GLP Files for US IPO of Investment Arm and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

In today’s roundup of regional news headlines, Singapore’s GLP reportedly files for a US IPO of its investment business, Canadian pension fund manager Ivanhoe Cambridge acquires 49 percent of an Australian business park venture, and Hong Kong property sales plunge ahead of an expected lockdown.

GLP Files Confidentially for US IPO of Investment Arm

GLP has filed confidentially for a US initial public offering of its investment business in a bid to raise about $2 billion, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

The Singapore-based logistics specialist is planning to list its fund management operations as soon as the first half of this year, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing private information. Volatility in markets roiled by the Russian invasion of Ukraine could cause delays to the plan, one of the people said. Read more>>

Ivanhoe Cambridge Buys 49% Stake in Stockland Life Sciences Venture

Ivanhoe Cambridge, a leading international investor, has entered into an agreement with Stockland, one of the largest diversified property groups in Australia, to acquire a 49 percent interest in the M Park Trust (TMPT).

Ivanhoe Cambridge will initially invest on a fund-through basis in TMPT, which is focused on the delivery of the 62,500 square metre (672,744 square foot) M Park Stage One in Macquarie Park, the third-largest office market in Greater Sydney and a key innovation hub. Read more>>

Lockdown Reports Send HK Property Transactions to 25-Month Low

Hong Kong’s property market is set to enter deep freeze as the city braces itself for a large-scale lockdown as part of a universal COVID-19 screening drive later this month, according to agents.

The grim projection comes as total transactions for residential, commercial and industrial real estate, as well as parking spaces, plunged to a 25-month low of 3,992 deals in February, according to data compiled by Centaline Property Agency. Read more>>

Zhengzhou China’s First City to Relax Curbs on Second Homes

The central Chinese city of Zhengzhou has moved to relax purchase curbs on second homes, the first city in the country to do so to bolster buyer sentiment and boost sales of residential property.

Banks in Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan province, have cut the down-payment ratio for buyers that already own one home and have no outstanding mortgage to 30 percent from 60 percent when they purchase their second home, the city’s government said Tuesday. Read more>>

China’s House Hunters Revive as Banks Lower Mortgage Rates

House hunters in China have been coming off the sidelines to take the plunge, tempted by big monthly savings as mortgage rates have dropped across the country.

Wang Ning and his wife finally decided to buy a RMB 3 million ($480,000) two-bedroom home in Nanjing’s downtown when they found that the total amount they needed to pay the bank for a 30-year loan had been cut by around RMB 450,000 from late last year. Read more>>

Fragrance Boss James Koh Picks Up Singapore Bungalow for $14M

James Koh, executive chairman and founder of Fragrance Group, had been quietly buying bungalow sites late last year. In September, he purchased an old bungalow on Hillside Drive for S$19.25 million ($14 million), according to a caveat lodged with URA Realis. Based on a property title search, however, the deal was completed on 15 December 2021.

As the deal was completed on the eve of the latest property cooling measures that came into effect on 16 December, Koh would only be subject to additional buyers’ stamp duty of 12 percent if this was his second property, and 15 percent if it was his third or subsequent property. From 16 December, the duty would have been 17 percent and 25 percent respectively. Read more>>

Distributions Slip for Hong Kong’s Fortune REIT

Fortune REIT said its income distribution to unitholders last year decreased by 4.2 percent to HK$883 million (now $113 million) and distribution per unit dropped 4.9 percent to 44.83 Hong Kong cents, representing a yield of 5.6 percent based on the closing unit price of HK$8.01 on 31 December 2021.

The company reported revenue of HK$1.806 billion in 2021, representing a decrease of 2 percent year-on-year. Read more>>

In Unaffordable Seoul, Housing Is at the Centre of South Korea’s Election

Lee Jae-hong would have had no trouble buying a home in the suburb of Ilsan on the outskirts of Seoul back in 2018. With a strong credit score and a job at a blue-chip company, borrowing enough for an average apartment in the city costing about $562,000 was well within reach.

But the now 39-year-old held off, thinking there would be better opportunities in the coming years — only to be “gobsmacked” by a near tripling of prices in his neighbourhood since President Moon Jae-in took office in 2017. Read more>>

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