit, in Bangkok. Originally built in in 1975, the house has since been through countless renovations over the years.&nbsp;</p> <p>They bought the place from an American guy named Billy Bones, and neighbours in this leafy, peaceful enclave have included Gerald Pierce, design director of the Jim Thompson silk brand, and Bird Thongchai, a pop star known for the Thai classic, “Sabai Sabai.” William Warren, Jim Thompson’s biographer, planted the huge raintree out front.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/7-amazing-designers-and-architects-we-got-to-know-better-in-20-5" target="_blank"><strong>More: 7 amazing designers and architects we've got to know better in 2017</strong></a></p> <p>“This is my dad’s room,” Bensley says leaning back in a high-backed chair, his Jack Russells Chang, Chuck, Bubby and Sammy scampering about. “He came in 1999 for a week, and stayed 13 years. As parents do. He had been a prototype research mechanic for NASA and could build anything.”&nbsp;</p> <p>That obviously runs in the family. Now a den and a bar that can be walled off and transformed into a guest room, the space has as its showpiece a suit of samurai armour, in tribute to his father, who died five years ago. “He was a real warrior.”&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">I have a serious shopping addiction. My motto is, ‘shop first, think later’</div> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>“I’ve been trying not to have a recognisable style,” he says of his day-job. “For my clients, having something new and different is more important than having something stamped by me. The house is a place of experimentation. If it’s ugly, we paint over it. I spent the entire day on Sunday moving furniture, pictures and art.”&nbsp;</p> <p>This is surprising to hear because everything looks like it was placed just so, and has been as it is forever. “It’s a repository for the best-of-the-best shopping,” he says. “I have a serious shopping addiction. My motto is, ‘shop first, think later’.”</p> <p>In the lounge are a bronze two-headed peacock and an upturned croc’s mouth. These are by James Mortimer, the young British artist whose influence by fin de siècle immoral literature sashays in the room via a painting of expressionless, alabaster nudes in a garden behind the bed. It’s a scene that feels at once serene and deranged. “I think he takes reference from the Renaissance,” Bensley says, “but, yes, there is a primitiveness from Rousseau.”&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="Although everything in his home looks as though it has been placed 'just so,' the architect says that much of its unique look is the result of trial and error. Image credit: Paul Lukin" src="/documents/10204/0/_DSC4010_190-compressor.jpg/f10d4f43-54a5-4037-bb13-43a7256f30f8?t=1516618002727" style="width: 740px; height: 494px;" /></p> <p>It would be difficult to understate the amount of empty wall space between frames: if Bensley hangs a painting, he hangs 10. His collection includes work by Swedish painter and sculptor Richard Winkler, who depicts Technicolor scenes of life in Bali, Australian Robert Powell and his haunting takes on Angkor, and one of Indonesia’s most influential contemporary artists, Nyoman Masriadi.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>“It’s a real fine line between hoarding and having a lot of stuff,” Bensley says with a twinkle. “When you have a lot of stuff, the trick is to group them together.”&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/see-paradise-in-this-plush-samujana-hideaw-1" target="_blank"><strong>More: See paradise in this plush Koh Samui hideaway</strong></a></p> <p>The “front” door is a weathered, old Burmese post office door, set up in a perfect line of sight with the Rajasthani shuttered window into the bathroom and the turn-of-the century Thai temple decoration just beyond that adorns the mirror above the sink – whose faucet is covered by a life-sized carved wooden head from his and Jirachai’s travels throughout Africa.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">In the bright, sectioned gardens, there’s a gazebo with a copper clawfoot tub. At parties, Bensley positions models in it with dry ice and bottles of champagne to pour for guests lounging on the couches</div> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>But this is a house of contrasts; just go out into the bright, sectioned gardens. The sprawling yet meticulously planned lushness is reminiscent of Lunuganga and Brief Garden, the homes of famed Sri Lankan designer brothers Geoffrey and Bevis Bawa, whom Bensley says inspired him.&nbsp;</p> <p>Beyond the pool there’s a gazebo with a copper clawfoot tub. At parties, Bensley positions models in the tub with dry ice and bottles of champagne to pour for guests lounging on the couches. There’s a stage for performances, fountains and gates and overflowing flower plots, and through an arch down a hedgerow, a sculpture of a winged man. “We call that ‘Six-pack Alley,’” Bensley says, laughing.</p> <p><img alt="The gazebo sets the scene for Bensley's legendary parties. Image credit: Paul Lukin" src="/documents/10204/0/_DSC3965_149-compressor.jpg/c8d95bad-3d87-4caf-8fc7-e0d90abb2c9e?t=1516617683530" style="width: 740px; height: 494px;" /></p> <p>Upstairs there’s a bed on a frame made from an old pool table and a couple of stuffed zebras. The “Horny Room” is defined by a wall of antlers, upending the notion of a classic, old-world hunting lodge.&nbsp;</p> <p>And in the master bedroom the bed is footed by sculptures of a giraffe and a bulldog representing Bensley and Jirachai, guarded by two carved Burmese tigers and overseen by those growling lions and their crown.&nbsp;</p> <p>It was once a five-metre-high archway inside the Dutch embassy in Yangon, dating from about 1840. And it perfectly encapsulates this titan of his field, whose talent is tempered by grace, and obsession with the facts is rendered whimsical by his love of play.</p> <p><em>This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/255811" target="_blank">Issue No. 145 of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine</a></em></p>
Inside legendary designer Bill Bensley's abode

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The Twinpalms Residences MontAzure will be one of the many components of the 454-rai masterplanned community on Phuket’s west coast

When One Bangkok opens in downtown Bangkok in 2021, it will be the most expensive real estate project in Thai history. Spread out across 18 hectares of land adjacent to Lumphini Park, the USD3.5 billion development covers an area one third the size of the park itself, yet encompasses living and work space for 60,000 people. 

Crowned by a soaring, gold-hued skyscraper of some 90 storeys, One Bangkok’s components feature five office towers, five hotels, three residential buildings, four retail zones and space for arts and cultural performances, in addition to publicly accessible parks and green spaces. 

It represents mixed-use development at its most ambitious: vertical, horizontal, and unrestrained by city zoning concepts that governed urban planning for most of the 20th century. 

In Singapore, the soon-to-open Marina One residential and office development adds a tropical, green heart to the CBD in the form of a 65,000-square-foot garden designed in collaboration between Ingenhoven Architects and landscape specialists ICN Design. 

Meanwhile in Manila, One Bonificio provides the new headquarters for the Philippine Stock Exchange and also a luxury condominium with 289 units and a Shangri-La hotel, all connected to the existing Bonificio High Street – itself a retail-focused mixed-use development.

Vertical communities such as OXIC in China’s Xi’an 'create synergy between different uses and foster dynamic neighbourhoods'

In Xi’an, China, the 320-metre-tall OCT XI'AN International Center (OXIC) presents a vertical design solution that sees parks, piazza-style common areas and even terrace streets positioned over multiple stories of two skyscrapers.  

“Vertical communities often deal with the high density mandated for many Asian city centres,” says the architect behind OXIC, Ping Jiang. The Shanghai-based design principal at EID architecture firm won an international competition to design OXIC in September 2017.

It’s not only in urban areas where ambitious mixed-use projects are breaking the mould
 

“In contrast to sprawling development, vertical communities create synergy between different uses and foster dynamic neighbourhoods. By integrating business, leisure, retail and residential space, the design of a vertical community is strategically organised to create a vibrant, permeable urban destination to live, work and visit.” 

It’s not only in urban areas, however, where ambitious mixed-use projects are breaking the mould. Back in Thailand on the tree-lined shores of Phuket’s Kamala Beach, the THB2.2 billion luxury MontAzure development in beginning to take shape. 

More: What awaits Thailand's residential market in 2018

The 454-rai mixed-use project is set to comprise a comprehensive roster of upscale amenities, including hotel-managed condos, a lifestyle mall, a 200-room InterContinental Hotel, and Cafe del Mar, which is already part of the development's unique beachfront attractions. It also recently announced the addition of Kamala Senior Living, a luxury retirement community geared towards leisure-oriented, high-net-worth homeowners.

"Developers are realising that if they build a core concept it adds value to the project, rather than simply selling parcels of land," says Martin Palleros, founder and director of Tierra Design and the architect behind The Residences at MontAzure.

"It's all about what you can offer the community, and not just in terms of the property components," he adds. "It could be lagoon-style water features, hiking trails or direct beachfront access, in the case of MontAzure."

More: Thailand real estate is relentless, expensive, and highly desirable

While mixed-use communities across the region have emerged as the new development paradigm, the trend has its roots in ancient history. 

Tightly packed, walled medieval villages pioneered living conditions that can be witnessed in modern mixed-use, with residents, shops, churches and public amenities all crammed into a compact space. Today the same concept applied vertically challenges traditional urban zoning restrictions that see cities segregated into residential, retail and business quarters. 

Real estate analyst JLL has long been predicting the proliferation of mixed-use projects throughout the region, as developers look to maximise land use while diversifying assets. 

One Bangkok is set to rejuvenate an area of Bangkok that has been lying dormant since the 2011 closure of Suan Lum night market

“As cities become more developed and densities become higher, it makes sense to build more mixed-use developments,” says Regina Lim, head of capital markets research, Southeast Asia, whose recently released report, New Urban Models in a Youthful Southeast Asia, details the value developers are placing on mixed-use schemes that are designed to attract public foot traffic. 

“Mixed-use developments bring together complementary uses,” she continues. “Retail shops benefit from the natural catchment of offices or hotels or apartments while the residents and workers enjoy the convenience. As maintenance management schemes become more sophisticated, they allow effective property management of these integrated projects. Apartments with these amenities sell well.”

The future of mixed-use development will increasingly be dictated by the demands of the wider public. Ping Jiang points to the role that public interaction with multiple-use development plays in bringing life to central city locations outside of business hours. 

More: 3 real estate leaders share secrets to successful mixed-use development

“The future of mixed-use development is about the spatial and experiential quality of space,” he says. “Not only will we increasingly see mixed-use take over from dedicated office or retail blocks, but also more innovative uses, maybe a new type of hybrid project varied in scale and its mix of functions.”

Youth consumer behaviour will also dictate the multi-functionality of urban space, a trend that will increasingly enter the mixed-use urban space. 

“Young consumers with strong spending power and a taste for the eclectic are inspiring unconventional shopping malls across Southeast Asia,” Lim of JCC says. “Some incorporate cycling tracks and a ‘tree of life’ within the building, while others exhibit a FIFA-qualified soccer field and Olympic-size skating rink.”

Successful mixed-use schemes have the capacity to create diverse, vibrant communities in which people can live, work and socialise. They can bring round-the-clock life to central business districts and provide private land parcels with pedestrian-friendly solutions to previously abandoned or underused areas. Whether such projects succeed however depends as much on unit sales as it does on the lifestyle opportunities they introduce.

Reimagining mixed-use communities on Phuket

Located alongside Phuket’s prestigious Kamala Beach on the West Coast, MontAzure is one of the famed island’s most highly-anticipated real estate projects. With the Twinpalms-branded residences already proving very popular with investors, the community will soon welcome its anchor hotel, InterContinental Phuket Resort in 2019, in addition to a range of high-end restaurant and retail options. Plans were also announced last year to develop a THB3.5bn upmarket senior living village with dedicated facilities and amenities.

For more information on MontAzure, visit MontAzure.com

<p><img alt="The Twinpalms Residences MontAzure will be one of the many components of the 454-rai masterplanned community on Phuket’s west coast" src="/documents/10204/0/twinpalms-residences-montazure-beachfront-compressor.jpg/be5eeb71-1b41-4476-8328-0360d56b5e52?t=1516269339762" style="width: 740px; height: 533px;" /></p> <p>When One Bangkok opens in downtown Bangkok in 2021, it will be the most expensive real estate project in Thai history. Spread out across 18 hectares of land adjacent to Lumphini Park, the USD3.5 billion development covers an area one third the size of the park itself, yet encompasses living and work space for 60,000 people.&nbsp;</p> <p>Crowned by a soaring, gold-hued skyscraper of some 90 storeys, One Bangkok’s components feature five office towers, five hotels, three residential buildings, four retail zones and space for arts and cultural performances, in addition to publicly accessible parks and green spaces.&nbsp;</p> <p>It represents mixed-use development at its most ambitious: vertical, horizontal, and unrestrained by city zoning concepts that governed urban planning for most of the 20th century.&nbsp;</p> <p>In Singapore, the soon-to-open Marina One residential and office development adds a tropical, green heart to the CBD in the form of a 65,000-square-foot garden designed in collaboration between Ingenhoven Architects and landscape specialists ICN Design.&nbsp;</p> <p>Meanwhile in Manila, One Bonificio provides the new headquarters for the Philippine Stock Exchange and also a luxury condominium with 289 units and a Shangri-La hotel, all connected to the existing Bonificio High Street – itself a retail-focused mixed-use development.</p> <p><img alt="Vertical communities such as OXIC in China’s Xi’an 'create synergy between different uses and foster dynamic neighbourhoods'" src="/documents/10204/0/OXIC02+resized.jpg/5cea92bf-25c0-44a0-b023-66db0367328f?t=1516269199311" style="width: 740px; height: 433px;" /></p> <p>In Xi’an, China, the 320-metre-tall OCT XI'AN International Center (OXIC) presents a vertical design solution that sees parks, piazza-style common areas and even terrace streets positioned over multiple stories of two skyscrapers.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>“Vertical communities often deal with the high density mandated for many Asian city centres,” says the architect behind OXIC, Ping Jiang. The Shanghai-based design principal at EID architecture firm won an international competition to design OXIC in September 2017.</p> <div class="pull-quotes-container">It’s not only in urban areas where ambitious mixed-use projects are breaking the mould</div> &nbsp; <p>“In contrast to sprawling development, vertical communities create synergy between different uses and foster dynamic neighbourhoods. By integrating business, leisure, retail and residential space, the design of a vertical community is strategically organised to create a vibrant, permeable urban destination to live, work and visit.”&nbsp;</p> <p>It’s not only in urban areas, however, where ambitious mixed-use projects are breaking the mould. Back in Thailand on the tree-lined shores of Phuket’s Kamala Beach, the THB2.2 billion luxury MontAzure development in beginning to take shape.&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/what-awaits-thailand-s-residential-market-in-20-5" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;What awaits Thailand's residential market in 2018</strong></a></p> <p>The 454-rai mixed-use project is set to comprise a comprehensive roster of upscale amenities, including hotel-managed condos, a lifestyle mall, a 200-room InterContinental Hotel, and Cafe del Mar, which is already part of the development's unique beachfront attractions. It also recently announced the addition of Kamala Senior Living, a luxury retirement community geared towards leisure-oriented, high-net-worth homeowners.</p> <p>"Developers are realising that if they build a core concept it adds value to the project, rather than simply selling parcels of land," says Martin Palleros, founder and director of Tierra Design and the architect behind The Residences at MontAzure.</p> <p>"It's all about what you can offer the community, and not just in terms of the property components," he adds. "It could be lagoon-style water features, hiking trails or direct beachfront access, in the case of MontAzure."</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/thailand-real-estate-relentless-expensive-and-highly-desira-13" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Thailand real estate is relentless, expensive, and highly desirable</strong></a></p> <p>While mixed-use communities across the region have emerged as the new development paradigm, the trend has its roots in ancient history.&nbsp;</p> <p>Tightly packed, walled medieval villages pioneered living conditions that can be witnessed in modern mixed-use, with residents, shops, churches and public amenities all crammed into a compact space. Today the same concept applied vertically challenges traditional urban zoning restrictions that see cities segregated into residential, retail and business quarters.&nbsp;</p> <p>Real estate analyst JLL has long been predicting the proliferation of mixed-use projects throughout the region, as developers look to maximise land use while diversifying assets.&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="One Bangkok is set to rejuvenate an area of Bangkok that has been lying dormant since the 2011 closure of Suan Lum night market" src="/documents/10204/0/One-Bangkok-compressor.jpg/1432baeb-568d-476d-88eb-e6f8dfc3370f?t=1516269449051" style="width: 740px; height: 528px;" /></p> <p>“As cities become more developed and densities become higher, it makes sense to build more mixed-use developments,” says Regina Lim, head of capital markets research, Southeast Asia, whose recently released report, New Urban Models in a Youthful Southeast Asia, details the value developers are placing on mixed-use schemes that are designed to attract public foot traffic.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Mixed-use developments bring together complementary uses,” she continues. “Retail shops benefit from the natural catchment of offices or hotels or apartments while the residents and workers enjoy the convenience. As maintenance management schemes become more sophisticated, they allow effective property management of these integrated projects. Apartments with these amenities sell well.”</p> <p>The future of mixed-use development will increasingly be dictated by the demands of the wider public. Ping Jiang points to the role that public interaction with multiple-use development plays in bringing life to central city locations outside of business hours.&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/how-to-succeed-in-mixed-use-developments-real-estate-leaders-share-secre-4" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;3 real estate leaders share secrets to successful mixed-use development</strong></a></p> <p>“The future of mixed-use development is about the spatial and experiential quality of space,” he says. “Not only will we increasingly see mixed-use take over from dedicated office or retail blocks, but also more innovative uses, maybe a new type of hybrid project varied in scale and its mix of functions.”</p> <p>Youth consumer behaviour will also dictate the multi-functionality of urban space, a trend that will increasingly enter the mixed-use urban space.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Young consumers with strong spending power and a taste for the eclectic are inspiring unconventional shopping malls across Southeast Asia,” Lim of JCC says. “Some incorporate cycling tracks and a ‘tree of life’ within the building, while others exhibit a FIFA-qualified soccer field and Olympic-size skating rink.”</p> <p>Successful mixed-use schemes have the capacity to create diverse, vibrant communities in which people can live, work and socialise. They can bring round-the-clock life to central business districts and provide private land parcels with pedestrian-friendly solutions to previously abandoned or underused areas. Whether such projects succeed however depends as much on unit sales as it does on the lifestyle opportunities they introduce.</p> <h3>Reimagining mixed-use communities on Phuket</h3> <p>Located alongside Phuket’s prestigious Kamala Beach on the West Coast, MontAzure is one of the famed island’s most highly-anticipated real estate projects. With the Twinpalms-branded residences already proving very popular with investors, the community will soon welcome its anchor hotel, InterContinental Phuket Resort in 2019, in addition to a range of high-end restaurant and retail options. Plans were also announced last year to develop a THB3.5bn upmarket senior living village with dedicated facilities and amenities.</p> <p><em><strong>For more information on MontAzure, visit <a href="http://www.montazure.com/page/">MontAzure.com</a></strong></em></p>
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In Depth Asia Jan 18, 2018
Mixing business with pleasure could be the future of real estate
How mixed-use projects across Asia are proposing new solutions to the centuries-old idea of self-contained communities
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<p><img alt="Angel Yang, president of Kohler Co Kitchen and Bath Asia Pacific, at the 2017 PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards gala dinner in Singapore" src="/documents/10204/0/Kohler.png/379a39bc-5afe-4c69-ad77-cbcb4fcb7352?t=1524200034507" style="width: 740px; height: 492px;" /><a href="http://www.kohler.com/corporate/index.html" target="_blank">Kohler Co.</a> returns as the platinum sponsor of&nbsp;the region’s biggest and most prestigious real estate awards programme, the 2018 PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards series.</p> <p>The company serves as this year's&nbsp;title sponsor for the gala dinners in Malaysia (26 April), the Philippines (11 May), Vietnam (22 June), Thailand (31 August), Indonesia (20 September),&nbsp;and Singapore (12 October). In addition, Kohler is also the title sponsor of&nbsp;the much-awaited, eighth annual&nbsp;Grand Final ceremony to be held in fir the first-time&nbsp;Bangkok this November.</p> <p>Angel Yang, president of Kohler Co Kitchen and Bath Asia Pacific, said: “We are proud to be back as the main sponsor to support this year’s PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards. The awards give recognition of excellent projects throughout the property industry in Asia.”</p> <p>She added: “We hope to continue the effort in partnership to accredit these outstanding property owners by providing them a platform to facilitate the sharing of great works and projects within the highly competitive Asia Pacific arena.”</p> <p><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/kohler-is-main-sponsor-of-five-propertyguru-asia-property-awards-2017-events" target="_blank">In 2017</a>, Kohler served as title sponsor in five markets: the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore.</p> <p>With more than 48 manufacturing locations worldwide, Kohler is a global leader in the manufacture of kitchen and bath products; engines and power systems; premier furniture, cabinetry and tile; and owner/operator of two of the world’s finest five-star hospitality and golf resort destinations in Kohler, and St Andrews, Scotland.</p> <p>Founded in 1873 and headquartered in Kohler, Wisconsin, Kohler Co. is one of America’s oldest and largest privately held companies comprised of more than 33,000 associates.</p> <p>The Kohler brand has remained true to the founding vision of defining the frontiers of design, and has been an industry leader in innovation and quality craftsmanship for the last 145 years.</p> <p>Established in 2005 to ‘recognise the region’s finest real estate,’ the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards series has an unparalleled reputation for being credible, fair and transparent, with an independent panel of judges and trusted awards supervisor. It hosts several annual gala dinners, welcoming up to 600 C-level executives and industry figures from around the region.</p> <p>The series is renowned for presenting the ultimate hallmark of excellence in the Asian property sector, journeying through Asia-Pacific's most dynamic markets and culminating in a regional Grand Final this year on 9 November at The Athenee Hotel, Bangkok.</p> <p>The finale is a collocated event of the two-day <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/this-is-your-chance-to-catch-smart-architect-ron-bakker-in-bangk-6" target="_blank">PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit</a> on 8-9 November, a gathering of global leaders in property technology, blockchain and smart cities.</p> <p>For more information, email <a href="mailto:awards@propertyguru.com">awards@propertyguru.com</a> or visit the official website: <a href="http://AsiaPropertyAwards.com" target="_blank">AsiaPropertyAwards.com</a>.</p> <p><strong>Watch the highlights from the 2017 Grand Final gala dinner and ceremony in Singapore:</strong></p> <iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lC-SUw7cN3A" width="560"></iframe>
Kohler proudly named 2018 PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards platinum sponsor
<p><img alt="Transform Architecture's Thien Duong at last year's PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards" src="/documents/10204/0/VPA-2017_Thien-Duong_Gala_2-compressor.jpg/d948ada0-35eb-42f9-9b62-00acc7ca97bf?t=1523829166348" style="width: 1000px; height: 667px;" />The country’s most prestigious real estate awards programme, the <a href="http://www.asiapropertyawards.com/vietnam-property-awards/" target="_blank">PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards</a>, co-organised by PropertyGuru Group and Oriental Media Vietnam, has been the go-to platform for industry players to celebrate the industry’s finest real estate developers, projects and design.&nbsp;</p> <p>Since the inaugural ceremony in 2015, it has become a symbol of a revitalised property sector that encourages high quality construction and development, world-class design and amenities that today’s consumers expect. The competition has been also recognised for its influence and prestige, earning tremendous support from local businesses and associations such as VNREA (Vietnam National Real Estate Association), the country’s largest property organisation.</p> <p>Serving his third year as chairman of the independent judging panel, Thien Duong, managing director of Transform Architecture, speaks about his outlook on Vietnam’s maturing real estate industry and shares his insights from about how the PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards contribute to the improvement and innovation of the market.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/top-brands-behind-the-annual-propertyguru-vietnam-property-awards-2018-gala-dinner-unveil-1" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Top brands behind the annual PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards 2018 unveiled</strong></a></p> <h4>How has Vietnam’s real estate market changed since the first Vietnam Property Awards?&nbsp;</h4> <p>The local property market has continued to grow in every price range from affordable to luxury. The market has matured considerably within a very short period of time due to more competition from more experienced foreign developers as well as local developers maturing and learning industry best practices from their overseas partners.</p> <h4>How can real estate projects in Vietnam become more sustainable and environment-friendly to be appreciated by global investors?</h4> <p>In my opinion, local firms will only develop sustainable projects if they incur pressure from regulatory bodies and/or consumers. Presently, there are no incentives from governing bodies or consumers in Vietnam. The market will need more time to appreciate the value of sustainable projects.&nbsp;<br /> Thankfully, there are organisations such as the Vietnam Green Building Council, of which I’ve been a member of the Board of the Directors since its founding over 10 years ago. We have worked very hard to educate and promote green projects. There has been some success with a few projects registered under Lotus, LEED and Green Mark.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/vietnam-s-property-market-still-booming-but-for-how-lon-1" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Vietnam’s property market still booming — but for how long?</strong></a></p> <h4>What do you think are the common points of the local projects made by Vietnamese investors?</h4> <p>Thanks to the profound experience and the influence of foreign developers, who have raised the overall standards of the market, Vietnamese real estate projects have continually been improved in every single offered project. A few major developers have gained consumer’s trust by delivering massive scale projects in short timeframe. However, I feel worried that many of these fast-paced projects seem to focus more on the quantity rather than the quality of the buildings resulting in repeated buildings on a large scale.</p> <h4>In only a few years, the PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards have earned the respect of industry leaders and consumers. How does the programme and its winners contribute to the advancement of Vietnam’s real estate sector?</h4> <p>Year after year the Winners and Highly Commended companies at the PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards have set new standards in design, construction quality and services to consumers. The Awards also raise awareness and promote quality development as a whole.&nbsp;</p> <p>In the last two years, for instance, projects such as the Deustche Haus Office Building and the Panorama Condominium projects competed and won several prizes compared to other projects in more developed markets such as Hong Kong and Singapore.</p> <h4>Each year the Awards programme grow. What are the new categories this year?</h4> <p>We are still receiving candidate’s portfolios. Once the submission period closes, we will classify all the categories for appropriate and fair judgement. Moreover, we will create additional categories if there is an increase in the number of submissions of a particular field allows fairer judgment.&nbsp;</p> <p><em>Nominations for the PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards are accepted until 20 April 2018.&nbsp;</em></p> <p><em>For more information, email awards@propertyguru.com or visit the official website: <a href="http://AsiaPropertyAwards.com/Vietnam-Property-Awards" target="_blank">AsiaPropertyAwards.com/Vietnam-Property-Awards</a></em></p>
A chat with top Vietnam architect Thien Duong
<div><img alt="Spark Architects' Lim Wenhui (left) pictured with Terry Blackburn (right), managing director of Property Report &amp; Asia Property Awards" src="/documents/10204/0/singapore-property-awards-head-judge-compressor.jpg/b6900a99-3eae-4366-9838-1dd587459fc8?t=1523520579280" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" />Following the success of its <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/propertyguru-asia-property-awards-singapore-2017-recognises-urban-innovators-at-exclusive-gala-ceremo-4" target="_blank">very first stand-alone gala dinner last November</a>, the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore), presented in 2018 by Kohler and supported by PropertyGuru.com.sg, Singapore’s No.1 property site, returns for its eighth annual edition to recognise the year’s most outstanding developers, projects and design.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Diversity is the recurring theme for this year’s Awards, with nearly 30 awards at stake, including honours for industrial development, smart building, reconstruction project, and Special Recognition for Public Facility.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>These categories are making their debut this year to acknowledge Singapore’s smart innovations, as well as its continued leadership within the Asia-Pacific region’s property sector.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Returning categories include six residential awards (luxury, private and executive condos), seven commercial awards (office, retail, hotel, mixed-use development), and eight design honours.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Nominations are now being accepted from the public until 10 August 2018. Entry submission closes one week later. For online submissions, visit: <a href="http://AsiaPropertyAwards.com/nominations/" target="_blank">AsiaPropertyAwards.com/nominations/</a></div> <h3>First-ever chairwoman of the judges</h3> <div>Another first for the competition is the recent election of Lim Wenhui, partner at SPARK Architects, as new chairwoman of the independent judging panel, taking over head judge duties from esteemed architect Mink Tan, who remains on the panel.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Having served previously as a judge for this tilt, Lim has more than 12 years of experience undertaking major national and international design and architectural projects for complex urban and master-planned developments.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/5-real-estate-leaders-speak-up-on-being-a-woman-in-the-metoo-e-1" target="_blank"><strong>More: SPARK's Lim Wenhui speaks up on challenges in the design sector in&nbsp;this&nbsp;#MeToo era</strong></a></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>On her historic election as first woman to lead the panel, she said: “I would like to thank Mink for the inspired way he led the awards process over the last few years and in particular his drive to develop diversity across the jury panel and categories of awards on offer prospective developers and design consultants.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>"I will do my best to develop further Mink’s vision and I’d like to think that we can introduce new and broader range of skills across the jury to respond to the changing market conditions in this city.”</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><img alt="SPARK's Lim Wenhui at the Singapore gala dinner in November 2017 with Terry Blackburn, founder of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards" src="/documents/10204/0/APA-S+2017_Lim+Wenhui_Terry+Blackburn.jpeg/3e28813e-7cca-453f-aed5-0d7b1dba705e?t=1523510889057" /></div> <h3>Remaking the city through technology</h3> <div>She cited Singapore’s innovations in technology and sustainability that coincide with its ongoing Smart Nation initiative to remake the city “are becoming key drivers for value in an industry that historically has been very slow to embrace change.”</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>“Developers are taking advantage of advances in telecommunications, artificial intelligence, virtual and augmented reality, and data analysis to reinvent, reimagine, and long established industry norms. They are also importantly taking seriously customers desire to live increasingly more sustainable lives.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/the-world-s-first-truly-smart-city-must-take-flight-with-its-peop-1" target="_blank"><strong>More: Singapore leads the way in building Asia's first 'true' smart city, says Aerotropolis author</strong></a></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>“This is very exciting and hope that the process of award categories, project selection, and the judging process is enabled to reflect this change under my tenure,” she added.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The awards programme will host its annual black-tie gala dinner once again at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre at Marina Bay Sands, where around 300 of the industry’s leading names and senior figures will converge on Friday, 12 October, to reward excellence in the property industry.</div> <h3>Consumer sentiment in Singapore</h3> <div>Hari V. Krishnan, CEO, PropertyGuru Group, said: “As Singapore continues to lead the region in quality real estate, green and sustainable building, we believe that the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards will shine a light on outstanding new projects and design as the industry looks to recover in 2018.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>"<a href="https://www.propertyguru.com.sg/property-management-news/2018/2/169498/buyer-optimism-returning-to-the-singapore-residential-market" target="_blank">Consumer sentiment in Singapore remains stable</a> with more Singaporeans satisfied with the market despite affordability concerns, based on our latest market survey. Because of its fair and transparent judging system, the Awards has proven to be a great platform for the country’s best developers to promote their latest offerings in the residential and commercial segments.”</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/what-tenants-and-buyers-could-expect-of-the-singapore-mart-in-20-4" target="_blank"><strong>More: What tenants and buyers can expect of Singapore property in 2018</strong></a></div> <div>&nbsp;<span style="white-space:pre"> </span></div> <div>The 2018 PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singpore) gala dinner is supported by platinum sponsor Kohler; official portal partner <a href="http://PropertyGuru.com.sg" target="_blank">PropertyGuru.com.sg</a>, Singapore’s No. 1 property site; media partner PropertyGuru Property Report, Asia’s leading luxury real estate, architecture and design publication; and official supervisor BDO, the world’s fifth largest auditing and accountancy firm, led in Singapore by executive director Roger Loo and senior manager Jan WeidLich.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Main category winners in Singapore will advance to the 8th PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards Grand Final to be hosted in Thailand. The finale ceremony is a collocated event of the two-day PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit at The Athenee Hotel, Bangkok on 8-9 November 2018.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>For more information, email <a href="mailto:awards@propertyguru.com">awards@propertyguru.com</a> or visit: <a href="http://AsiaPropertyAwards.com/singapore-property-awards/" target="_blank">AsiaPropertyAwards.com/singapore-property-awards/</a>&nbsp;</div>
Singapore's premier real estate tilt elects first female chair
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/APA-M+2018_Shortlist_Artwork_Basic.jpg/925c091e-9a24-4b16-8caa-d8f8aa8f2222?t=1522841558770" style="width: 740px; height: 521px;" /></p> <p>The wait is over – here are the official&nbsp;finalists for the 2018 PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia), presented by Kohler.</p> <p><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/winners-list-propertyguru-asia-property-awards-malaysia-20-1" target="_blank">Last year’s double winner</a> LBS Bina Group Berhad collects six nominations this year – the most for any shortlisted developer. The group that specialises in mass market projects and townships earned their spots in the said categories for&nbsp;LBS SkyLake Residence and D' Island Residence, respectively.&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1003">LBS is also up for two special awards: CSR (corporate social responsibility), together with&nbsp;Lion Group Property and Mah Sing Group; and Sustainable Development, alongside&nbsp;three-time nominee OCR Group of Companies.</p> <h3><strong>Industry's highest honours</strong></h3> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522844020765_1107">Tied&nbsp;with triple nominations each are Eastern &amp; Oriental Berhad, Johor Land Berhad, and Sime Darby Property Berhad, the last already a titleholder for the coveted Best Developer title back in 2016 from the local competition in Kuala Lumpur, and the regional Grand Final after competing with Southeast Asia’s best developers.</p> <p>Deserving companies with at least two nominations this year include UMLand, UEM Sunrise Berhad, Country View Berhad, Malaysia Land Properties Sdn. Bhd., and Wangsa Tegap Sdn Bhd.</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841852310_608">More than 20 developers and construction companies with current projects in Kuala Lumpur, Klang Valley, Penang, and Iskandar Malaysia are competing for the industry’s highest honours and special awards, including a new category for outstanding public facility and township development.</p> <h3><strong>Invested in real estate success</strong></h3> <p>The presentation for Winners and Highly Commended recipients will take place during an exclusive, black-tie ceremony on Thursday, 26 April, at the InterContinental Kuala Lumpur ballroom. Nearly 300 guests and VIPs are expected to join the gala dinner, which will begin with a cocktail reception.</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841852310_580">Terry Blackburn, founder and managing director of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards, said: “This year’s crop of shortlisted nominees in Malaysia prove that despite market challenges and temporary downturns, developers who are truly invested in the success of the property sector deserved being celebrated.</p> <p><span style="background-color: transparent;">"They have vital role in this industry and we are confident that they will continue to produce the best properties for consumers.”</span></p> <h3><strong>Fair, transparent and ethical judging</strong></h3> <p>The judging system for the fifth edition of the awards, which is known for its fairness, transparency and credibility, was supervised by BDO, the world’s fifth largest auditing and accountancy firm.</p> <p>Prem Kumar, executive director of Jones Lang Wootton, is the incumbent chairman of the judges, while Yang Amat Mulia Tunku Besar Seri Menanti, Tunku Ali Redhauddin ibni Tuanku Muhriz, served as the honourary president of the panel.</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841852310_390">Sharing his outlook on the market, the panel's&nbsp;chair said: “The consensus today is that the Malaysian property market – specifically the residential and commercial sectors – is undergoing a period of consolidation.&nbsp;The stakeholders are all striving towards a quick recovery of the market."</p> <h3><strong>The way forward</strong></h3> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841852310_524">He added: "The panel commends the developers that work hard to maintain the highest quality and standards, as well as incorporating aspects such as sustainability, lifestyle elements, and others, which have become extremely important and crucial. This is the way forward.”</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1515">Kumar’s colleagues on the judging panel include highly respected experts from the real estate, design, consultancy and related sectors, namely: Sr Low Han Hoe (Senior Manager, Investment &amp; Agency, Nawawi Tie Leung Real Estate Consultants Sdn Bhd); Blaine Robert (Creative Director, Blaine Robert Design); and Dr. Daniele Gambero (CEO, REI Group of Companies).</p> <p><span style="background-color: transparent;">In addition:&nbsp;Boon Che Wee (Board of Architects and Board of Town Planners Malaysia); Datuk Ar Hj Saiful Anuar Abdul Aziz (Principal, Arte Axis Design Group); Ar. Mustapha Kamal Zulkarnain (Founder and Principal, Arkitek Mustapha Kamal); Tan Hui Yin (Senior Associate, Tan Chap &amp; Associates); and Ir. Dr. Zulhkiple A Bakar (Managing Director, Perunding ZNA).</span></p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1423">The 2018 PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia) is supported by platinum sponsor Kohler; official portal partner <a href="http://PropertyGuru.com.my" onclick="window.open(this.href, '', 'resizable=no,status=no,location=no,toolbar=no,menubar=no,fullscreen=no,scrollbars=no,dependent=no'); return false;">PropertyGuru.com.my</a>, Malaysia’s leading property site; media partners Prestige Malaysia, Top10 Malaysia, and PropertyGuru Property Report; supporting association RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors); and the official supervisor BDO Malaysia by audit partner Rejeesh Balasubramaniam, audit director&nbsp;H’ng Hock Seng, and audit director Lu Yan Fen.</p> <h3><strong>FULL SHORTLIST OF NOMINEES</strong></h3> <h3><strong>5th PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia) 2018</strong></h3> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1658"><strong id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1657"><u id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1656">DEVELOPER AWARDS</u></strong></p> <p><strong>Best Developer</strong></p> <ul id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522844020765_643"> <li id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522844020765_642"><em>Winner to be revealed at the gala dinner on 26 April 2018</em></li> </ul> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522844020765_704"><strong id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522844020765_703">Best Boutique Developer</strong></p> <ul id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522844020765_884"> <li id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522844020765_775">OCR Land Holdings Sdn Bhd</li> </ul> <p><strong>Special Recognition in CSR</strong></p> <ul> <li>LBS Bina Group Berhad</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Lion Group Property&nbsp;</li> <li>Mah Sing Group</li> </ul> <p><strong>Special Recognition in Sustainable Development</strong></p> <ul id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522844020765_776"> <li>LBS Bina Group Berhad</li> <li id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522844020765_775">OCR Group of Companies</li> </ul> <p><strong><u>DEVELOPMENT AWARDS</u></strong></p> <p><strong>Best Luxury Condo Development&nbsp;(Klang Valley)</strong></p> <ul> <li>One Stonor by Malaysia Land Properties Sdn. Bhd.</li> </ul> <ul> <li>The Mews KLCC by Eastern &amp; Oriental Berhad</li> <li>The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Sultan Ismail by Wangsa Tegap Sdn Bhd (Co. No: 185589-W) – a wholly-owned subsidiary of Berjaya Corporation Berhad</li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Condo Development (Klang Valley)</strong></p> <ul> <li>MET 1 Residences by TTDI KL Metropolis Sdn Bhd.</li> </ul> <ul id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1124"> <li>The Fennel at Sentul East by YTL Land &amp; Development Berhad</li> <li id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1123">The Pano by OCR Group of Companies</li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Landed Development (Klang Valley)</strong></p> <ul> <li>Albury 2 by UMLand</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Crescent Park at Bandar Bukit Mahkota by Lion Group Property</li> <li>Irama Perdana @ LBS Alam Perdana by LBS Bina Group Berhad</li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Condo Development (Iskandar)</strong></p> <ul> <li>Paradiso Nuova by Zhuoyuan Iskandar Sdn Bhd</li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Landed Development (Iskandar)</strong></p> <ul> <li>Autumn Breeze 3 Storey Superlink XL House, Nusa Sentral by Country View Berhad</li> </ul> <ul> <li>AVIRA Medini by Eastern &amp; Oriental Berhad</li> <li>D’Art 18 Collection 2 @ Taman Tropika by PH World</li> <li>Spring Meadow 3 Storey Cluster House, Nusa Sentral by Country View Berhad</li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Condo Development (Penang)</strong></p> <ul> <li>The Marin at Ferringhi by Plenitude Berhad</li> <li>The Tamarind, Seri Tanjung Pinang by Eastern &amp; Oriental Berhad</li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Mass Market Development (Condo)</strong></p> <ul> <li>Austin Regency by Scudai Development Sdn. Bhd.</li> </ul> <ul> <li>LBS SkyLake Residence by LBS Bina Group Berhad</li> <li>Putra 1 at Bandar Seri Putra by UMLand</li> <li>Sky Condominium by IOI Properties Group Berhad</li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Township Development</strong></p> <ul> <li>Bandar Dato’ Onn by Johor Land Berhad</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Bandar Saujana Putra by LBS Bina Group Berhad</li> <li>City of Elmina by Sime Darby Property Berhad</li> <li>D' Island Residence by LBS Bina Group Berhad</li> <li>Taman Seri Austin by UMLand Seri Austin</li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Office Development (Iskandar)</strong></p> <ul> <li>Menara JLand by Johor Land Berhad</li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Mixed Use Development</strong></p> <ul> <li>Almás @ Puteri Harbour by UEM Sunrise Berhad</li> <li>Sutera Avenue by Mah Sing Group</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1689"><strong id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1688"><u id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1687">DESIGN AWARDS</u></strong></p> <p><strong>Best Condo Architectural Design</strong></p> <ul> <li>One Stonor by Malaysia Land Properties Sdn. Bhd.</li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Landscape Architectural Design</strong></p> <ul id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1207"> <li id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1206">Central Park at&nbsp;City of Elmina by Sime Darby Property Berhad&nbsp;</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1731"><strong id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1730"><u id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1729">SPECIAL AWARDS</u></strong></p> <p><strong>Best Universal Design Development</strong></p> <ul> <li>City of Elmina by Sime Darby Property Berhad&nbsp;</li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Green Development</strong></p> <ul> <li>Almás @ Puteri Harbour by UEM Sunrise Berhad</li> </ul> <ul> <li>Menara JLand by Johor Land Berhad</li> <li>The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Sultan Ismail by Wangsa Tegap Sdn Bhd (Co. No: 185589-W) – a wholly-owned subsidiary of Berjaya Corporation Berhad</li> </ul> <p><strong>Special Recognition for Public Facility</strong></p> <ul> <li>Duke 1 and Duke 2 Highway by Ekovest Berhad&nbsp;</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1727"><strong id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1726"><u id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522841970952_1725">BEST OF MALAYSIA AWARDS</u></strong></p> <p><strong>Best Condo Development (Malaysia)</strong></p> <ul> <li><em>Winner to be revealed at the gala dinner on 26 April 2018</em></li> </ul> <p><strong>Best Landed Development (Malaysia)</strong></p> <ul> <li><em>Winner to be revealed at the gala dinner on 26 April 2018</em></li> <li>&nbsp;</li> </ul> <p>For more information email <a href="mailto:awards@propertyguru.com">awards@propertyguru.com</a>&nbsp;or visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.asiapropertyawards.com/malaysia-property-awards/">AsiaPropertyAwards.com/malaysia-property-awards/</a></p>
Who's up for the 2018 PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia)?
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/VPA_Sponsors_1.png/321839cc-fc05-4fa4-8f33-680fac91e7ce?t=1522661841000" style="width: 740px; height: 492px;" /></p> <p>Vietnam’s leading brands and suppliers in homebuilding, construction and design are on board to support the annual PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards, the biggest and most prestigious real estate gathering in the country, co-organised by&nbsp;<strong>Oriental Media Vietnam</strong>.</p> <p><strong><a href="http://kohlervn.com/">Kohler</a></strong>, manufacturer of premium bathroom products, returns as this year’s platinum sponsor. The brand has been present in Vietnam for more than a decade now and has become the leading supplier for high-end new developments in the country.</p> <p>“By cooperating with PropertyGuru, the organiser of Vietnam Property Awards, we hope to become a bridge between our customers and consumers to provide more choices of comfortable living, as well as to contribute to the sustainable development of the real estate industry in Vietnam,” said Mr Hoang Van Quyen, general director at Kohler Vietnam.</p> <p>After a hugely successful 2017 gala dinner that saw more than 460 guests in attendance, Kohler vowed to continue supporting the event. “As long as the Awards are a fair and credible platform to honour the achievements of the real estate industry in Vietnam, Kohler will throw our wholehearted support behind it,” the executive added.</p> <p>Returning as gold sponsor is&nbsp;<strong><a href="http://ancuong.com/">An Cuong</a></strong>, one of the leading companies in wood-working and decorative materials based in Ho Chi Minh City since 1994. With more than 10 showrooms in Vietnam, plus a manufacturing factory in Binh Duong, An Cuong products are certified by Green Label Singapore and bear Malaysia’s Certificate of Quality.&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/VPA_Sponsors_2.png/253a8686-cf24-456c-be54-85876aefe94d?t=1522661847000" style="width: 740px; height: 491px;" /></p> <p>“We have heard about the success of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards from our customers, which include developers and architectural experts. We believe that this is a very prestigious award-giving body, with an established regional network and run by a professional organisation. We want to expand our brand awareness and audience of developers, designers and other industry professionals in Asia and across the globe by supporting Vietnam’s most exclusive real estate awards programme,” said Mr Nguy Thanh Vi, public relations and marketing manager at An Cuong Wood Working Company JSC.</p> <p>The brand, which has backed the Awards for three editions, is launching new collections in 2018. Its furniture products are exported to Japan, Southeast Asia, North America and Europe.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><a href="http://www.malloca.com/">Malloca</a></strong>, a leading company in providing high quality kitchen appliances in Vietnam for more than 15 years now, is back on board as gold sponsor for a third year. The brand has more than 500 types of products showcased in four showrooms in HCMC, Hanoi, Can Tho and Danang.&nbsp;</p> <p>“Being a co-sponsor of the Vietnam Property Awards is our way to show gratitude to valued customers – real estate developers, architects, and contractors – for having always placed their trust in our products that offer exceptional design, safety and guarantee policies, and top-notch after sales customer care service,” said MrTruong Chau Tuan, head of Sales &amp; Marketing at Malloca.</p> <p>The company, which has recently allied with global partners DEG-Germany and Sumitomo Forestry-Japan (Sumitomo Forestry Group), operates seven service centres across the country and more 1,000 wholesale outlets nationwide. Its current line-up includes faucets, granite sinks, built-in hoods and induction hobs.</p> <p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/VPA_Sponsors_3.png/1d2dd2f2-3105-4c19-8567-8a946b04d33e?t=1522661854000" /></p> <p>Joining for the first time as silver sponsor is&nbsp;<strong><a href="http://www.duluxprofessional.com.vn/">Dulux Professional</a></strong>, a consolidated paints and coatings solutions for professional customers by AkzoNobel, a leading global paints and coatings company. A leader in sustainability, Dulux Professional is a prominent name in the green architecture trend that is sweeping across Vietnam today.</p> <p>Mr Nguyen Cong Hai, head of marketing at AkzoNobel Paints Vietnam said: "We always focus on the sustainable development of Vietnamese enterprises because sustainability is the core factor for the success of AkzoNobel. Equipped with an extensive knowledge of sector specifications and regulations, AkzoNobel is proud to support the construction and real estate developments in Vietnam by offering a one-stop paints and coatings contact point for industry professionals.&nbsp;</p> <p>“The Vietnam Property Awards 2018 is a bridge to connect Dulux Professional with businesses as well as the public audiences, giving opportunity for Dulux Professional to affirm and strengthen its position in the market with optimal, sustainable and efficient solutions for products and services for the project channel.”</p> <p>Completing this year’s list of valued partners are: official portal partner&nbsp;<strong>Batdongsan.com.vn</strong>; official media partners&nbsp;<strong>DELUXE</strong>and&nbsp;<strong>PropertyGuru Property Report</strong>magazines; supporting associations&nbsp;<strong>European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam</strong>and&nbsp;<strong>British Business Group Vietnam</strong>; official charity&nbsp;<strong>CARE</strong>; and official supervisor&nbsp;<strong>BDO</strong>, the world’s fifth largest auditing and accountancy firm.</p> <p>Nearly 500 guests are expected to join the exclusive gala dinner of the 2018 PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards, on Friday, 22 June at the InterContinental Saigon Hotel.&nbsp;</p> <p>For more information, email <a href="mailto:awards@propertyguru.com">awards@propertyguru.com</a>&nbsp;or visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.asiapropertyawards.com/vietnam-property-awards/">AsiaPropertyAwards.com/vietnam-property-awards/</a></p>
Top brands behind the annual PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards 2018 unveiled
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/KPA+2018_Low-res_Winners.png/d59e35e9-f1bd-4218-96f8-b6b39bccef4e?t=1521258889032" /></p> <p>History was made at the third annual gala dinner of the PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards, presented by KHI, which took place Friday evening (16 March) at the majestic Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra.</p> <p>Borey Peng Huoth Group was named Best Developer for the third consecutive year. It was the first time a developer has achieved this distinction in the 13-year history of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards programme.</p> <p>Fielding its best condominium, housing and retail properties, the country’s top developer has also earned a reputation for producing premium mixed-use development, such as this year’s Greater Euro Ville. Overall, the group collected seven golden trophies and 10 commendations.</p> <p id="yui_patched_v3_11_0_1_1522839549858_861">“Borey Peng Huoth Group is in a league of its own as a relentless innovator in Cambodian real estate. Being the first developer in the country to utilise technology to promote its properties and to inform consumers, the group understands the power of positive word-of-mouth. For every project, whether residential, commercial or mixed-use, Borey Peng Huoth has earned praises from the industry, citing the quality of sustainable design, planning and execution, and site management,” said the independent panel of judges.</p> <h3>Exciting mixed-use developments</h3> <p>The company shares the award for Special Recognition in CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) with another top nominee, Creed Group and its affiliates, which took home three awards, including one for Special Recognition in Sustainable Development, plus two Highly Commended distinctions.</p> <p><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/2018-propertyguru-cambodia-property-awards-the-winners-list" target="_blank"><strong>More: Full winners list of the 2018 PropertyGuru&nbsp;Cambodia Property Awards</strong></a></p> <p>Tying Creed Group with three awards is LIXIN Construction, the team behind the new mixed-use property in central Phnom Penh’s 7 Makara district. A collaboration between KT Pacific Group and LIXIN Group, the winning project CEO KT Pacific collected the gongs for Best High End Condo Development (Phnom Penh) and Best Office Development.</p> <p>Last year’s multiple winner Phnom Penh City Center claimed two awards for Best Universal Design Development and Best Retail Development for its Eden Garden project located in their mixed-use complex in the capital.</p> <p>A total of 26 award categories, including a few special awards, were presented at the televised ceremony on CTN TV that was attended by more than 360 guests, VIPs, and members of the press.</p> <h3><strong>Awareness for female workers' rights</strong></h3> <p>The exclusive guest list included the delegation of ministers and government officials led by H.E. Dr Pen Sophal, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction, who delivered the keynote address on behalf of H.E. Senior Minister Chea Sophara. The minister praised the advancements of the maturing real estate and construction sectors, as well as the aspirations and efforts of developers to promote sustainable and safe building practices.</p> <p><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/call-for-positive-construction-practices-in-cambodia-persi-20" target="_blank"><strong>More: Call for positive construction practices in Cambodia persists</strong></a></p> <p>Among the highlights of the evening was a brief presentation about labour rights from CARE, the event’s official charity, which gave a Special Recognition for Positive Construction Practices to Pisnoka International Corporation for setting an example for the best practices in the industry by giving Cambodian female construction professionals labour protection and training.</p> <p>The Municipality of Phnom Penh was also honoured for the Phnom Penh Riverside Redevelopment and Phnom Penh Waterworks projects spearheaded by the capital’s governor, H.E. Mr Khoung Sreng, receiving the Special Recognition for Public Facility, a new category this year.&nbsp;</p> <h3>Inspiring a new generation of designers</h3> <p>Additionally, young architect and respected university lecturer and guest professor Hun Chansan, the founder, design director and principal architect of Re-Edge Architecture + Design, was presented a special award for Cambodia Real Estate Personality of the Year. He has been chosen by the editors of PropertyGuru Property Report magazine for inspiring a new generation of Cambodian architects and designers and for his efforts to raise their profession’s profile in the global scene.</p> <p><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/young-architect-wins-cambodia-s-real-estate-personality-of-the-year-awa-3" target="_blank"><strong>More: Architect wins Cambodia's Real Estate Personality of the Year title</strong></a></p> <p>Hari V. Krishnan, CEO of PropertyGuru Group, said: “Congratulations to the Winners and Highly Commended companies in Cambodia. Once again they have demonstrated that progress in the sector can be achieved by producing quality products targeted at various types of consumers who may be interested in innovative luxury and high-end residential, affordable housing, mixed-use, or commercial properties.&nbsp;</p> <p>"It’s exciting to see that the domestic market is also maturing in terms of standardising working methods and safety guidelines and PropertyGuru is proud to support and celebrate the best business practices from developers and the construction industry.”</p> <p>Terry Blackburn, founder and managing director of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards, said: “Cambodia’s rapidly evolving real estate development and construction sectors are significant contributors to the advancement of this country’s economy and we are proud to have organised another hugely successful event this year. Well done to all the developers for giving consumers more quality real estate to choose from in the Greater Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Sihanoukville regions.”</p> <h3>Independent judging panel system</h3> <p>This year’s independent judging panel in Cambodia comprised of returning chairman Sorn Seap (Founder &amp; Director, Key Real Estate Co Ltd); Simon Griffiths (Managing Director, Urban Assets Solutions), David Littlejohn (Sales &amp; Marketing Manager, Comin Khmere), Michel Cassagnes (Managing Director, Archetype Cambodia), Sok Siphana (Managing Partner, SokSiphana&amp;associates); Ross Wheble, MA, MRICS (Country Head, Knight Frank [Cambodia] Pte Ltd), Thida Ann (Director, CBRE Cambodia), and Grace Rachny Fong (Executive Director, Century 21 Cambodia).</p> <p><strong><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/propertyguru-cambodia-property-awards-2018-announces-event-sponsors-and-partne-4" target="_blank">More: Who supported&nbsp;Cambodia's most prestigious&nbsp;industry event in 2018?</a></strong></p> <p>The 2018 PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards was supported by platinum sponsor KHI; co-sponsors Panasonic and Jotun; official portal partner Realestate.com.kh; official charity partner CARE; media partners Southeast Asia GLOBE, Khmer Times, Construction &amp; Property Magazine, B2B Cambodia, BizKhmer, and PropertyGuru Property Report; supporting associations European Chamber of Commerce in Cambodia (EuroCham) and British Chamber of Commerce Cambodia; and the official supervisor BDO led in Cambodia by partner Lim Seng Siew, assistant manager Sok Sochetra, and senior associate Norng Kiman.</p> <p>Main category winners are now qualified to compete for more regional honours at the 8th annual PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards Grand Final, which will be hosted by Thailand for the first-time ever. The ceremony is a collocated event of the two-day PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit at The Athenee Hotel, Bangkok on 8-9 November 2018.</p> <p>For more information, email <a href="mailto:awards@propertyguru.com">awards@propertyguru.com</a> or visit <a href="http://AsiaPropertyAwards.com/cambodia-property-awards/">AsiaPropertyAwards.com/cambodia-property-awards/</a></p>
PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards 2018 honours maturing property market
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/KPA+2018_Winners_Artwork.jpg/53591d47-bde9-4e80-b198-4b79ab40e533?t=1521259814212" style="width: 1000px; height: 704px;" /></p> <p>What an amazing night!</p> <p>Borey Peng Huoth Group led the Winners and Highly Commended at the PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards 2018, presented by KHI and supported by Jotun and Panasonic.</p> <p>Winning Best Developer for the third consecutive year, Borey Peng Huoth Group has achieved a rare feat not done by any developer in PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards’ 13-year history.</p> <p>The company took home a total of 17 honours – 7 wins and 10 commendations – including nods for mixed-use development for Greater Euro Ville, a few design awards, and the Special Recognition in Corporate Social Responsibility, a new category.</p> <p><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/propertyguru-cambodia-property-awards-2018-honours-maturing-property-market-aspiring-for-best-practi-16" target="_blank"><strong>More: Honours presented for&nbsp;Cambodia's maturing property market</strong></a></p> <p>Other mixed-use developers were also victorius, including joint venture LIXIN Construction for its CEO KT Pacific project, Phnom Penh City Center, and Sihanoukville’s The Seagate Suite by KHCN Investment and Development Co., Ltd.</p> <p>Japanese-backed Creed Group won three awards including a new one for Special Recognition in Sustainable Development, while official charity CARE presented Pisnoka International Corporation a special award for protecting labour rights of female construction workers.</p> <p>Meanwhile, young architect Hun Chansan, designer of the award-winning NORO Mall, was honoured as the 2018 Cambodia Real Estate Personality of the Year for insipirng a new generation of architects and designers through his design firm Re-Edge Architecture + Design.</p> <p>CTN TV televised the presentation at the Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra, where more than 360 guests attended led by Guest of Honour and keynote speaker H.E. Dr Pen Sophal, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Land Management, Urban Planning and Construction.</p> <h3>THE COMPLETE WINNERS &amp; HIGHLY COMMENDED LIST</h3> <h3>3rd PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards 2018</h3> <h4><u>DEVELOPER AWARDS</u></h4> <p><strong>Best Developer</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p><strong>Special Recognition in CSR</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>WINNER: Creed Asia (Cambodia) Co., Ltd. and Triple Gem Assets Co., Ltd.</p> <p><strong>Special Recognition in Sustainable Development</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Creed Asia (Cambodia) Co., Ltd. and Triple Gem Assets Co., Ltd.</p> <h4>&nbsp;</h4> <h4><u>DEVELOPMENT AWARDS (RESIDENTIAL)</u></h4> <p><strong>Best High End Condo Development (Phnom Penh)</strong></p> <p>WINNER: CEO KT Pacific by LIXIN Construction</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: One Park by GRED – Graticity Real Estate Development Co., Ltd</p> <p><strong>Best Affordable Condo Development (Phnom Penh)</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Star Polaris 23 by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Parkway by Parkway Investments Co., Ltd.</p> <p><strong>Best Housing Development (Phnom Penh)</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Borey The Mekong Royal by Mekong Phnom Penh Development Corporation (MPDC)</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: ARATA Garden Residences by Creed Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Star Platinum Euro Ville by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Star Platinum Rosato by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p><strong>Best Residential Development (Sihanoukville)</strong></p> <p>WINNER: The Seagate Suite by KHCN Investment and Development Co., Ltd.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><u><strong>DEVELOPMENT AWARDS (COMMERCIAL)</strong></u></p> <p><strong>Best Office Development</strong></p> <p>WINNER: CEO KT Pacific by LIXIN Construction</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Parkway by Parkway Investments Co., Ltd.</p> <p><strong>Best Retail Development</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Eden Garden by Phnom Penh City Center</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Euro Park by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Seagate Suite by KHCN Investment and Development Co., Ltd.</p> <p><strong>Best Mixed Use Development</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Greater Euro Ville by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: CEO KT Pacific by LIXIN Construction</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Parkway by Parkway Investments Co., Ltd.</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Seagate Suite by KHCN Investment and Development Co., Ltd.</p> <p><strong>Best Serviced Apartment</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Tronum by Tronum Home Co., Ltd.</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: CEO KT Pacific by LIXIN Construction</p> <h4>&nbsp;</h4> <h4><u>DESIGN AWARDS</u></h4> <p><strong>Best Condo Architectural Design</strong></p> <p>WINNER: CEO KT Pacific by LIXIN Construction</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Star Polaris 23 by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Parkway by Parkway Investments Co., Ltd.</p> <p><strong>Best Condo Interior Design</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Star Polaris 23 by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: CEO KT Pacific by LIXIN Construction</p> <p><strong>Best Housing Architectural Design</strong></p> <p>WINNER: ARATA Garden Residences by Creed Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Borey The Mekong Royal by Mekong Phnom Penh Development Corporation (MPDC)</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Star Platinum Euro Ville by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Star Platinum Rosato by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p><strong>Best Housing Interior Design</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Star Platinum Euro Ville by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Star Platinum Rosato by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p><strong>Best Retail Architectural Design</strong></p> <p>WINNER: The Heritage Walk by Metro Lifestyle Development Co., Ltd.</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Eden Garden by Phnom Penh City Center</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: NORO Mall by NI Development Co., Ltd.</p> <p><strong>Best Retail Interior Design</strong></p> <p>WINNER: NORO Mall by NI Development Co., Ltd.</p> <p><strong>Best Office Architectural Design</strong></p> <p>WINNER: The Parkway by Parkway Investments Co., Ltd.</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Chief Tower by JS Property International Co Ltd.</p> <p><strong>Best Serviced Apartment Interior Design</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Tronum by Tronum Home Co., Ltd.</p> <p><strong>Best Housing Landscape Architectural Design</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Borey The Mekong Royal by Mekong Phnom Penh Development Corporation (MPDC)</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: ARATA Garden Residences by Creed Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Star Platinum Euro Ville by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Star Platinum Rosato by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p><strong>Best Retail Landscape Architectural Design</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Euro Park by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Eden Garden by Phnom Penh City Center</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: NORO Mall by NI Development Co., Ltd.</p> <p><strong>Best Mixed Use Landscape Architectural Design</strong></p> <p>WINNER: One Park by GRED – Graticity Real Estate Development Co., Ltd</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: CEO KT Pacific by LIXIN Construction</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: Greater Euro Ville by Borey Peng Huoth Group</p> <p>HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Parkway by Parkway Investments Co., Ltd.</p> <h4>&nbsp;</h4> <h4><u>SPECIAL AWARDS</u></h4> <p><strong>Best Universal Design Development</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Eden Garden by Phnom Penh City Center</p> <p>CARE Special Recognition for Positive Construction Practices</p> <p>WINNER: Pisnoka International Corporation</p> <p><strong>Special Recognition for Public Facility</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Phnom Penh Riverside Redevelopment and Phnom Penh Waterworks by the Municipality of Phnom Penh</p> <h4>&nbsp;</h4> <h4><u>PUBLISHER’S CHOICE</u></h4> <p><strong>Cambodia Real Estate Personality of the Year</strong></p> <p>WINNER: Hun Chansan, Founder, Design Director &amp; Principal Architect, Re-Edge Architecture + Design</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>For more information, visit <a href="http://AsiaPropertyAwards.com/cambodia-property-awards/" target="_blank">AsiaPropertyAwards.com/cambodia-property-awards/</a></p>
2018 PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards: The Winners List
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/KPA+2017_Sponsors+and+Partners.png/14fb078f-e077-499f-80d9-98a15e005239?t=1521092433144" style="width: 740px; height: 491px;" /></p> <p>The PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards, the biggest and most prestigious real estate gathering in the country, announces its 2018 roster of event sponsors and partners, led by title sponsor KHI, and co-sponsors Panasonic and Jotun.</p> <p><strong>KHI</strong>, one of most trusted building materials brand in Cambodia, joins the Awards for the first time and has signed on as platinum sponsor. Specialised in tiles and bath and kitchen materials, KHI has a comprehensive ISO system to guild its production and quality control. The company will be represented at the gala dinner by Heng Sok Chhay, brand manager at KHI Hout Co., Ltd.</p> <p>Participating this year as gold sponsor is <strong>Panasonic</strong>, a brand dedicated to improving people’s lives and to helping society progress. The brand’s success in Cambodia is partly attributed to its best-selling consumer air-conditioner product, which continues to gain tremendous support in the market as new residential and retail development projects are launched each year.</p> <p>“Panasonic is honoured to be part of this year’s Cambodia Property Awards. We are excited to bear witness to the accelerated pace the property development industry is experiencing. We share our success with the property development industry in Cambodia,” the company said in a statement. Makoto Sato, senior manager at Panasonic Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., will attend the gala dinner to meet the nominated developers.</p> <p><a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/call-for-positive-construction-practices-in-cambodia-persi-20" target="_blank"><strong>More: Call for positive construction practices in Cambodia persists</strong></a></p> <p>Returning as gold sponsor is <strong>Jotun</strong>, which supported the last Cambodia Property Awards event. A leading international paint supplier chosen for iconic buildings like the Eiffel Tower, Burj Khalifa and the Petronas Tower, Jotun has been operating for more than 10 years domestically, and more than 90 years globally. By coming back to support the Awards, the brand will take an even greater participation in promoting high quality development in the Cambodian real estate industry.</p> <p>“With our vision of ‘Jotun Protects Property’, we are proud to have seen many projects that have been protected with Jotun paints, winning the Cambodia Property Awards,” said Svein Johan Stub, general manager at Jotun (Cambodia) Ltd. “As the leading supplier of premium paint to the Cambodian real estate market, we think it is beneficiary to be associated with great events like this.”</p> <p>This year’s official portal partner <strong>Realestate.com.kh</strong>; official charity partner <strong>CARE</strong>; media partners <strong>Southeast Asia GLOBE, Khmer Times, Construction &amp; Property Magazine, B2B Cambodia, BizKhmer,</strong> and <strong>PropertyGuru Property Report</strong>; supporting associations <strong>European Chamber of Commerce in Cambodia (EuroCham)</strong> and <strong>British Chamber of Commerce Cambodia</strong>; and the official supervisor <strong>BDO</strong> led in Cambodia by partner Lim Seng Siew, assistant manager Sok Sochetra, and senior associate Norng Kiman.</p> <p>The exclusive gala dinner of the&nbsp;2018 PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards takes place on Friday, 16 March at the Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra. For more information, email <a href="mailto:awards@propertyguru.com">awards@propertyguru.com</a> or visit <a href="http://www.asiapropertyawards.com/cambodia-property-awards/">AsiaPropertyAwards.com/cambodia-property-awards/</a></p>
PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards 2018 announces event sponsors
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/KPA+2018_REP_Hun+Chansan_thumbnail.png/5ea7e0cd-4c8f-476a-aa00-5feef1d0b5d2?t=1520579948145" /></p> <p>The 2018 Cambodia Real Estate Personality of the Year award will be presented by the editors of PropertyGuru Property Report to an individual who has made significant contributions to the rapidly growing property and construction sectors in the country.</p> <p>This year’s recipient is a young architect named Hun Chansan, founder, design director and principal architect of <a href="http://re-edgearchitecture.com/">Re-Edge Architecture + Design</a>. He has been chosen to receive the coveted special award for his efforts to raise the profile of Cambodian architects and designers in the global scene and inspiring them to build well-rounded and socially-conscious careers.</p> <p>Hun, who holds a Master of Architecture degree from Northeastern University in Boston in the United States, implements in his design projects a concept that he developed in graduate school for his thesis called “Re-Edging Retails,” which is about creating designs to seamlessly bridge the language between a building and its physical and social environment.</p> <h3>Social catalysts who shape a city</h3> <p>“It was during my master’s degree education that I truly understood the career of an architect beyond just being a good designer. Architects play many important roles in developing a community – they are in a way social catalysts who help shape a neighbourhood and eventually a city,” he said.</p> <p>Returning to his native Cambodia in 2009 after spending a decade and a half in the United States, Hun, who was only 32 at the time, quickly earned a reputation as a respected lecturer and guest professor at multiple universities in Phnom Penh. Two years later he would establish his Re-Edge Architecture + Design practice, employing 30 team members in 2018.</p> <p>Now at 38 years old, Hun has become the face of a new generation of Cambodian architects and designers who want to make a difference in their country, regularly appearing in feature stories in local and regional media outfits such as Southeast Asia GLOBE and Channel News Asia, as speaker at conventions and seminars, as well as being named by several local firms and campaigns as one of “Cambodia’s rising stars.”</p> <h3>Khmer architecture movement</h3> <p>Like his role model, legendary architect Vann Molyvann – the man behind the new Khmer architecture movement during the 1960s – Hun aims to elevate the global reputation of Cambodian architects and designers, and give them due respect for their occupation, equal to how people regard doctors and lawyers. He also wants young practitioners to “push the envelope and create their own path to success.”</p> <p>He said: “Winning the Cambodia Real Estate Personality of the Year award certainly gives me and my team strength, unity, a sense of pride and recognition beyond our daily life in the office and thus will further move us forward in producing the best architectural and design concepts for our local construction and real estate industries.”</p> <p>The Re-Edge team celebrates the recognition for its latest project <a href="http://re-edgearchitecture.com/?p=2091">NORO Mall</a>, developed by NI Development Co., Ltd. The multi-level retail property is up for three awards at the third annual <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/mixed-use-developers-dominate-propertyguru-cambodia-property-awards-2018-shortli-2" target="_blank">PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards</a>: Best Retail Architectural Design, Best Retail Interior Design, and Best Retail Landscape Architectural Design. Expected to be completed in 2019, NORO Mall has been designed to promote flexibility to accommodate various social activities, thus creating a sense of community.</p> <h3>Design to rethink social behaviour</h3> <p>Re-Edge has other projects with similar concepts. “In my practice we often spend our time thinking about public space proposals for the city such as night market, a riverfront park, etc. We hope that by doing extra we will one day push the public sector to rethink social behaviour for its people as our capital city grows even busier.”</p> <p>Along with the shortlisted companies in the competitive categories and recipients of special awards, Hun will be honoured at the black-tie gala dinner of the <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/mixed-use-developers-dominate-propertyguru-cambodia-property-awards-2018-shortli-2" target="_blank">PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards</a>, presented by KHI,&nbsp;on Friday, 16 March 2018 at the Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra ballroom. More than 300 guests, including government VIPs and select members of the media, are expected to attend the exclusive ceremony.</p> <p>For more information, email <a href="mailto:awards@propertyguru.com">awards@propertyguru.com</a> or visit <a href="http://www.asiapropertyawards.com/cambodia-property-awards/">AsiaPropertyAwards.com/cambodia-property-awards/</a></p>
Young architect wins Cambodia's Real Estate Personality of the Year award
<div><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/Indonesia+nominations+lead+2+just+resized.jpg/126e4988-6b1d-4b89-ad56-39aaca167b75?t=1519791212738" style="width: 740px; height: 493px;" />More than 35 competition and special awards are at stake for the annual PropertyGuru Indonesia Property Awards, which takes place on 20 September 2018 to recognise the archipelago’s benchmark-setting real estate from Bali to Jakarta.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Presented by Kohler, and supported by official portal partner Rumah.com, Indonesia’s leading property website, the tilt has added brand-new categories to honour innovations in niche segments, including Best Township Development, Best Lifestyle Centre Development, and Best Industrial Development.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Along with the traditional categories for condominium and residential development in Jakarta, Bali, Lombok, and Greater Indonesia, the programme also has several trophies lined up for the finest office, retail, hotel, and mixed-use projects.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The public are invited to send their nominations now. Eligible entries from developers will be accepted until 3 August 2018. To enter, visit: <a href="http://AsiaPropertyAwards.com/indonesia-property-awards/" target="_blank">AsiaPropertyAwards.com/indonesia-property-awards/</a>&nbsp;</div> <h3>Judging panel gets new chairman</h3> <div>Doddy A. Tjahjadi, managing director of PTI Architects, has been elected as the new chairman of the independent panel of judges, succeeding Hendra Hartono (CEO, PT Leads Property Services Indonesia), who remains on the panel. Having previously served as a judge for this competition, Tjahjadi is one the most respected names in the design industry, having led his team to become one of the country’s premier architectural firms for more than a decade.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The 2017 PropertyGuru Indonesia Property Awards third annual gala dinner, which was attended by nearly 300 guests, gave away an unprecedented 16 design trophies. For the 2018 edition, there are eight architectural and interior design categories at the time of launch.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div> <div><strong><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/here-are-all-the-winners-from-the-3rd-propertyguru-indonesia-property-awards-20-1" target="_blank">More:&nbsp;Here are all the winners from the 3rd PropertyGuru Indonesia Property Awards 2017</a></strong></div> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Whilst the domestic property sector conditions remain soft, according to Hartono’s recent interview with PropertyGuru Property Report magazine, the consensus among members of the judging panel is that market activity is expected to pick up once again in the next few quarters after major infrastructural projects have been completed to service emerging neighbourhoods connected by new MRT and LRT lines.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Additionally, there is healthy demand from the ever-growing Indonesian population, according to another long-time competition judge, Mina Ondang, ‎director at PT Cushman &amp; Wakefield Indonesia. “Developers are tapping into Indonesia’s rapidly expanding middle class, its growing urbanisation and changing lifestyle demands. The population and middle class are still growing and these are cornerstones underlying demand.”</div> <h3>Niche boom leads to new categories</h3> <div>As the attention of certain developers and overseas investors shift to projects that cater to the power of the middle-income segment, the popularity of niche developments steadily grows not just in the capital but also nationwide, prompting the judging panel to include new categories for Best Township Development and Best Lifestyle Centre Development, the latter recognising the best community mall or lifestyle facility (covering less than 20,000 gross floor area).</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Meanwhile, increased cooperation between Indonesia and neighbouring economies like Singapore has also boosted the archipelago’s industrial sector, indirectly impacting the property sector. Industrial properties by local developers or multinational joint venture firms, with completion date between January 2017 and December 2021, are eligible to enter the new category for Best Industrial Development.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/buyer-blues-in-indone-23" target="_blank"><strong>More:&nbsp;Buyer blues in Indonesia</strong></a></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Terry Blackburn, founder and managing director of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards, said: “We are delighted to return to Indonesia to recognise the hard work of developers and benchmark-setting real estate across the country, from Bali to Lombok, Jakarta and Greater Indonesia. There is an abundance of talent coming from these shores as we’ve witnessed year after year, and the property sector continues to overcome hurdles to produce the right projects for consumers in the residential and commercial segments.”</div> <div>&nbsp;<span style="white-space:pre"> </span></div> <div>The 4th PropertyGuru Indonesia Property Awards gala dinner will be held on Thursday, 20 September 2018 at The Ritz-Cartlon Jakarta, Pacific Place, the official hotel. The black-tie event is supported by platinum sponsor Kohler; official portal partner Rumah.com, Indonesia’s leading property site; media partner PropertyGuru Property Report, Asia’s leading luxury real estate, architecture and design publication; and official supervisor BDO, the world’s fifth largest auditing and accountancy firm, led in Indonesia by partner Indrojahjono S, director Desmond Heng, and senior associate advisory consultant Sherlyn Iswadi.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Main category winners will then qualify for the 8th PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards Grand Final, which will be hosted by Thailand for the first-time ever. The ceremony is a collocated event of the two-day PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit at The Athenee Hotel, Bangkok on 8-9 November 2018.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>For more information about the PropertyGuru Indonesia Property Awards, email awards@propertyguru.com or visit&nbsp;<a href="http://AsiaPropertyAwards.com/indonesia-property-awards/" target="_blank">AsiaPropertyAwards.com/indonesia-property-awards/</a></div>
PropertyGuru Indonesia Property Awards charts new benchmarks in realty

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