New property launches in Bangkok rose by 26 percent quarter-on-quarter during the second three months of the year, although the totals still remain around 20 percent lower than those seen during the first half of last year.
There were many positive signs for the Bangkok property market during June, according to real estate firm Colliers in its latest Bangkok Condominium Market Q2 2014 research and forecast report.
It reported that after the NCPO seized power in May 2014, they set up their team to restart the country again with many policies.
Approximately 16,760 new condominium units were completed and registered at the Department of Land in the first half of 2014. Many condominium projects were postponed from 2013 and delayed their completion date, due to labour shortage problems and the effects of the political protests.
Colliers reported that the average take-up rate for condominium projects in Bangkok for 2Q 2014 was approximately 64 percent, significantly higher than in the previous quarter. This was due to some condominium projects selling out within a few days of the official launch, especially those by listed developers, it noted.
The average selling price for newly launched units in Q2 2014 increased by around 18 percent over the average price of all condominium units that were launched in the first quarter, because many new projects were launched in the city area close to BTS and MRT mass transit stations.
More than 7,000 condominium units were launched in June 2014, while only around 5,000 units were launched in April and May combined. This pushed the total units launched in 2Q 2014 up to approximately 12,710 units, an increase of around 26 percent over Q1 2014.
Many condominium projects launched in the first half of 2014 had a high take-up rate and sold out quickly after the official launch, especially in Q2 2014, although the average take-up rate in Q1 2014 was only 38 percent.
Colliers said this was because, after the NCPO seized power and launched many policies, solving many problems, especially the political crisis, Thai confidence increased and restored demand in the property market.
Looking forward Colliers predicts the condominium market in 2014 will probably be higher than expected in Q1 2014, after buyer and developer confidence returned in June. The total number of condominium units launched in 2014 may surpass 50,000 and the average take-up rate will be higher than in the first half of 2014.
The average selling price of newly launched units in Q2 2014 increased from the first quarter by around 17 percent, due to the many projects launched in the city area and close to mass transit stations.
New condominium projects scheduled to be launched in the second half of 2014 are located in the areas close to BTS and MRT stations, therefore average prices in the second half of 2014 will be higher than in the first six months, is said.
In addition, the average price of new condominium units launched in H2 2014 will probably be 10 percent higher, after developers tried to maintain or increase their prices only few percentage points in Q1.
Some mass transit line extensions in Bangkok are still under construction and some new lines are also on going the previous plan after the NCPO announced their policies for infrastructure development projects. The under-construction and planned mass transit lines are the main factor stimulating the property market, especially the condominium market.
Andrew Batt, International Group Editor of PropertyGuru Group, wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories email andrew@propertyguru.com.sg
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