Lendlease Taps Mitsubishi Estate for $337M Sydney Project and More Real Estate Headlines

Lendlease teams up with Mitsubishi Estate to buy a residential site in Sydney for a new $337 million project, with that story leading Mingtiandi’s headline roundup today. Also making the news, a Singapore tycoon sells a $43 million bungalow and South Korea’s POBA eyes a $108.5 million office investment.

Lendlease Teams With Mitsubishi Estate for $337M Sydney Project

ASX-listed developer Lendlease has teamed up with heavyweight partner Mitsubishi Estate, beating a series of high-profile ­rivals to buy a major residential site in Sydney’s eastern suburbs for a new A$500 million ($336.8 million) project.

They are keeping the details of the deal under wraps but have paid the site’s private owners, an entity associated with ­development company Anka Property, about A$132.5 million for the landmark parcel, which marks their entry into the hot luxury apartment market in the city’s inner suburbs. Read more>>

Singapore Tycoon’s Family Sells Bungalow to Sinar Mas Scion for $43M

The daughter of Wah Loon Engineering founder Alan Chong has sold a bungalow in Jervois Hill for S$58 million ($42.9 million) to a grandson of Sinar Mas founder Eka Tjipta Widjaja.

The price works out to about S$3,843 per square foot on the freehold site area of 15,094 square feet (1,402 square metre). Read more>>

Korea’s POBA to Invest $109M in Koramco’s Office REIT

South Korea’s Public Officials Benefit Association is set to commit KRW 150 billion ($108.5 million) in preferred stocks for offices in Seoul and Pangyo, the country’s so-called Silicon Valley, on expectations that the value of preferred shares will rise when interest rates decline.

The retirement fund for Korean provincial government officials has decided to commit to Seoul-based Koramco REITs Management and Trust for preferred stocks with at least 6 percent of annual dividends for 10 years, people familiar with the matter said Monday. Read more>>

Baker McKenzie Sues Chinese Developer Xinyuan Over Unpaid Bills

Baker McKenzie is suing Chinese property giant Xinyuan Real Estate for allegedly failing to pay $334,000 in outstanding fees to the firm.

The debt is based on Baker’s monthly invoices for three years’ worth of legal services including the preparation and filing of financial forms, earnings release assistance and press release reviews, the firm said in a complaint filed 2 July in the Supreme Court of the State of New York. Read more>>

Singapore Luxury Home Sales Steady in H1; High-Value Deals Surge

Prime home transactions in Singapore remained brisk in the first half of 2024, exceeding 2023’s second-half figures across all residential types in terms of both sales value and transaction numbers.

The latest report by Knight Frank released Tuesday showed that a total of 98 luxury non-landed homes changed hands with a total sales volume of S$736.7 million ($545.3 million), up 28.2 percent from S$574.7 million across 72 transactions in the previous half-year period. Read more>>

Mumbai’s Ashwin Sheth Group Plans $239M-$359M IPO in Next 2 Years

Mumbai-based developer Ashwin Sheth Group on Tuesday announced plans to float an initial public offering in the next 18 to 24 months and raise INR 20 billion to INR 30 billion ($239.5 million to $359.3 million). The money raised from the IPO will be used for expansion purposes.

The company seeks to expand its business portfolio in the Mumbai metropolitan region, foray into Bengaluru and Delhi NCR and invest over INR 45 billion crore in the next three to five years. Read more>>

Hong Kong Peak Mansion Asking Price Cut 12% in Three Months

Sellers of a Hong Kong mansion on the Peak reduced their asking price by 12 percent from April, a sign of continued weakness in the luxury property market.

The mansion, located at 1-9 Watford Road, is being listed for HK$165 million ($21 million), according to Knight Frank. In April, the lead agent at the time, CBRE, touted a price of HK$188 million. Read more>>

Country Garden’s $100B Malaysia Project Stuck in Limbo

The Forest City Malaysia real estate complex is not far from the city-state of Singapore. The project for this new city, which aimed to accommodate more than 700,000 inhabitants, involved the construction of a series of tall residential towers rising almost 35 stories. Yet to this day, the ambitious and costly project (totaling $100 billion) hasn’t borne fruit.

On Wednesday, a veritable ghost town, Forest City, designed on an artificial island in the Straits of Johor, is completely abandoned. And deserted streets, silent boulevards, empty stores and apartments are of great concern to the already financially troubled Chinese developer Country Garden. The 11.5 square-mile city, which was supposed to be a digital and plant paradise, has only attracted 2,000 residents, including a small team of workers who maintain the area. Read more>>