» A view on what is expected in the market across Asia
IN our series on the global property outlook over the past weeks, we published the views of industry professionals on markets in the US, UK and Australia. This week, we take a brief look at neighbouring markets.
Asian Region
According to jll.realreviews.com, the idea of an economic bloc in this part of the world is finally coming to fruition after 30 years of discussion. And when it does, “this will lead to a single market of over 600 million people, making the region more attractive than any single nation would be on its own. This will also boost the regions long-term prospects”.
On the whole, the world has its eyes on Asia, deemed very much the “land of opportunity” in this part of the world. With its growing wealth and rapidly evolving cities creating dynamic real estate markets packed with potential, 2016 is expected to be another record breaking year in terms of transaction volume says Stuart Crow who heads the Asia capital markets.
“But investment strategies are changing and as Asian wealth grows, a lot of it is staying in the region instead of finding a new home overseas,” he adds.
Managing director for Beijing and North China, Julien Zhang shares that with the huge transformation China has undergone in the last few years, one can expect even more change in 2016 with government reform plans and policies in the pipeline to materialize this year. However, the residential sector in Asia is expected to be quieter this year after all the rampant market activity which may cause Asian investors to look at other cities for investment opportunities.
Nevertheless, as JLL stated that Asian wealth will remain in Asia, the overall outlook for property in Asia will remain positive, notwithstanding the challenges in the global macroeconomic picture.
Colliers.com Asia Pacific CEO David Hand shares his sentiments: “On real estate capital flow, we predict that the majority of Asia-based real estate investors will continue to look for opportunities to invest within their home region. The cost of funding will head south in markets such as China and India, while real estate yields will likely increase. US interest rates will edge up gradually in 2016 and bring the region into centre stage for investment.
“We believe the volume of real estate sales transactions in Asia will increase, with an increasing number of motivated sellers coming to market and offering stock for sale. Lured by attractive yields, more long-term investment funds will invest back in Asia this year.”
Interestingly, the Property Report Congress held in Singapore end of last year acknowledged renewed interest in property in Vietnam especially in 2016.
This is said to be due to the easing of foreign ownership rules. Participants at the conference also voted Vietnam as the market to perform well this year, ahead of Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines. Comment on Singapore was that the industry there will feel the effects of the heavy-handed cooling measures while Indonesia and Malaysia will not perform as well as before due to currency depreciation.
Follow our column next week as we zoom in on the property scene in Malaysia.
–THE SUN DAILY
Click here to read previous article @ Property outlook – Part 3
