Gemdale Gets $113M Loan for Seattle Project and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

In today’s roundup of regional news headlines, Chinese developer Gemdale’s US division secures a construction loan for a Seattle high-rise, Singapore’s CapitaLand spots opportunity as China tightens credit standards, and returning mainland students give a boost to Hong Kong’s mass-housing rental market.

Gemdale Gets $113M Loan for Seattle High-Rise Project

Gemdale USA Corp, an arm of the Shanghai-listed developer, has secured a $113 million construction loan for Skyglass Tower, a multi-family high-rise project in Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood. Cushman & Wakefield arranged the debt through AIG.

The 29-storey tower’s total cost is estimated at $196 million, according to the developer’s website. Hewitt Architects is the project architect, and the property is scheduled for delivery in the second half of 2023. Read more>>

CapitaLand Sees Opportunity in China Crackdown on Housing Speculation

Easy credit is becoming less available in China’s real estate market, but CapitaLand Group’s Andrew Lim says fiscally prudent firms could stand to benefit.

“In the current climate where other companies may be more fiscally challenged without access to credit, we’re now in the position to sort of level the playing field,” Lim, CapitaLand’s group chief financial officer, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia” on Tuesday. “We’re certainly seeing those opportunities emerge and are sort of looking at how we can best take advantage of that.” Read more>>

Returning Mainland Students Revive HK Mass-Housing Rental Market 

Activity in Hong Kong’s mass-housing rental market is picking up thanks to mainland Chinese students who are returning to the city after a gap of a year, as universities resume classroom lectures next month.

Market observers said many of the mainland students will be arriving in the city earlier than usual, as they must undergo 14 days of quarantine and prepare for the new academic year, with many booking flats after viewing only photos or videos. Read more>>

Mapletree Investments Issues S$600M of Fixed-For-Life Perps at 3.7%

Mapletree Investments’ wholly owned subsidiary Mapletree Treasury Services has launched and priced S$600 million ($444.6 million) in 3.7 percent perpetual securities under its $5 billion Euro medium-term note programme.

In a press statement on Wednesday, the property developer and manager said it received orders in excess of S$1 billion “with participation from about 60 high-quality investors, albeit being a new perpetual structure in the SGD market”. Read more>>

FLCT Gears for COVID-19 Impact on Its Retail Portfolio

While the pandemic has had no material impact on Frasers Logistics & Commercial Trust’s overall portfolio for the third quarter of the financial year, the company expects a hit on its retail portfolio.

In its third-quarter business update, FLCT said it expects the ongoing pandemic to have a near- to mid-term impact on the retail components of its Singapore and Australia retail portfolios. Read more>>

ARA H-Trust Posts NPI of $9.1M for H1; No Distributable Income

ARA US Hospitality Trust on Thursday posted a net property income of $9.1 million for the six months ended 30 June, reversing from a net property loss of $2 million in the year-ago period, as the stapled group continues to recover from the pandemic.

Revenue rose 34.3 percent year-on-year to $52.8 million, ARA H-Trust’s managers said in a press statement. Read more>>

Boustead Projects Unit Hauled to Court for Drone Stunts

Boustead Projects’ wholly owned subsidiary Boustead Projects E&C has been hauled to court for allegedly using unmanned drones at its construction sites without the relevant permits.

In a bourse filing Wednesday night, the real estate solutions provider said it received a summons to appear at the State Courts of Singapore on 27 August for allegedly breaching the city-state’s Air Navigation Act. Read more>>

Wang On Ready to Market Tsing Yi Flats in Hong Kong

Wang On Properties released the sales brochure for The Met Azure in Tsing Yi and said sales will launch soon. The project offers 320 homes ranging from 181 to 257 square feet (17 to 24 square metres), according to the brochure.

Located at 8 Liu To Road, the 16-floor building offers 20 units in each floor, nearly 80 percent of which are studio flats. Read more>>

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