UK landlords law to be changed
By Andrew Batt: UK government plans that would have required all private landlords to confirm the immigration status of their tenants looks set to be amended.Media reports suggest the new law, which could have seen property owners fined thousands of pounds if found to be letting their property to...
Continue Reading • 27 May 2013
London still needs Singapore buyers
By Andrew Batt: Property developers from London still need buyers from Southeast Asia despite a notable increase in the number of British buyers who have returned to the market in the last few weeks.Singaporeans were the leading overseas buyers of off-plan prime central London property last year....
Continue Reading • 27 May 2013
Canary Wharf gets nod for mega devt near London Eye
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:The London Borough of Lambeth has granted approval to property company Canary Wharf Group and Qatar’s sovereign-wealth fund to build eight towers near the London Eye on the River Thames.To be located at the Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA)’s UK headquarters...
Continue Reading • 23 May 2013
Buy Pattaya, or bye bye Pattaya?
By Andrew Batt: EXCLUSIVE: What does this week’s news of Tulip Group’s decision to pull out of Pattaya’s residential market to focus on standalone hotels mean for the booming property sector in the Gulf of Thailand city?Whilst the company is just one of many who have chosen to...
Continue Reading • 23 May 2013
You can't live here if you have kids
By Andrew Batt: There was an explosion of interest in one Brisbane apartment block last week after it was featured on a current affairs television programme, highlighting rules which prevent families with children and pregnant women from living there.The heritage-listed Glenfalloch building in...
Continue Reading • 22 May 2013
Buy a home, get a visa in Spain
By Andrew Batt:A new law in Spain which is expected to come into force in July is expected to see many more buyers from Southeast Asia investing in property there - because it will come with residency. The law, which we first reported about in late 2012, will allow non-European Union residents to...
Continue Reading • 22 May 2013
Ascott marks entrance into Saudi market
By Nikki De Guzman:CapitaLand’s Ascott has secured its first contract in Saudi Arabia from Rafal Real Estate Development (RAFAL), to manage the 230-unit Ascott Olaya Riyadh (pictured).Expected to open in 2015, the property will be near the upcoming King Abdullah Financial District....
Continue Reading • 21 May 2013
Battersea sells 95% in just five months
By Andrew Batt:Less than 50 of the 866 units which form part of the first phase of the Battersea Power Station project (pictured) in London remain for sale after the developer reported it has exchanged contracts with close to 95 percent of buyers - worth £675 million.Units officially opened...
Continue Reading • 21 May 2013
London price confidence rising
By Andrew Batt:For only the second time since June 2010, London homeowners believe the value of their homes went up in the last month, and they expect them to carry on rising over the next year.The latest Sentiment Index from Knight Frank and Markit showed the second-highest confidence level...
Continue Reading • 21 May 2013
Luxury villas in Bali put on sale
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:12 unique villas at The Stairs Villa Hotel on the southern coast of Bali in Indonesia are up for sale, according to marketing agent Savills.Designed by the world-famous Philippe Starck, the one-bedroom loft villas (pictured) are located within the hotel – a luxury...
Continue Reading • 21 May 2013
Connecticut mansion is most expensive US home
By Nikki De Guzman:Copper Beech Farm (pictured), a 50 acre property with a 13,519 sq ft French renaissance mansion located in Greenwich, Connecticut, is set to become the most expensive house on sale in the US.Listed for US$190 million (S$238.77 million), the property, which also comes with two...
Continue Reading • 21 May 2013
Overseas demand for Thailand surges
By Andrew Batt:Thailand was the third most popular property destination in the world last month for overseas property searches on one of the UK’s leading property portals.According to the monthly Top of the Props data from TheMoveChannel.com the Kingdom accounted for 6.78 percent of all...
Continue Reading • 20 May 2013
Miami woos Chinese property buyers
By Andrew Batt:The Miami Association of Realtors has launched a campaign to woo affluent Chinese property buyers and investors, and promote Miami (pictured) as a key market for investment.Representatives from GDTV, a leading television station in Guangdong province of China, will spend five days...
Continue Reading • 20 May 2013
London property launching exhibition in Jakarta
By Andrew Batt:Indonesian buyers will get their first chance to take a closer look at one of London’s prestigious prime properties at an event in Jakarta this week.An exhibition of 375 Kensington High Street will take place in Jakarta tomorrow and Wednesday (May 21-22) at an invitation-only...
Continue Reading • 20 May 2013
No foreign rush to buy in Hanoi
Normal 0 false false false EN-SG X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 By Andrew Batt:The widely predicted...
Continue Reading • 17 May 2013
Ascott to manage serviced apartments in Wuxi
By Nikki De Guzman:The Ascott Limited (Ascott) continues to grow its presence in China after securing contracts to manage two new serviced residences in Wuxi – Ascott Central Wuxi (pictured) and Somerset Wuxi — both expected to open in 2015.The 134-unit Ascott Central Wuxi will...
Continue Reading • 17 May 2013
China home prices may rise 8%
By Shabnam Muzammil:Property experts expect average home prices in China to grow by three to eight percent this year as sales volume climbs 5.6 percent.“The growth rate of property sales this year will be very similar with that of last year, despite the government's latest round of policy...
Continue Reading • 17 May 2013
Laguna Shores Phuket apartments to make S'pore debut
By Nikki De Guzman:Thailand-based developer Laguna Property will showcase Laguna Shores, a resort development in Phuket at the Investment Property Showcase at Fairmont Singapore this weekend (18-19 May).The project comprises 334 units ranging from one- to two-bedroom holiday apartments with sizes...
Continue Reading • 15 May 2013
Mega devt in Colombo gets star designer
By Shabnam Muzammil:Singapore-based SilverNeedle Hospitality and Sri Lankan conglomerate ABANS Group have appointed award-winning architect Aedas to design Colombo City Centre.The new mixed-use development will comprise a lifestyle mall, high-rise condominium and 200-room hotel, and is expected...
Continue Reading • 15 May 2013
M'sian developer sees housing demand shifting to Iskandar
By Farah Wahida:Malaysian developer Mah Sing Group expects demand for its properties in Kuala Lumpur and Penang to shift to Iskandar Malaysia, reported The Business Times.Lim Kiu Hock, Executive Director for operations at Mah Sing, said demand has shifted since the launch of Iskandar Malaysia in...
Continue Reading • 14 May 2013