Property tax to be introduced in China
The central government of China will likely begin levying a long-awaited real estate tax in the first half of next year at the earliest, said a government researcher.Jia Kang, director of the Research Institute of Fiscal Science, was also quoted by the official China Securities Journal as saying...
Continue Reading • 2 Nov 2010
W Hotels opens first hotel in Southeast Asia
W Hotels Worldwide has just opened W Retreat Koh Samui, the first W in the Southeast Asian region.The opening of W Retreat Koh Samui is an important milestone as W Hotels continues to grow worldwide, on track to more than twice its global portfolio by 2012, reaching over 50 hotels...
Continue Reading • 2 Nov 2010
New rules affect upcoming HK auction
Bidding for a luxury site to be auctioned in the Kowloon Tong area in Hong Kong will happen under the shadow of new rules that limit the amount of common space that may be added into a development to 10 percent of its permitted gross floor area (GFA).The site located in Inverness Road, on the...
Continue Reading • 2 Nov 2010
Keppel Land's Seasons Park draws strong interest
Property developer Keppel Land has sold over 90 percent of the 220 units released during the soft launch of its Seasons Park residential project in the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City over the weekend.The 1,672-unit residential development is Keppel Group’s first collection of eco-homes to...
Continue Reading • 2 Nov 2010
Taikoo Shing flat prices exceed 1997 record
A flat in Taikoo Shing in Hong Kong has fetched an average price that is higher than the earlier peak recorded in 1997, making it the city’s first housing estate to reach new record prices.Based on data compiled by Centaline Property Agency, the average transaction price in the estate hit...
Continue Reading • 1 Nov 2010
Cancellation of deals on the rise in China
An increasing number of Chinese home buyers are forfeiting deposits and defaulting on purchase agreements due to fear that stricter policy setting will cause a sharp decline in property prices, said estate agents.Estimates of the extent of defaults differ widely, with some media reporting that...
Continue Reading • 29 Oct 2010
Bangkok condo market a hit with Asian buyers
The condominium market in Bangkok has recently attracted strong interest from overseas investors particularly from Asia, according to a recent report released by Bangkok-based property agency Plus Property.Enquiries from foreign buyers, mostly from Singapore and Hong Kong, have increased more...
Continue Reading • 28 Oct 2010
China property prices to remain resilient
Property prices in the mainland China will continue to grow despite a series of tightening measures implemented by the central government, according to a report released by Knight Frank.Knight Frank’s researchers indicated that the property measures would not have a long term effect on the...
Continue Reading • 28 Oct 2010
HK luxury home prices surpass their 1997 peak
Luxury home prices in Hong Kong have surpassed their peak during the pre-Asian crisis, frustrating government efforts to dampen the city’s expensive property market.Average prices for homes measuring at least 100 sq m are now 14 percent higher than before the 1997 downturn, said the Hong...
Continue Reading • 28 Oct 2010
HK's secondary transaction volume soars to 3-years high
The weekend transaction volume for the 10 major secondary residential estates in Hong Kong for October 23 to 24 climbed to 94 transactions from 84 deals during October 16 to 17, according to the Hong Kong Economic Times (HKET).This figure implies a 3-year-high since November 2007. The volume has...
Continue Reading • 26 Oct 2010
HK's private housing units doubled in Q3
The Hong Kong government announced that the construction and completion of residential units had both doubled in the third quarter, in an attempt to ramp up supply to dampen the overheated real estate market.The actual completion of private residential units climbed to 4,100 units in the third...
Continue Reading • 25 Oct 2010
Malaysian speculators aggressively chasing profits
The Malaysian government has been urged to curb home price speculation to protect the low- and medium-income group, with some of them having saved up for years to buy a home.Teng Boon Soon, a member of Parliament, said the government should let healthy market mechanisms determine the price...
Continue Reading • 21 Oct 2010
Will China policies affect luxury property market?
The demand for luxury residential properties are likely to be only slightly affected by China’s strict controls on the overall residential market, said Colliers International in a report.Colliers based its conclusion on sustained purchasing power from diversified consumers and growing...
Continue Reading • 21 Oct 2010
China's land prices up
Chinese property developers bid prices of land up by over 46 percent week-on-week last week, dismissing concerns that the central government is serious about cracking down on property price increases.According to figures published by property website Soufun, property developers paid an average...
Continue Reading • 21 Oct 2010
Rent-to-buy scheme may be expanded, says Tsang
Hong Kong chief executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen has suggested that the rent-to-buy scheme, supposedly a temporary relief measure for better-off home buyers, could be expanded if it receives good response.Mr. Tsang also challenged his critics and supporters of the old home ownership scheme (HOS)...
Continue Reading • 20 Oct 2010
China property prices rise in September
China saw an increase in property prices for the first time in four months in September, indicating that the market is set to pounce on any let-up by the government in its actions against property speculation.Officials had already noticed the return of property inflation, strengthening its...
Continue Reading • 18 Oct 2010
Chinese buyers acquired 35% of HK luxury homes
Chinese buyers purchased more than one in three new luxury flats in Hong Kong in the first half of 2010, an increase of over 50 percent than in the second half of 2009.“Hong Kong property prices have become around 25 percent cheaper to China buyers because of the appreciation of the yuan in...
Continue Reading • 18 Oct 2010
China's hot property prices fail to curb buying sentiment
Within days of China’s authorities announcing another set of property cooling measures, thousands of people have been seen attending property shows across China.Samsung Securities and Standard & Poor’s both expect a 10 percent decline in prices in first-tier cities in the next 6...
Continue Reading • 15 Oct 2010
London tops Europe's property investment market
London has been named the most attractive European city for real estate investment by LaSalle Investment Management, one of the world’s top global real estate investment managers.LaSalle said in its 12th annual European Regional Economic Growth Index that medium term demand for commercial...
Continue Reading • 14 Oct 2010
Hong Kong to limit property investment immigration
Hong Kong will limit property investment immigration and increase housing supply to cool down the red-hot property market, said Donald Tsang, Hong Kong chief executive.Mr Tsang said in his annual policy address that the Hong Kong government would temporarily limit immigration based on property...
Continue Reading • 14 Oct 2010