A case of missing money leads today’s real estate headlines as an Australian real estate brokerage tries to figure out what happened to its mainland marketing representative, who appears to have gone missing, along with millions of dollars in deposits.
The antipodes also make the news with Gaw Capital confirming a Melbourne commercial deal and in Hong Kong Sun Hung Kai has begun cutting prices on some projects read on for all these stories and more.
Aussie Brokerage Collapses in China as Client Cash Goes Missing
Australian residential project marketer and sales agency Ausin Group’s offices in China have collapsed leaving behind a trail of 130 failed settlements of houses and apartments in Australia.
Ausin’s China business, which is a separate entity to Ausin Australia, has allegedly misappropriated “tens and millions of dollars” of settlement and deposit monies for new homes acquired across 15 projects in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Read more>>
Gaw Confirms A$157M Melbourne Acquisition
Real estate private equity firm Gaw Capital Partners has confirmed its acquisition of the Bell City mixed-use development in Melbourne’s Preston precinct for AUD$157 million through funds under management and its hospitality arm, GCP Hospitality.
Bell City, located just 20 minutes from Melbourne Airport and the CBD, consists of two hotels totaling 844 guestrooms under the Mantra and BreakFree brands, a conference complex, commercial tenancies, a 600-space car park and serviced offices. The transaction had first been reported in May. Read more>>
SHK Cuts Kowloon Home Prices as Market Cools
Sun Hung Kai, Hong Kong’s biggest property developer, has cut the prices of homes at one of its projects by as much as 10 per cent, the second time in less than a month it has taken such action in the latest sign that the property market may be cooling down.
The company is offering 119 units at its Cullinan West II development atop Nam Cheong MTR station in Kowloon at an average price of HK$23,893 (US$3,044) per square foot after discounts, about 10 per cent lower than the prices of a previous batch put on sale last December. Read more>>
China Opens Funding Channels for Property Developers
The trade dispute with the U.S. hangs like an ax over China’s economy, but for the country’s real estate developers, it’s a boon. Onshore funding is opening up and the government is once again smiling on higher prices.
Property investors should be doubly relieved: Beijing’s measures to rein in financial risk and cut developers’ access to debt have so far failed to tamp down price gains, even as they took a toll on stock prices. Read more>>
Hong Kong Rate Hikes Not Likely to Turn Housing Market
Hong Kong’s banks are finally raising mortgage rates. This won’t stem price gains in the world’s most expensive city for real estate. Already up 14 per cent this year, Hong Kong’s home prices now overshadow those of New York and London relative to incomes.
A key reason behind the unstoppable gains: The big banks, flush with liquidity, have held off passing on US Federal Reserve rate rises, even though keeping the currency peg intact means the city’s de facto central bank has to mirror the US. Read more>>
New Shenzhen Curbs Could Dent Earnings for Local Developers
New tightening measures imposed on sales of commercial apartments in Shenzhen, China’s Silicon Valley, could seriously undermine some developers’ cashflow as they find they may have fewer saleable assets than anticipated.
In late July Shenzhen barred developers from selling newly approved apartments, allowing them only to rent them out, and restricted buyers from reselling their apartments for five years from the date of obtaining their deeds. Read more>>
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Editor’s note: Mingtiandi’s Asia Real Estate Headlines contains links to news from sources around the region. While Mingtiandi makes best efforts to ensure the accuracy of any content represented here, the content of the source stories represented in these links is solely the responsibility of their original authors and publishers.
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