<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 seaside residential properties. The following are just a sampling of the more memorable waterfront 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 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> 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 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). </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 laid out on a gently sloping hillside in the Bukit Peninsula of 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 & 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 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: 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 is the first major township 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, 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. </p> <h4>5. Queens Residences Q1 </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 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 contorts to the building’s unique ellipse shape, intended to make the most of the gorgeous Nha Trang views.</p>
<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 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: 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. </p> <p>The first quarter also saw the addition of over 770 townhouses and villas. From Q2 2018 to 2020, 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 dominate with 60% market share.</p> <p>More than 1,100 serviced apartment units will hit the city in the 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>
<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 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 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 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 106 well-equipped office units and a slew of residential products, including 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: 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. 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, F&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>
<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. A net-zero energy building, The Edge generates all the clean power it needs. </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: 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 & Wakefield, is returning 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 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>
<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 coveted honours 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 <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, 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. </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 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, 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 </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 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. </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. </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>
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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. </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. </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. </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. </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. </p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/inside-one-of-singapore-s-strangest-hom-8" target="_blank"><strong>More: 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 & 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. </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! </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>
<p><img alt="" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_55434580-compressor.jpg/54dc20d6-15a2-4208-b656-48236f39c83b?t=1524112639871" style="width: 1000px; height: 667px;" />Manila-based property development giant Ayala Land Incorporated is keen on developing sites in peninsular Malaysia, <a href="https://www.rappler.com/business/200531-ayala-land-philippines-malaysia-expansion" target="_blank">Rappler</a> reported.</p> <p>Executives at the award-winning firm recently approved the acquisition of a 9.25-acre site in Klang Valley, its first landbank in Malaysia, Ayala Land president and CEO Bernard Dy disclosed in a company brief Wednesday.</p> <p>"We saw a lot of similarities in Klang Valley that we see in the Philippines," he said. "Klang Valley is home to around eight million, has fairly good GDP growth of about 5 percent, and the population averages around the mid-20s in age."</p> <p>The announcement follows Ayala Land’s recent move to up its majority share in Bursa Malaysia-listed developer MCT Berhad to around 66 percent. MCT Berhad facilitated the land purchase valued at around PHP2 billion (USD38 million).</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/china-is-leading-efforts-to-reconstruct-this-war-torn-philippine-city" target="_blank"><strong>More: China is leading efforts to reconstruct this war-torn Philippine city</strong></a></p> <p>Targeting PHP40 billion (USD768 million) in net income by 2020, Ayala Land will focus on developing mixed-use sites with residential components designed mainly for the mid-income market.</p> <p>MCT Berhad is evaluating more land acquisitions on behalf of Ayala Land, Dy added.</p> <p>In January, Ayala Land unit Regent Wise Investments Ltd <a href="https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2018/01/03/ayala-to-make-go-for-mct/" target="_blank">purchased</a> some 230 million shares in MCT Berhad for MYR202.5 million (USD52 million), upping its stake in the firm from 32.95 percent to 50.19 percent.</p> <p>Ayala Land unit Alveo won a Highly Commended award for its high-end Metro Manila condominium project Solstice at last year’s <a href="http://www.asiapropertyawards.com/philippines-property-awards/" target="_blank">PropertyGuru Philippines Property Awards</a>.</p> <p>Ayala Land won the top award of Best Developer at the 2014 Southeast Asia Property Awards in Singapore.</p>
<p><img alt="Image: Hyperloop Transportation Technologies" src="/documents/10204/0/HyperloopTT+System+Desert.jpg/07f1d86b-8142-4c95-9f2e-d18d45843d8b?t=1524112369519" style="width: 740px; height: 394px;" />Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT) is to start work on a track for the super-fast transport system in Abu Dhabi, with the goal of having it up and running by as soon as 2020, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/18/hyperloop-coming-to-abu-dhabi-by-2020.html">CNBC reports.</a></p> <p>The firm has signed an agreement with Aldar Properties PJSC, the developer behind Yas Island’s Formula 1 racing circuit. It will be developed close to the site of the festival Expo 2020 and Al Maktoum International Airport, on the border of Abu Dhabi and Dubai. It is hoped the system will be operational in time for Expo 2020.</p> <p>"This agreement creates the basis for the first commercial Hyperloop system in the world here in the Emirates, with the goal of connecting <a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/is-the-abu-dhabi-s-property-market-near-its-botto-4">Abu Dhabi</a> to Al Ain, <a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/why-dubai-is-still-proving-popular-with-overseas-buye-7">Dubai</a>, and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia." said Bibop Gresta, chairman of HTT.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/what-elon-musk-s-hyperloop-could-mean-for-proptech"><strong>More: What Elon Musk's Hyperloop could mean for PropTech</strong></a></p> <p>Hyperloop will work by propelling pods through a large pneumatic tube using magnets, reaching speeds of 750 mph.</p> <p>If successful, then UAE residents will be able to travel to other Emirates within minutes.</p> <p>Hyperloop is the brainchild of Elon Musk, who first proposed the innovative transport system in 2013.</p> <p>Property Report has previously written about how <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/travel-50-kilometres-in-six-minutes-with-india-s-first-hyperlo-5">Hyperloop</a> could be the ‘largest real estate disruptor’ of this generation, with property prices nearby Hyperloop stations poised for massive inflation.</p> <iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Vd4guu4HxFc" width="560"></iframe>
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<p><img alt="Shocks to house prices elsewhere will affect markets at home. Kanok Sulaiman/Shutterstock" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_684462301-compressor.jpg/2f79786f-4ec9-468c-a006-d533892c46e8?t=1523946883461" style="width: 1000px; height: 667px;" />Global synchronicity in residential property prices is on the rise, according to a new report by the International Monetary Fund.</p> <p>Financial conditions have compelled home prices in pairs of countries and cities to move in tandem worldwide, revealed the IMF's Global Financial Stability Report which studied 40 countries and 44 major cities in advanced and emerging market economies.</p> <p>The move toward synchronicity can be put down to a combination of perennially low interest rates across major central banks; increased activity in major cities among institutional investors, private equity firms, and Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT); demand from high-net-worth foreign investors for yield or safe assets in luxury housing; and buoyant economic growth in general.</p> <p>As a result, house prices are starting to behave more like prices of stocks, bonds and other financial assets influenced by investment activity from around the world.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/berlin-is-the-world-s-fastest-growing-housing-mark-6" target="_blank"><strong>More: Berlin now the world's fastest-growing housing market</strong></a></p> <p>Among cities, Shanghai and Auckland posted the highest annual real house price growth on average between 2013 and 2017, based on calculations by IMF staff and other institutional sources.</p> <p>House price dispersion in the United States has been rising in consonance with increases in house prices in alternative investment destinations outside the United States, especially in Asia and Europe, the IMF noted. “House prices in major cities outside the United States—Beijing, Dublin, Hong Kong SAR, London, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Tokyo, Toronto, and Vancouver—are positively associated with US house price dispersion.” </p> <p>The increasingly synchronised movement of home prices around the world has become a more prescient predictor of economic downturns. “Higher house price synchronization corresponds to increased downside risks to growth at horizons of up to one year, controlling for other financial and macroeconomic conditions,” IMF researchers stated.</p> <p>In advanced economies, the short-term co-movement in house prices sharply increases around the time of global recessions. Such spikes, however, are more felt in major cities than at the country level, suggesting that the ramifications of the global financial cycle for cities may be particularly notable.</p>
<p><img alt="The skyline of Berlin with the Alexanderplatz. Markus Mainka/Shutterstock" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_743545075-compressor.jpg/b571373a-888a-4534-b702-f98da793cb0c?t=1523423277279" style="width: 1000px; height: 667px;" />Bucking a downtrend in urban home price growth worldwide, Berlin led the annual rankings of Knight Frank’s latest Global Residential Cities Index released this week.</p> <p>Home prices in the German capital surged 20.5 percent in the year to the fourth quarter of 2017 — the only city among 150 markets to post a growth rate above 20 percent.</p> <p>“Strong population growth, a stable economy, record low unemployment and robust interest from overseas investors are together propelling prices higher,” stated Kate Everett-Allen, head of the consultancy’s international residential research.</p> <p>The index included German cities for the first time. Hamburg, Munich and Frankfurt made their debuts on the index at seventh, eighth and 10th places, in that order.</p> <p><a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/is-the-london-property-market-ready-to-banish-the-brexit-blu-13" target="_blank"><strong>More: Is the London property market ready to banish the Brexit blues?</strong></a></p> <p>Only Hong Kong represented Asia in the top 10, with prices in the Chinese SAR soaring 14.8 percent between the fourth quarters of 2016 and 2017. Along with Seville in Spain, Hong Kong was one of two “most improved markets in 2017,” Everett-Allen noted.</p> <p>Mainland Chinese cities experienced a general downtrend in price increases, averaging only 1.6 percent last year. The latest rankings mark a departure from the end of 2016 when 12 mostly Chinese markets exceeded 20 percent in pricing growth. </p> <p>Worldwide, home prices increased 4.5 percent at the end of 2017, down from 7 percent in 2016.</p> <p><em>The Knight Frank Global Residential Cities Index, top 10: </em></p> <p>1. Berlin</p> <p>2. Izmir</p> <p>3. Reykjavik</p> <p>4. Vancouver</p> <p>5. Hong Kong</p> <p>6. Budapest</p> <p>7. Hamburg</p> <p>8. Munich</p> <p>9. Rotterdam</p> <p>10. Frankfurt</p>