China Turns to Witchhunt to Burst Bubble and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

Donald Trump got himself elected president by conjuring up wetbacks under the bed, so why can’t China solve its housing bubble by blaming rumour-mongering agents and developers? Trump-inspired or not, the Chinese government is cracking down on developers and property agents who spread market disinformation, and Shanghai has tightened home-purchasing rules once again. In other news, Longfor Properties has become the latest player to enter the co-working game and Sheldon Adelson’s new Macau casino reports results.

Chinese Government Cracking Down On Developers and Property Agents

Regulators on Tuesday announced a nationwide crackdown on violations by property developers and agents that may be driving up prices, a move experts said will deflate housing bubbles and stimulate sales in the long term.

The month-long investigation, which is set to begin on Thursday, will review real estate developers and agencies’ working practices, such as whether home prices are “genuine and marked clearly” in sales offices, according to a statement jointly released by the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development. Read more>>

Longfor Focusing On Suburban Malls and Co-Working

Longfor’s expansion has lagged some of its rivals, it has received recognition from the capital market for its strong financial position, earning one of the highest ratings of any private mainland Chinese developers.

The company is now speeding up its expansion into shopping malls in an effort to generate more stable forms of income. Rather than opening malls in downtown areas, he said the company is permanently on the hunt for property opportunities, especially in peripheral areas of larger cities. It will also open two co-working spaces in two cities. Read more>>

Shanghai Again Tightens Home-Purchasing Rules, Targeting Divorce, in Bid to Cool Market

Shanghai has further tightened home-purchasing rules by demanding lenders scrutinize the sources of funds used for down payments — a move that will likely curb the surge of divorce filings among couples seeking to purchase second homes.

A document laid out Thursday by the local market interest-rate-pricing self-discipline mechanism, a group of banks under the guidance of the central bank, highlighted the need to inspect the authenticity of a resident’s proof of income in relation to home purchases, requiring commercial lenders to step up efforts to check the income of both the borrower and their spouse. Read more>>

China Dominates Property Portfolio Deals In Third Quarter

Commercial real-estate transaction volumes in Asia Pacific fell by 1.1% in the third quarter to $30.4 billion (S$42.2 billion), while development site sales fell 17% to US$76.3 billion. According to findings by Real Capital Analytics, the marginal declines indicate that property investments are starting to stabilize following two consecutive quarters of decline.

However, the figures were disproportionately propped up by a number of large portfolio deals in China and Japan that reached US$13 billion for the quarter, and accounted for 43% of overall investment volumes. That means there were fewer deals and active buyers during the period to September. Read more>>

Fortunes Mixed At Sands China

Macau casino resorts operator Sands China (1928) yesterday said net profit in the third quarter fell 5.72 percent from a year earlier to $325 million. However, Sands China’s adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization or EBITDA rose 15.2 percent year on year to $628.4 million in the third quarter.

The company’s net revenues increased 3.9 percent to $1.71 billion. Sands opened a new $2.9 billion resort, The Parisian, in Macau in September. The property features a half-sized replica of the Eiffel Tower, as well as a water park for kids and a shopping mall with street performers. Read more>>

Asia Pacific Property Market Softens In Third Quarter

Commercial real estate investment in Asia Pacific has seen a general slowdown across the region, but the appetite for mainland Chinese real estate remains robust, according to analysts.

Completed sales of properties in the region, excluding development sites, totalled $30.4 billion in the third quarter of this year, 1.1 percent weaker than the same period a year earlier, according to data from research and consulting firm Real Capital Analytics RCA. Read more>>

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