China’s developers are getting more cautious about their land purchases as the market slows
In today’s roundup of regional news headlines, China’s land market continues its slump despite government moves to boost credit and ease restrictions to entice developers, a South Korean investment firm acquires an office building in Brussels, and debt-saddled China Evergrande misses another interest payment.
China Land Sale Premiums Fall Despite Looser Lending
China’s land market remains sluggish after a slump that started at mid-year, even as local governments begin relaxing restrictions on auctions to attract reluctant cash-strapped private developers.
In the fourth quarter as of 20 December, the average transaction price at land auctions in 300 major cities was only 3 percent higher than the average starting price, falling from 17 percent and 8 percent in the second and third quarters, according to a report released by real estate data collector CRIC. Read more>>
Hyundai Investments Buys Office Building in Brussels
South Korean asset manager Hyundai Investments, fully owned by Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance, said it acquired a Brussels-based office building earlier this month. Through the deal, the Korean investment firm deployed all the committed capital in its first blind pool fund for global real estate.
The property dubbed City Garden is located in Leopold Quarter, home to the European Commission, the EU Parliament and global businesses. Details on the fund size and the deal were not disclosed. Read more>>
Evergrande Skips Coupon Payment, Stocks Slide
China Evergrande Group passed another debt deadline with no sign of payment after coupons came due Tuesday on two dollar notes, both with a 30-day grace period before a default can be declared.
Evergrande has been turning its attention to delivering homes and paying workers even as debt payments loom. The embattled developer was labelled a defaulter by international ratings firms for the first time earlier this month after it failed to repay liabilities on time. Read more>>
Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Authority Plans More Project Sales
Hong Kong’s West Kowloon Cultural District Authority said the response to the HK$50.8 billion ($6.5 billion) New Central Harbourfront Commercial Site 3 plot had boosted its confidence in inviting bids from developers to construct and operate three office and entertainment buildings.
The authority issued tenders for the Artist Square Towers Project — the first commercial district in West Kowloon — in late November, two weeks after the opening of M+, the city’s first visual-arts museum, which it owns. The tender is expected to close in February, while the approval will be granted in March or April. Read more>>
Buyout of SGX-Listed EC World REIT Cancelled
A consortium of purchasers looking into buying EC World REIT’s interest in all of its properties has backed out, the trust’s manager announced in a bourse filing on Tuesday night.
Without naming the potential buyers, it said the deal fell through when the parties were finalising the definitive terms and conditions of the potential transaction. Read more>
China’s CCCC Sells Miami Project to Mast Capital for $103M
Mast Capital has closed on the purchase of a prime development site in Miami’s Brickell area, where it plans to build three new residential towers, for $103 million, the company announced on Monday.
Located just behind the SLS Brickell in Miami’s financial centre, the 2.8 acre (1.1 hectare) site spans an entire block between S Miami Avenue and SW 1st Street, with an address at 1420 S Miami Avenue. Read more>>
Hatten Land to Unwind Acquisition of Velvet Valley
Hatten Land‘s wholly owned subsidiary Hatten MS has entered a termination agreement to unwind its acquisition of Velvet Valley, which owns the Unicity Project at Seremban Malaysia, the Singapore-listed company said Tuesday.
Hatten Land it was pivoting away from being a property developer and mall operator: “The termination agreement will allow the company to conserve cash, prioritising funds for the group’s new business initiatives in the digital economy which is in line with the group’s strategic pivot.” Read more>>
Bangkok Developers Set to Flood Market on Relief Measures
The Bangkok condo market is expected to be more active from January despite the COVID-19 Omicron variant, with developers now better prepared for the virus as they plan for the future, says property consultancy Colliers.
Key drivers of an expected upsurge include a relaxation of loan-to-value limits since 20 October 2021 and the extension of a cut in transfer and mortgage fees to 0.01 percent, from 2 percent and 1 percent respectively, for houses priced below THB 3 million ($89,000) until the end of 2022. Read more>>
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