PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards 2018 honours maturing property market

<img alt="A co-working space. Phichat Phruksarojanakun/Shutterstock" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_1051332527-%281%29-compressor.jpg/a1f82c72-e90b-46b3-9c34-f11b7acb9aaf?t=1546499130165" style="width: 1400px; height: 640px;" />Sand in your toes, a light sea breeze ... It wasn’t too long ago that the cliché of a coworking space in Asia centred on dreadlocked digital nomads island-hopping through a professional gap year. And while small business owner-operators can still plug in from a beach shack in Canggu to confer with their factory in Guangdong whilst managing sales in Atlanta, research by Colliers reveals the share of freelancers and independent workers using flexible workspaces dropped by 15 percent over the three years ending in 2017. It’s not that fewer are living the laptop life; no, the flexible workspace market has exploded in Asia-Pacific over the past five years thanks to the enthusiasm of far bigger players on both the supply and demand sides. Big international operators are moving aggressively into the region, including WeWork, which opened its 200th location globally in Singapore in 2017 and is sending its coworking tentacles across Southeast Asia. Major property owners are getting into the act, partnering with flex-space companies and launching their own brands. Governments, noting the benefits of entrepreneurs to their economies, are adding their backing. And multinationals, employing what is referred to as a hub-and-spoke or core/flex approach, now consider flexible spaces an integral piece of their permanent operations, either locating entirely in such real estate or shipping younger, more mobile departments to such “off-sites”. Taken together, it’s little surprise that JLL Research found flexible space stock across Asia-Pacific charting a compound annual growth rate from 2014 to 2017 of 35.7 percent (compared with 25.7 percent in the United States and 21.6 percent in Europe), and the total stock managed by major operators growing by 150 percent. <div class="pull-quotes-container">Everyone is familiar with the dotcom-boom-era ping pong tables, in-house baristas, and—for the luckiest ducks—free beer. They’ve been joined by a sophisticated suite of options appealing to a more diverse, and increasingly corporate, clientele</div> Thailand alone has seen coworking spaces grow from four in 2012 to 132 in 2017—a figure expected to increase by 25 percent in 2018, according to Phattarachai Taweewong, senior manager at Colliers. By 2030, JLL predicts flexible space to comprise 30 percent of corporate commercial property portfolios across Asia-Pacific. Everyone is familiar with the dotcom-boom-era ping pong tables, in-house baristas, and—for the luckiest ducks—free beer. Such mancave perks haven’t gone the way of AOL IMs in this generation, but they’ve been joined by a sophisticated suite of options appealing to a more diverse, and increasingly corporate, clientele. More than letting networking happen organically, flexible work firms are purposefully creating programming and designing interiors to facilitate interaction. Hubba, Thailand’s homegrown first coworking space, has four distinct outlets in Bangkok each catering to different fields, from tech start-ups to artisans and craftsmen. Hubba offers a spectrum of useful seminars (Powerpoint pointers, customer-journey mapping), as well as personalized assistance with management, staffing, and even design. Spaces, another popular player in Bangkok, prides itself on style and flexibility, letting clients reserve anything from a locker to an enclosed area for a team. Their Chamchuri Square location won Best Co Working Space Development at the Property Guru Thailand Property Awards 2018—just a little piece of the global coworking operator founded in Amsterdam in October 2008. “And then Lehman Brothers collapsed,” the founders write on their website. “We thought this would be the end of it for us. But actually, we fit right in that spirit of age. Because of the crisis, everybody was re-thinking work.” <img alt="Artist’s impression of Spaces Chamchuri Square, winner of Best Co Working Space Development at the 13th PropertyGuru Thailand Property Awards" src="/documents/10204/0/SPACES-CHAMCHURI-SQUARE-%281%29-compressor+%281%29.jpg/bd56bf05-7b44-4009-9903-5c9fdcf5eaab?t=1546499897860" /> The Executive Centre (TEC), a pioneering Hong Kong-based flexible space provider founded in 1994 by Paul Salnikow, who had been seeking short-term office space for a Japanese firm expanding to London, credits the GFC as a gamechanger. “Prior to the financial crisis, TEC interacted with multinationals only when they were opening an office in far-flung locations,” says Pebble Lee, global public relations manager. Today, in Hong Kong alone, 67 percent of their clients are multinationals, including Apple, Morgan Stanley, Facebook and Twitter. TEC now has 20,000 members in Grade A offices in CBDs across 30 markets, having added 23 locations in 2017, and is expecting 30 percent annual growth from 2018. Beyond such prestige fittings as height-adjustable standing desks by 9AM, Herman Miller chairs, and Timothy Oulton furnishing, TEC is about all about innovation, their Hong Kong headquarters a “test kitchen—a place to trial new design concepts, products, and technologies,” Lee says. However, potential barriers belie the stunning growth of coworking spaces in the region. “Corporate culture in Asia tends to be more hierarchical, and not always in sync with the casual, flexible atmosphere,” says JLL research. “According to one industry observer, ‘In many markets across Asia Pacific, space is a reflection of status.’ Large organizations place high value on retaining brand identity and culture. Such concerns, along with the need to protect trade secrets and secure IT infrastructure, must be addressed.” It’s why the most sophisticated players act not only as builders, gatekeepers, event-planners and consultants, but also full-time IT departments, and in the case of WeWork, corporate fit-out contractors and developer partners. <img alt="The common areas at a WeWork co-working space in Sanlitun, Beijing" src="/documents/10204/0/20180522_WeWork_Sanlitun_-_Common_Areas-7-compressor.jpg/602f832b-9c5c-47ea-afd9-2ca967c54ca6?t=1546500194327" /> And those developers are coming in hot. A handful of large landlords control the supply (in Singapore’s CBD, the 15 largest landlords control 75 percent of Grade A office buildings; in Hong Kong East, three landlords run 80 percent of office buildings), entering the flex-space market themselves. Swire in Hong Kong—which has created its own brand, Blueprint, and inked deals with WeWork and The Great Room—and Ascendas in Singapore, says JLL, have realized they “can add value to their buildings and maintain or even extend their relationships with tenants by offering a diverse portfolio of core and flex space.” Even hotels have followed suit, looking at their business centers as community lounges, particularly in cities not recognized as regional commercial capitals. In Yangon, Shangri-La Group has opened a branch of FlySpaces. The new Shangri-La Hotel, Colombo, has a gorgeous new space called Co-nnect, with pods, private offices, meeting rooms with smart boards for both hotel guests and residents of the capital looking for a prestigious address to conduct business. <a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/better-together-making-the-most-of-mixed-use-developmen-4" target="_blank">More: Making the most of mixed-use developments</a> While it’s easy to be cynical about the corporatisation of what was once considered a hippy-dippy industry, you might say global expansion has brought the coworking market full-circle. In a recent survey by TEC, members say they value their community as defined by connecting, networking, and collaboration. The firm will soon roll out a client portal, MyTEC, enabling members worldwide to connect directly, give advice, help grow their businesses, and maybe start new ones. The way they might have found common ground while chilling in hammocks in a wired-up beach shack. It may not be sand-between-the-toes, but it is pie-in-the-sky community-minded. And isn’t that the whole point? This article originally appeared in <a href="https://magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/" target="_blank">Issue No. 151</a> of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine

Common grounds: the year in co-working spaces

<img alt="The Golden Bridge is lifted by two giant hands in the tourist resort on Ba Na Hill in Danang, Vietnam. Quang nguyen vinh/Shutterstock" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_1152454088-compressor.jpg/4f08053b-085b-4c75-8a7c-2949990f1434?t=1546414490784" style="width: 1400px; height: 640px;" />Secondary markets may not offer the same dynamic business environment as Asia’s major cities. But with Chinese money pouring into the region and sunny seaside resorts developing into worthy digital hubs they offer fertile ground for big returns. In Cambodia, secondary markets have grabbed international headlines in the past year. Sihanoukville, on the southern coast, has been the poster-child for Chinese investment. Also growing in appeal is Poipet, a lesser-known city bordering Thailand. Speak to any tourist or expat who has at some point crossed the border into Poipet, and they’ll rarely have anything good to say about the place. In the absence of any real industry, Poipet has long been synonymous with rip-off merchants, scammers, gamblers, and other unsavoury sorts—a place where visitors cannot wait to leave and where respectable businesses fear to tread. But things appear to be changing. Since economic zones were launched, and a railway line linking Bangkok to Poipet and Phnom Penh completed last July, the city’s property market has taken a surprising turn. “Many investors from the outside are eyeing Poipet as a great investment destination,” says Hor Kunthea, CEO of Sokha Residences Group. Poipet, with its 30 odd casinos and a growing manufacturing industry, is seeing an expanding Chinese and Korean expat community, mirroring the early rumblings of Sihanoukville’s growth spurt. Sixteen real estate projects were completed in 2017, putting more than 1,500 units onto the market. Adding to this, Poipet governor San Sean Ho has announced the government will build a golf course, an artificial river, a giant garden, and floating market. <div class="pull-quotes-container">In Sihanoukville, the market continues to ride its own investment boom. The sleepy town has undergone immense transformation from a faded backwater to a town jacked up on Chinese cash</div> In more established Sihanoukville, the market continues to ride its own investment boom. The sleepy town has undergone immense transformation from a faded backwater to a town jacked up on Chinese cash. Sotharoth Som, managing director of KHCN Investment and Development Co., Ltd, the developer of the 43-storey Seagate Suite project in Sihanoukville, reports rental prices across the board have gone up five to 10 times, with those closer to the city centre being most expensive. Som says foreign investors, mainly from China, are driving the boom, as they “seek the opportunity to obtain higher rental yields than what is offered in their home countries, along with capital appreciation and low barriers to entry.” <img alt="Sihanoukville’s Best Residential Development, according to the PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards 2018, is The Seagate Suite" src="/documents/10204/0/The-Seagate-Suite-by-KHCN-Investment-and-Development-Co-Ltd-won-Best-Residential-Development-%28Sihanoukville%29-at-the-Cambodia-Property-Awards-2018-for-web-151-compressor.jpg/140feb7c-54d2-4699-b8b8-c9545624ce84?t=1546416006849" /> “The Sihanoukville market has emerged as an alternative condominium hub to the Phnom Penh market,” adds Som, pointing out, however, that compared to Phnom Penh, it is still in its infancy. Elsewhere in Asia, secondary cities are similarly enjoying Chinese-powered boosts as ties with the country strengthen. In the Philippines, warmer relations with China have seen developers benefit from rising demand from Chinese employees and investors, while partnerships between Filipino and foreign developers are expected to increase. <img alt="Artist’s impression of The Courtyard at the Residences at The Sheraton Cebu Mactan Resort by Appleone Mactan Inc. (AMI), which took home the prize for Best Luxury Condo Development (Cebu) at the Philippines Property Awards 2018" src="/documents/10204/0/The-Residences-at-the-Sheraton-Cebu-Mactan-Resort-by-AppleOne-Mactan-Inc.-%28AMI%29-won-Best-Luxury-Condo-Development-%28Cebu%29-at-the-Philippines-Property-Awards-2018-%282%29-compressor.jpg/369bf1c1-12b0-4670-96f9-b52428e516d8?t=1546415703153" /> “Leasing of condominiums in the secondary market remains strong, resulting in lower vacancy and arresting the decline in rents,” states a recent market update by Colliers International, a real estate services company. “Developers should look at housing opportunities in Cebu, Pampanga, and Laguna as offshore gaming firms have started to operate in these locations,” the company advises. Quite like Poipet, Davao City on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao is emerging an unlikely investment haven. The president’s former mayoral city once had a reputation for gun crime; today, property prices are rising. Units on Davao’s Dahican Beach, for example, now sell for PHP10,000 (USD185) to PHP12,000 per square metre compared with PHP1,000 and PHP1,500 per square metre in 2015.  “They know that locators from outside are scrambling for any available space here in the city, not only because the President is from here, but because movement of businesses into Davao City has been going on for several years now,” Adrian Tamayo, a Mindanao expert, told the Business Mirror. Meanwhile in Da Nang, Vietnam, holiday homes and tourism-related properties are in high demand. The city’s latest attraction, a 150-metre golden bridge cradled by two enormous stone hands jutting out of the rocky highlands, has become a social media sensation.  <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/rising-dragon-boom-times-continue-in-vietnam-real-esta-3" target="_blank">More: Boom times continue in Vietnam real estate</a> “The main supply [in Da Nang] is in the hospitality and tourism segment,” according to Peter Frieske, founder and managing director of Central Vietnam Realty. Tourism, he says, is rising sharply and analysts predict it will continue to do so.  Currently one of the top destinations for Chinese and South Korean visitors in Vietnam,  Da Nang received more than five million visitors in the first seven months of 2018—up 30 percent over the same period in 2017, according to the Da Nang tourism department. Of this figure, more than 1.8 million were foreign arrivals, which are up by 54 percent. “The majority of developers are building resorts, with property for sale or condotel villas that are in some way offered with management programmes focusing on returns on investment rather than lifestyle residential properties. When it comes to quality residential projects, the supply is very low,” points out Frieske, adding this is due to the lack of industry in such places. In Phuket where the market has languished in recent years—year-on-year sales dropped 36 percent in 2017—analysts are optimistic 2018 might yield better results. <img alt="The Botanica Luxury Villas won the highly competitive Best Villa Development (Phuket) category at the 2018 Propertyguru Thailand Property Awards" src="/documents/10204/0/Best-Villa-Development-%28Phuket%29-winner-for-2018-is-Botanica-Luxury-Villas-by-Botanica-Luxury-Phuket-Co.%2C-Ltd-for-web-151-compressor.jpg/0d1c6751-6bf3-4c63-8430-4b92cde23c40?t=1546415949403" /> Knight Frank’s Lalita Siriboon, associate director of research, says Phuket’s condominium market is expected to improve in line with Thailand’s economy and as the expat population on the island grows. “Demand across the market will continue to be driven upwards by international homebuyers, investors, and expatriates, especially those from Mainland China, Russia, and Australia. Besides, we expected to see a larger portion of buyers from South Korea,” she says, adding there are also government efforts to raise the profile of Phuket as a digital hub and “Smart City,” which is forecast to boost real estate in Phuket by 2020 when the project is to be completed. Unlike capital cities where business and industry will always give people a reason to live there, the jury is still out on Asia’s secondary markets. As it is, investors need to carefully decide whether these “capital contenders” really are a place to call home, or just precariously thriving off clever marketing. This article originally appeared in <a href="https://magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/" target="_blank">Issue No. 151</a> of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine

2018: the year in secondary property markets

<img alt="One of the top winners at the 2018 Asia Property Awards (Malaysia) is LBS Bina Group, whose LBS Skylake Residence won Best Mass Market Development (Condo) among other honours" src="/documents/10204/0/LBS-Skylake-Residence%2C-won-Best-Mass-Market-Development-%28Condo%29-for-web-compressor.jpg/ce043b3a-f941-4e8e-8c3f-88cb5bba93bb?t=1546244522761" style="width: 1000px; height: 667px;" />Spanning roughly a third of the earth’s landmass, the Asia-Pacific region is home to more than 60 percent of the world’s population—and its rapidly growing cities are beginning to feel the pinch.   The urgent need to create quality affordable housing on limited land has become a defining issue across the region, where soaring property prices and stagnating incomes have left many struggling for a place to call home.   But 2018 brought several breakthroughs on this critical front. Recent elections ushered in new administrations in Hong Kong, New Zealand, and Malaysia, all promising to cure their respective housing crises as a top priority.   Innovative design and urban planning firms have cropped up across Asia, breathing new life into mass housing developments and putting sustainability front and centre.   Singapore’s public housing scheme, created in the 1960s, still shines as the region’s gold standard. Today, more than 90 percent of the city-state’s 5.6 million residents are homeowners. While the Singapore model isn’t easily exportable, many of its neighbours are finding their own unique solutions.   Malaysia suffers no shortage of innovative developers; with more land and lower costs than neighbouring Singapore, the Southeast Asian nation seems to be enjoying a steady emergence from its years-long property malaise.   <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/better-together-making-the-most-of-mixed-use-developmen-4" target="_blank">More: Making the most of mixed-use developments</a> Political headwinds may have helped. In May, Malaysian voters decisively ousted the administration of former Prime Minister Najib Razak, who was deeply embroiled in the 1MDB embezzlement scandal. The new government of Mohammad Mahathir, who returned to power at the age of 93 on a promise of cleaning up corruption and shoring up investor confidence, swiftly began a wholesale undoing of Najib’s policies.  Home-grown firms were more than ready for change, and have seized the opportunity. LBS Bina Group, based in Kuala Lumpur, is among the most prolific when it comes to creating large scale, community-oriented housing, launching successful projects in the Klang Valley, Johor, and Kuala Selangor.   LBS Bina swept this year’s Property Guru Asia Property Awards, recognized as Malaysia’s Best Developer and making off with a cache of other honours for innovation in mass-market condominiums, corporate social responsibility, and sustainability.   Having already gained a strong foothold, the firm now seeks to lead the way by lowering construction costs through an industrialized building system of pre-cast concrete that reduces the need for labour. Ong Wei Ling, a spokesperson for LBS Bina, says the method results in “cleaner, neater, and safer construction sites” completed in a fraction of the time, “helping developers deliver value to investors or buyers awaiting their dream home.”  Other firms such as UEM Sunrise Berhad, one of Malaysia’s largest developers, and OCR Berhad Group have been among the most strident designers of affordable housing, the latter serving as project manager for the massive Yayasan Pahang development in Mukim Penor. Once completed, it is expected to create roughly 25,000 units. <img alt="Citiesto by Kien A Corporation won Best Affordable Condo Development (Ho Chi Minh City) at this year’s Propertyguru Vietnam Property Awards" src="/documents/10204/0/Citiesto-by-KIEN-A-Corporation-for-web-151-compressor.jpg/e31235f8-535d-4ba9-bff8-7a3d7b04126e?t=1546244571355" /> Smaller than the U.S. state of Rhode Island, with nearly seven times the population, Hong Kong is home to about 7.4 million people crammed into 2,754 square kilometres packed with high-rises divvied up into miniscule units. Year after year, this semi-autonomous region of China is named one of the most expensive cities in the world, a vital gateway between East and West that costs an average of USD28,000 per square meter.  “The Hong Kong problem is quite unique and is complicated by the fact that Hong Kong just doesn’t have enough land,” says David Ji, director and head of research and consultancy for greater China at Knight Frank. “They have to squeeze as much out of it as they can.” This conundrum has put Hong Kong’s policymakers in the uncomfortable position of having to either create new landmasses or convert older properties for new use.   <img alt="Topped by an exclusive rooftop garden, Star Polaris 23 by Borey Peng Huoth Group won Best Affordable Condo Development in Phnom Penh this year" src="/documents/10204/0/Star-Polaris-23-by-Borey-Peng-Huoth-Group-for-web-compressor.jpg/6ecefbf3-e21a-4c56-b225-1a0cc998322b?t=1546244589690" /> Chief Executive Carrie Lam, who assumed the territory’s highest office in 2017, has said solving the city’s housing crisis is among her top priorities. While plans to build affordable housing on roughly 1,700 hectares of artificial islands—a project called Lantau Tomorrow Vision—have come under criticism, she may have few viable alternatives to land reclamation. Property experts say Lam has made strides with long-term housing goals, but is bound to face opposition because she has yet to come up with short-term solutions to help the many Hong Kongers who need homes now.   “A comprehensive proposal has been tabled, which has never happened before, and as a long-term proposal this is a positive step,” says Ji. “But all these measures are planned far in the future, we’re looking at five to 10 years down the line, and buyers still find it difficult to get on the property ladder.” While prices have risen for 20 consecutive months, Ji says he expects some relief by year’s end.   <div class="pull-quotes-container">People are rethinking affordable housing—not as a burden that nobody wants to build, but trying to put affordable housing into private developers’ plans</div> Several governments in the Asia-Pacific have also moved to limit foreign ownership—due in part to concerns about Chinese expansionism—but experts say these policies are misguided. New Zealand’s recent ban on foreign residential sales prompted the International Monetary Fund to warn that the policy was discriminatory.   When Malaysian premier Mahathir suggested curbing foreign ownership of units in the USD100 billion Forest City project, the idea sent a chill through the investment community. “Permitting foreign investors to buy new housing obviously increases demand for housing,” says Brendan Coates, a fellow at Melbourne-based think tank the Grattan Institute, “but supply also increases if foreign investors enable developers to build more housing than otherwise.”   China’s own reform of land and financial policies are working to keep investors well within its borders. Outbound capital limits have led many Chinese to invest closer to home, while land use regulations have been altered to require a percentage of mixed-income housing on large scale property developments to meet growing demand.   “I think in the greater China region, people are rethinking affordable housing—not as a burden that nobody wants to build, but trying to put affordable housing into private developers’ plans,” says Ji, of Knight Frank. “The trend is changing from ‘whoever pays the highest price gets the land,’ to a more targeted, controlled use of property.”  This issue originally appeared in <a href="https://magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/" target="_blank">Issue No. 151</a> of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine

Affordable housing sets the agenda in Asia-Pacific

<img alt="The lake at Celadon City, winner of multiple PropertyGuru Vietnam Property Awards this year, including Best Mixed Use Landscape Architectural Design" src="/documents/10204/0/Sustainability-year-end-special-151-for-web-compressor.jpg/f63c772c-a71a-4a89-bcde-b2cab331756b?t=1545891457562" style="width: 1000px; height: 667px;" /> Ten years ago, sprawling conurbations like Saigon or Manila—notorious for their infrastructure and environmental challenges—weren’t obvious destinations for seeking out bastions of sustainability. Today, these cities are seeing the rise of world-class projects displaying green credentials, enticing middle-class apartment-seekers who are forming an increasingly sizeable tranche of society in Vietnam and the Philippines. By 2020, Vietnam’s average annual per capita income is predicted to almost double, from USD1,735 in 2016 to USD3,400. With its large population of citizens under 35 transitioning from a primarily rural economy to an urban one, Vietnam’s property market is proving a lucrative environment for developers, tenants, and both local and foreign buyers, with investors from China, South Korea, Singapore and Malaysia pumping huge sums into the building sector. In Ho Chi Minh City, two companies are paving the way for sustainable real estate. Gamuda Land, the property development arm of Malaysia’s leading engineering and construction group, started building its 82-hectare Celadon City in 2010, making it the first nature-inspired enclave within this traffic-choked megalopolis.  Prioritising sustainable living from the outset, Gamuda introduced such innovations as a rain harvesting system that utilises energy-efficient water tanks to collect rainfall around the property and transfer water to irrigation areas. The integrated township in Tan Phu district, home to 7,300 apartments across four precincts that can accommodate 25,000 people, won the Best Mixed Use Landscape Architectural Design gong at the PropertyGuru Vietnam awards this year. <a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/can-green-buildings-turn-the-tide-in-climate-acti-10" target="_blank">More: Can green buildings turn the tide in climate action?</a> “Celadon City has more than 16 hectares dedicated to lush parklands [that afford] residents the privilege of enjoying nature,” says communications executive Tran Nam Phuong, adding that the Cultural Village, Central Park, the Celadon Sports & Resort Club, and other gathering places within the property offer a sense of community. It’s a concept that’s proven influential, as demand for green living spaces are increasing.  A similar success story is Gamuda City, another landmark project in Southern Hanoi, which confronted the Yen So lake area’s chronic water pollution, garbage disposal, and sewage issues head on. Far beyond building a condo, the development effected the complete rehabilitation of a polluted suburban wasteland, leading to significant public health benefits. Making major inroads into HCMC’s sustainable building boom is CapitaLand Vietnam, whose luxurious, 102-room D1MENSION development in Cau Kho is the first boutique housing development in Saigon—one among CapitaLand’s 13 green estates in the city. Themed projects including De La Sol, D2eight, and d’Edge Thao Dien offer new condominium alternatives to young professionals. “CapitaLand remains committed to building a greener future for Vietnam,” says CEO Chen Lian Pang. “Lowering our environmental footprint creates value for our stakeholders. We incorporate environmental sustainability in all stages of a project, [from] design and construction to operations.” A key wealth creator in the country, the Singapore-headquartered company—which scooped 13 PropertyGuru Vietnam awards this year, including Best Developer, Best Condo, and Special Recognition for Sustainable Development—has built almost 5,000 apartments across six other cities, from Halong to Nha Trang. <img alt="Winner of Best Green Development at this year’s Propertyguru Asia Property Awards (Sri Lanka), Clearpoint Residencies Rajagiriya come with self-sustaining gardens instead of ordinary balconies" src="/documents/10204/0/Clearpoint-Residencies%2C-Rajagiriya%2C-Sri-Lanka-by-Maga-Engineering-%28Pvt%29-Ltd-%26-Milroy-Perera-Associates-%28Pvt%29-Ltd.-won-Best-Green-Development-%282%29-compressor.jpg/98d681e9-5b00-41ed-9632-44756bcba7ae?t=1545891791227" /> In Metro Manila—another densely populated Southeast Asian city with a burgeoning  middle- and affluent class—Taguig-based ArthaLand is a home-grown leader in marrying sustainable credentials with cutting-edge architecture. The property arm of the Century Pacific group has carved a niche in the Philippine market by exclusively focusing on properties that adhere to global and national standards in green buildings. Being the only development in the Philippines to have received the coveted gold certification in the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program, its flagship dual-towered Arya Residences in Bonifacio Global City is a milestone in the country for its design and eco-friendly features. Arya Residences’ construction naturally channels the breeze, its balconies and ledges lending natural shade into the units, adding meaningful outdoor space even as daylight reaches 75 percent into the indoors. Interiors are decorated using paints and resins with low volatile organic compound emissions, while built-in fixtures and appliances deploy advanced technology to reduce environmental impact and usage cost. Winning this year’s “Special Recognition in Sustainable Development” at the PropertyGuru Philippines Property Awards, ArthaLand emphasises human advantages. Arya Residences encourages its residents to live a more environmentally conscious, cost-efficient, and healthy lifestyle. Their advertising tagline,  “Green is the new luxury”, is echoed by Raymond Rufino, chairman of the Philippine Green Building Council. “[Sustainability should be more than just achieving efficiency and cost-effectiveness for your property,” says Rufino. “The new frontier for green buildings is improving the health and wellbeing of the people who live, work and play [within your property]. This is a more powerful argument to support going green.” Angie de Villa-Lacson, ArthaLand president and CEO, stresses sustainable architecture has a ripple effect not just for residents, but the property sector at large. “Standardising green measures is a major step in encouraging developers to take sustainability seriously,” she says. “Greening should go beyond landscape and waste management. To fully reap the benefit of sustainability, developers should be able to measure the inputs and outputs of our buildings’ eco-friendly features.” <div class="pull-quotes-container">There has never been a better time for investors to go green. And with developers around Asia adopting sustainable practices,the real estate scene in the region has rarely looked more mindful</div> Further west, Sri Lanka is proving another sustainability powerhouse, largely due to Maga Engineering, the country’s largest construction company whose work covers healthcare, hospitality, transport, and water supply. As the builders of the world’s tallest vertical garden and the first LEED Platinum-rated clothing factory, Maga comes forearmed with impressive green credentials. Its Clearpoint Residencies in the Colombo suburb of Rajagiraya is its most forward-looking residential project to date. Clearpoint’s 171 apartments come with a self-sustaining garden instead of a balcony; its planted terraces and tree plantations absorb sound, boost oxygen levels, provide shade, and reduce heat. Other eco-boasts include cross-ventilated apartments, solar panels, and an automated drip-irrigation system that keeps terraces watered.  “Each apartment functions as its own microhabitat, creating a synergy between occupants and their environment,” says sustainability director Mega Kularatne, pointing out that while Clearpoint demonstrably occupies the high-end housing category, innovations inside and outside the building—including waste water recycling which reduces main water usage by 45 percent—actually serve to reduce homeowners’ maintenance costs. With the future of the planet a pressing concern, there has never been a better time for investors to go green. And with developers around Asia adopting more sustainable practices, the real estate scene in the region has rarely looked more mindful. This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/" target="_blank">Issue No. 151</a> of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine

Innovative firms blaze trail for sustainable real estate in Asia

<img alt="M+S Pte Ltd took home a multitude of awards at the South east Asia Property Awards (Singapore) 2016, including Best Mixed-Use Development for the sprawling Marina One Project" src="/documents/10204/0/MIXED-USE-YEAR-END-SPECIAL-FOR-WEB-compressor.jpg/db78649c-3ab0-45c5-ba02-a715c4bc87a7?t=1545888548740" style="width: 1010px; height: 667px;" />From Singapore to Ho Chi Minh City, Southeast Asian developers are seeing the benefits of mingling business with pleasure. Self-contained communities that offer residences, retail, offices, and green spaces are emerging as the new development paradigm across a region where old ideas of city zoning are being eroded by vertical mixed-use mega-projects.   Singapore’s newly opened Marina One residential and office development has added 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.   Jakarta’s District 8, a development of 11 towers across 4.8 hectares of the Sudirman Central Business District, has also reached completion. Developed by the Agung Sedayu Group, it brings residences and a public park right into the heart of South Jakarta’s financial zone.  In Bangkok, TCC Group’s One Bangkok (in partnership with Golden Land and Frasers Property Limited) is a USD3.5 billion development that covers an area one third the size of the adjacent Lumphini Park and encompasses living and work space for 60,000 people, including residential buildings, office towers, retail zones, and publicly accessible parks and green spaces.   “Vertical communities often deal with the high density mandated for many Asian city centres,” says Ping Jiang, the design principal at EID architecture. His firm designed the 320-metre-tall OCT XI'AN International Centre (OXIC) in Xi’an, China, where parks, piazza-style common areas, and even terrace streets are positioned over multiple storeys of two skyscrapers.    <a href="http://property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/amid-urban-sprawl-and-overpopulation-indonesia-turns-to-model-mixed-use-complex-5" target="_blank">More: Amid urban sprawl, Indonesia turns to model mixed-use complexes</a> In contrast to sprawling development, Jiang points out, “vertical communities create synergy between different uses and foster dynamic neighbourhoods. By integrating business, leisure, retail, and residential spaces, the design of a vertical community is strategically organised to create a vibrant, permeable urban destination to live, work, and visit.”   Analysts at JLL real-estate services predict vertical living solutions will dominate the Asian 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.   “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.”  But not all trends in Asian mixed-use are vertical. Throughout the Philippines, developers continue to favour township-style projects, for which huge land footprints provide fertile ground to design integrated communities from the ground up.   Megaworld Corporation has long been at the forefront of building from scratch new towns whose components stretch from serviced condominiums and rows of townhouses to malls, leisure facilities, and shopping districts.   <img alt="A view of Le Quest, winner of Best Mixed Use Development at the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore) 2018" src="/documents/10204/0/Le-Quest-compressor+2.jpg/8c40fe6e-596e-48e9-b638-7300655f2415?t=1545889041719" /> This year alone, Megaworld has announced new residential and commercial developments for its townships in Manila, Pampanga, Pasig City, and Bacolod City, while also rolling out a “smart township” initiative to future-proof its existing townships.   Starting with Davao Park District, the “iTownship” programme will see the 11-hectare development fitted with fibre optic infrastructure, bike lanes and rental systems, LED-powered lighting and signage, solar-powered street lamps, and vertical open spaces and gardens.  While townships have traditionally been confined to once rural areas, UAA Kinming Group’s New Manila Bay – City of Pearl is being developed on a huge tract of reclaimed land along Manila’s shoreline. Projected to open in 2024, City of Pearl broke ground in August 2017 and, when completed, will take up 407 hectares of reclaimed land and connect directly to Roxas Boulevard, a major thoroughfare.   For comparison, Thailand’s under-construction One Bangkok mixed-use project—itself a huge project for a capital city centre—covers just 18 hectares. “There are many townships in Asia, but those townships are in the middle of nowhere,” says Nicholas Ho, deputy managing director of Ho & Partners Architects, the Hong Kong-based lead designer of the project. “This township is extremely prime in terms of its location—it’s right smack in the middle of town, with 360-degree views.”  Ho reveals that retail, in the form of a three-kilometre riverfront shopping strip, is not “just a mall” but engages with the central park and the riverside, “so that it becomes a thematic integrated entertainment complex.”  Similarly in Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City’s Thu Thiem New Urban Area will cover a vast 657-hectare site across the Saigon River from the central District 1. Touted as the capital’s new financial zone, it will not only encompass office towers for some 217,000 employees, but also enough residential units for a population of 145,000.    It’s not only in urban areas, however, where ambitious mixed-use projects are breaking the mould. On the tree-lined shores of Phuket’s Kamala Beach, the USD67.5 million luxury MontAzure development comprises 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.   <div class="pull-quotes-container">We are spoiled by the compactness of urbanisation, a precursor of mixed-use design. Urbanisation has happened on a global scale and it’s all because we crave connectivity</div> “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.   Nicholas Ho believes that driving Asia’s demand for such integrated developments is an urge to feel connected. “In Asian society, people crave for connectivity a lot more than the rest of the world,” he explains. “We are spoiled by the compactness of urbanisation, a precursor of mixed-use design. Urbanisation has happened on a global scale and it’s all because we crave connectivity.”  Successful mixed-use schemes have the capacity to create diverse, vibrant neighbourhoods in which people can live, work, and socialize. They bring round-the-clock life to central business districts. They provide private land parcels with pedestrian-friendly solutions and interlink disparate downtown neighbourhoods.   Ho predicts this integrated, community-driven approach to development will gradually become the new normal. “The future of mixed-use is going to shift the existing paradigm,” he says. “We will gradually move from the two extremes of urbanisation, urban and suburban, towards one. The walls of living and work spaces are coming down.”  This article originally appeared in <a href="https://www.magzter.com/TH/PropertyGuru-International-(Thailand)-Co.,Ltd/Property-Report/Business/" target="_blank">Issue No. 151</a> of PropertyGuru Property Report Magazine

Better together: making the most of mixed-use developments

PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards 2018 honours maturing property market

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.

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.

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.

“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.

Exciting mixed-use developments

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.

More: Full winners list of the 2018 PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards

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.

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.

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.

Awareness for female workers' rights

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.

More: Call for positive construction practices in Cambodia persists

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.

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.

Inspiring a new generation of designers

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.

More: Architect wins Cambodia's Real Estate Personality of the Year title

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.

"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.”

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.”

Independent judging panel system

This year’s independent judging panel in Cambodia comprised of returning chairman Sorn Seap (Founder & Director, Key Real Estate Co Ltd); Simon Griffiths (Managing Director, Urban Assets Solutions), David Littlejohn (Sales & Marketing Manager, Comin Khmere), Michel Cassagnes (Managing Director, Archetype Cambodia), Sok Siphana (Managing Partner, SokSiphana&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).

More: Who supported Cambodia's most prestigious industry event in 2018?

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 & 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.

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.

For more information, email awards@propertyguru.com or visit AsiaPropertyAwards.com/cambodia-property-awards/

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<img alt="Jules Kay" src="/documents/10204/0/Jules+Kay%2C+Director%2C+PropertyGuru+Asia+Property+Awards.jpg/db335245-d10f-437d-9bfc-777abf73c6f9?t=1550725328041" style="width: 1000px; height: 666px;" />PropertyGuru Group, Asia's leading property technology company, announces the appointment of Jules Kay as Director of its industry leading business, ‘Asia Property Awards’. The Awards are Asia’s largest and with its independent judging panel of over 80 industry experts, it is the most respected real estate awards series that recognise and promote excellence in development, design and innovation. On the back of phenomenal growth in recent years, in 2019 the Awards will be even bigger with leading developers from China, Hong Kong, Japan and Australia also set to compete at the Grand Final in Bangkok at the end of November. Jules brings to PropertyGuru over two decades of regional leadership roles in sales and marketing, for a range of best-in-class real estate, hotel, hospitality and technology brands. One of the original team members of Asia Property Awards, Jules takes over from founder and managing director, Terry Blackburn, in this leadership role. At PropertyGuru, Jules leads a talented team that manages sales and marketing, event management, and the awards entry and independent judging process that has earned the Asia Property Awards its distinction as the flagship property awards over the last 14 years. <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/call-for-nominations-to-2019-propertyguru-asia-property-awards-malaysia-launch-3" target="_blank">More: Call for nominations to 2019 PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia) launched</a> "I am delighted to welcome Jules to the Group. Our Awards is an excellent platform that connects the property industry annually in each market  and lends regional prominence to deserving developers and developments," said Jeremy Williams, chief business officer, PropertyGuru Group. "With its independent judging panel comprising of prominent experts from across the region the Awards are a hallmark of Asia’s property market. Last year, Asia Property Awards brought close to 4000 industry participants together and the business saw an impressive 30 percent year on year revenue growth. With his deep understanding of the awards business and extensive regional property market experience, Jules will be a great partner in furthering the growth and stature of the Awards. I look forward to working closely with him.” On his appointment, Jules Kay, Director, PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards said, "I was fortunate to be part of the meteoric rise of the property markets across Asia and I have continued to believe in and promote the best of the best in the region’s real estate industry. In my new role at PropertyGuru, I am thrilled to join a team of like-minded professionals whose mission it is to recognise, achieve, promote and celebrate quality. I look forward to working with the team and taking the Awards to newer heights.”

PropertyGuru appoints new director to lead Asia's largest real estate awards platform

<img alt="Bitcoin is gaining traction in the Philippines. Eakvoraseth/Shutterstock" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_1013852626-compressor.jpg/062d0be7-3233-47e9-9377-ee048ce64a8d?t=1550722405968" style="width: 1000px; height: 667px;" />Three residential units that accept cryptocurrency or digital money as mode of payment are making the rounds on Filipino social media.  The properties, all located in the central Philippine city of Iloilo, welcome payments in Bitcoin or Litecoin, according to a series of Facebook posts by a licenced broker with real estate firm RE/MAX Advantage Iloilo. "We are big proponents of cryptocurrencies and think we should start expanding the conversation towards seeing it as a viable payment option for purchases,” said home owner Jonha Richman, who serves as advisor to Litecoin Foundation.   "We’ve also planned on allocating the proceeds of the said sale of these particular investment assets of ours to cryptocurrencies anyway, so it makes sense to make it available to those who prefer to pay with cryptocurrencies." Cryptocurrency adoption has been picking up pace in the Philippines, one of several countries eyeing the honorific of “crypto valley of Asia.” Government officials have mulled a special economic zone north of Manila that will cater to offices of cryptocurrency exchanges. <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/6-000-proptech-businesses-join-platform-for-real-estate-professiona-5" target="_blank">More: 6,000 proptech businesses join platform for real estate professionals</a> For a country with high internet penetration rates — four in 10 Filipino adults use the internet — the mainstreaming of cryptocurrencies as methods of payment is imminent, experts say. Around 75 percent of Filipinos do not have access to traditional financial instruments like bank accounts and credit cards, according to Colin Goltra, head of cryptocurrency programs at Coins.ph. Richman, however, cautions Filipino property seekers on the volatility of cryptocurrencies due to their highly speculative nature. “We fully know and understand the risks of newly emerging investment markets such as cryptocurrencies and their volatility,” Richman said. “It’s just a minority stake of our asset allocation and we do not suggest or recommend people to take part in it until they fully understand the risks.” Prospective cryptocurrency buyers in the Philippines should transact only with sellers and dealers licenced by the central bank, she warns.

These Philippine properties are selling for cryptocurrencies

<img alt="Penang, Malaysia. Naturalism14/Shutterstock" src="/documents/10204/0/shutterstock_779273761-compressor.jpg/f0afa13d-d4d1-4ffd-9fea-97ceffc4eb7e?t=1550662170695" style="width: 1000px; height: 667px;" />The current narrative about Malaysia is one of cautious optimism: a residential property market that deserves more than a perfunctory glance, if not a leap of faith. Amid the ongoing sales lull and socio-political twists and turns of late, the Malaysian economy still holds an evergreen appeal to foreign property seekers. The nation boasts the second-highest per capita income in Southeast Asia after Singapore, with more than 50 percent of the GDP generated by local demand. It is on track to achieve the status of developed nation between 2022 and 2023. “Looking at Malaysia’s forthcoming status as a fully developed and higher-income country, the expectation is for a fast growth of property values within the next five years,” said Dr. Daniele Gambero, CEO and co-founder of strategic marketing consultancy firm REI Group of Companies, and a longtime judge at the annual PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia) competition. Residential property values in Malaysia are considered “still very low” relative to other currencies, noted Gambero, an Italian expatriate who has been living in the country since 2000. “A cheap ringgit has contributed to raising foreigners’ interest into our local real estate, together with a relatively low cost of living, quality of education, medical care, and the beauty of our local natural sites.” One popular new development, the Best Luxury Condo Development-winning The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Sultan Ismail by Berjaya Corporation Berhad, offered nearly 290 units at prices between MYR2.7 million and MYR12.8 million (USD661,000-3.1 million).  In comparison, similar luxury properties can fetch up to USD8.5 million million per unit in Bangkok or Jakarta. <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/5-reasons-why-investors-still-bet-on-malaysian-proper-3" target="_blank">More: 5 reasons why investors still bet on Malaysian property</a> <h4>A viable second home for foreigners</h4> Foreigners in Malaysia can own a condo, bungalow, terrace house, landed property, and more as long as such units are valued at MYR 1 million or more, according to prevailing foreign ownership rules. Despite reports of a suspension, the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) programme is still very much in place, giving foreign property seekers access to units worth less than MYR1 million. The scheme dangles 10-year visas, renewable for another 10 years, to foreigners with enough funds and assets.  While it has remarkably scrutinised Chinese-backed infrastructure projects, the new government has not driven a final wrench in inbound investment from China, the top source of applications for the MM2H programme. As of last year, Chinese citizens have been able to own 1,664 homes through the programme since 2007. “The new administration is actually not at all against Chinese purchasing properties in Malaysia. Our prime minister (Mahathir Mohamad) has clearly stated that only the ‘automatic citizenship’ is out of discussion or application,” Gambero said. <a href="http://www.property-report.com/detail/-/blogs/evolving-malaysian-property-market-rises-above-generational-and-economic-hurdl-8" target="_blank">More: Evolving Malaysian property market rises above generational and economic hurdles</a> <h4>Bona fide retirement destination</h4> The MM2H programme was partly instituted to groom Malaysia as a bona fide retirement destination. Next to the Chinese, citizens of the United Kingdom have been able to own 357 units through MM2H, while those from Australia and the United States have been able to acquire 147 and 115 units, respectively. “Australians and Europeans are looking at Malaysia as a safe and cheap country to spend several months a year once they are retired,” Gambero said, recommending Penang and Kota Kinabalu for an abundance of retirement homes with easy access to quality medical services.   <img alt="Dr. Daniele Gambero presenting at the 2018 PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia)" src="/documents/10204/0/dr-daniele-gambero-compressor.jpg/85d0ef70-f6c9-4598-9055-41f5bb8fab1d?t=1550662499579" /> Foreign property investors would do well to seek properties in not only Kota Kinabalu but also Kuala Lumpur, Penang, and Johor Baru, he added. Similarly, Ipoh and Melaka have shown very good potential for future growth, given the infrastructure projects that are being constructed to ease accessibility in these destinations. <h4>Fast capital gains</h4> “For those foreign investors looking at fast capital gain, the best advice I can give is to follow the economic corridors, especially Iskandar Malaysia, Kuantan (East Coast Economic Region), Score (Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy), and MVV 2.0 (Malaysian Vision Valley 2.0).” Further economic growth is likely to happen in these areas within the next five years, and property investors should extend their holding periods in the interim. There are now more than 106,000 foreigners living in their own homes in Malaysia, as per the latest census data. For Gambero, management of negative perceptions is key to drawing more investors and end-user property buyers to Malaysia as it reckons with changes. “I’m still aggressive in looking for properties as per the old rule that ‘bad times are best times’ but not everybody is getting this point,” he said. “If only we will be able to manage differently the partially negative perception that the market, in general, is having, I’m expecting 2019 to be another good year for Malaysia.” What developments do you think meet foreigners investors demand? Nominate those projects to the 2019 PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Malaysia). Nominations close on 1 March. Find more details here: <a href="http://www.asiapropertyawards.com/nomination/malaysia">http://www.asiapropertyawards.com/nomination/malaysia</a>

Expats still eye Malaysian property for sound investment

PropertyGuru Cambodia Property Awards 2018 honours maturing property market

Exciting mixed-use developments

Awareness for female workers' rights

Inspiring a new generation of designers

Independent judging panel system

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