Chip Eng Seng Selling Melbourne Project to Greystar and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

In Mingtiandi’s latest roundup of regional news headlines, a trust tied to US developer Greystar buys an Australian property from Singapore’s Chip Eng Seng, Canadian insurer Sun Life makes a big bet on Japanese office assets, and Hong Kong steels itself for a possible lockdown as the fourth COVID wave rages.

Chip Eng Seng Selling Australia Property to Greystone for A$65M

A unit of Singapore’s Chip Eng Seng is selling a property in Melbourne, Australia for A$65 million ($48.6 million) to a trust related to American real estate developer Greystar.

The sale of 15-85 Gladstone Street is expected to be completed on 31 March next year. The buyer will first pay a deposit of A$3.25 million, equivalent to 5 percent of the sale price, and the remaining sum upon completion. Read more>>

BentallGreenOak Aims $7B at Japanese Office Assets

Sun Life Financial is wagering billions of dollars that Japanese workers will return to the office after the pandemic.

The Canadian insurer’s real estate arm — BentallGreenOak — plans to double staff and invest $10 billion in Japan over the next two to three years, of which as much as 70 percent may go into office buildings in the country’s major business districts. Read more>>

Hong Kong Warns of COVID Lockdown ‘If Residents Not Cooperative’

Hong Kong’s leading health experts have called for a shutdown of non-essential businesses and reduced opening hours at shopping centres, given the large numbers of people still out and about despite daily warnings that the city’s fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic could escalate beyond control at the current rate of infection.

Another 74 cases were confirmed on Sunday. All but four were contracted locally and 25 of those were untraceable, underscoring the alarming spread across the city. Read more>>

Appeal of Removal of Singapore Hospitality REIT Manager Fails

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) confirmed on Sunday that the appeal from the shareholder of Eagle Hospitality REIT’s manager regarding the directive on its removal has not been accepted.

MAS’s earlier direction to DBS Trustee on 30 November remains in effect and the trustee is required to comply with the direction, said an MAS spokesperson. Read more>>

New World Project Ending 2020 as Hong Kong’s Best Seller

Hong Kong property company New World Development’s Pavilia Farm project has been a bright spot in an otherwise dismal year for the city’s real estate sector.

The project, developed in partnership with transit operator and property developer MTR Corporation, has sold about 2,100 units in around six weekends for almost HK$23.8 billion ($3.06 billion). Read more>>

IDG Leads $122M Fundraising for Chinese IoT Platform Rootcloud 

Guangzhou-headquartered IoT platform Rootcloud announced on Thursday that it had closed a Series C round of financing raising RMB 800 million ($122 million) led by Beijing-based global investment and asset manager IDG Capital.

A slew of new investors participated in the latest round — Chinese tech giant Tencent; manufacturing-focused Haitong Investment Group; KY Private Equity Fund, which targets technology innovation, clean energy, smart manufacturing and smart cities; China Cinda Asset Management’s joint fund Jian Xin Jin Yuan Investment; and Tianya Capital. Read more>>

Workers Flocking to Shenzhen Can’t Afford to Buy Homes

Hu Jinjin stood for five hours outside a housing project showroom in the August heat, looking to buy a two-bedroom apartment two hours from downtown Shenzhen. The RMB 3.6 million ($550,000) asking price made it one of the city’s most affordable options and would still be a stretch for Hu and her taxi-driver father, but they were eager to get a foothold in China’s least affordable city.

After the long wait, Hu learned that the rules had changed: as a migrant worker, she’d have to live and pay taxes in the city for another three years before she could even buy an apartment. Read more>>

Tune in again soon for more real estate news and be sure to follow @Mingtiandi on Twitter, or bookmark Mingtiandi’s LinkedIn page for headlines as they happen.

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