Co-working, co-living, co-biking and other hits of the sharing economy continue to lead the headlines today as a former pension fund executive raises $60 million to invest in shared living spaces. Also in the news, The Economist decides Singapore is more liveable than Hong Kong, and the ice cold housing market in China’s biggest cities looks to be headed for absolute zero. Read on for all these stories and more.
Former APG Exec’s New PE Firm Closes $60M for Co-Living Platform
Emerald Lake, a newly founded Hong Kong based real estate private equity firm, has closed an initial funding round for its first platform – Weave Co-Living at just under $60 million, an amount that will be used for acquisition of the platform’s first property in Hong Kong and building of operational backbone for it, the firms’ founder Sachin Doshi said.
Emerald Lake, founded last month by Hong Kong-based Sachin Doshi, a former Managing Director and Head of Private Real Estate Investments at APG Asset Management, is focusing on the incubation of innovative real estate operating strategies in the Asia Pacific region. Doshi left APG in July this year to set up his own venture, Emerald Lake, after working there for over six years. Read More>>
The Economist Calls SG More Liveable Than HK
Hong Kong is officially less liveable than Singapore, according to the latest Economist Intelligence Unit survey, with the Lion City coming out ahead for the first time thanks to improvements in education.
In the annual liveability report produced by the research group, Hong Kong fell two places to 45th in the overall table, while Singapore leaped 11 spots to 35th. Read more>>
China’s Frozen Housing Market Got Even Colder in July
Average new home prices in China’s 70 major cities rose 0.4 percent in July from the previous month, slowing from June’s 0.7 percent growth as policymakers worked to cool an overheated market.
Compared with a year ago, new home prices rose 9.7 percent in July, slowing from a 10.2 percent gain in June, Reuters calculated from National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data out on Friday. Read more>>
Housing Policy Freeze Drives 58% Drop in New Mortgages
Growth of home loans in Shanghai slowed in July for the eighth consecutive month amid a cooler real estate market in the city, the Shanghai headquarters of the People’s Bank of China said a statement yesterday.
Banks in Shanghai extended 10.68 billion yuan (US$1.6 billion) of mortgages in July, down 14.84 billion yuan from the same month last year, the statement said. Read more>>
China Was 3rd Biggest Source of Intl Property Investment in 1H
In the first half of this year, the Chinese mainland was the third biggest source of cross-border capital in real estate globally at US$6.2 billion, behind Germany and the UK. The other biggest spenders in the region were Hong Kong at US$4.9 billion, Singapore at US$4.1 billion, South Korea at US$1.9 billion and Japan at US$1.6 billion, according to JLL.
In what could be the biggest single asset deal of the year, Chinese mainland’s HNA Group bought 245 Park Avenue, a Midtown office tower in the US, for US$2.21 billion in May. Read more>>
SG’s Oxley to Open Pair of Orchard Area Hotels by Year-End
The two hotels being built in Stevens Road by developer Oxley Holdings will likely open by the end of this year. The $900 million project received its temporary occupation permit on Aug 3.
Visitors can choose from the 254-room Novotel hotel or the 518-room Mercure, which are both near Scotts Road and the Orchard Road shopping district. Read more>>
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