Weekly Thai Real Estate News Roundup, Week 42, 2023
Singha Estate launching 5 Billion Baht Projects in Q4
Singha Estate will launch two new low-rise housing projects worth 5 billion baht in Q4 2023. Mr. Nattavuth Mathayomchan, Singha Estate's chief residential development officer, said these projects would introduce a new brand known as Shawn. This new brand would focus on low-rise houses priced between 15-30 million baht.
These two new projects under the Shawn brand will be in the Ram Intra and Chatuchote areas of Bangkok. Here in these areas of Bangkok, there is a notable demand for low-rise housing in the upper-end segment.
For More Information: https://www.bangkokpost.com/property/2665446/singha-to-launch-b5bn-projects-in-q4
Housing Developer Sentiment Index Declined in Q3 2023
In the third quarter, the sentiment of housing developers declined for the next six months. The biggest drop traced back to employment concerns following the government's announcement of a daily wage of 400 baht next year.
According to Mr. Vichai Viratkapan, acting director-general of Real Estate Information Center (REIC), the next six month's sentiment dropped to 60.1 in Q3 this year. In comparison, the previous quarter's sentiment was 62.1.
For More Information: https://www.bangkokpost.com/property/2663291/sentiment-index-slips-in-third-quarter
20-baht fare prices stimulate Red and Purple sky train-adjacent properties
One of the biggest government policies announced was the "20 baht sky train fare for the entire ride" policy. This policy made its way to both the red and purple sky train lines, with both lines reducing their fares to 20 baht for the whole route.
According to Mr. Issara Boonyang, advisor to the Housing Business Association and the Managing Director of Ganda Property Limited, the policy helps reduce the cost of living for commuters. This is because the reduced fares influenced a shift in travel behavior. For real estate, this policy also resulted in the dispersion of high and low-rise development around terminal stations. This is due to affordable railway transportation contributing positively to real estate development.
For More Information: https://www.bangkokbiznews.com/property/1094243
New Condo Price Index declined due to unsold units
Price index for new condos in Nonthaburi and Samut Prakan declined for four quarters in a row due to an oversupply of unsold units from older projects. According to the Real Estate Information Information Center (REIC)'s acting director-general, Mr. Vichai Viratkapan, the ongoing price index decline in the two provinces could stem from old projects lingering on the project since before 2021. He also stated that these projects had lower development costs than newer projects. Despite these condo units costing less than newer projects, the target buyers' purchasing power for these projects got affected by the rise in interest rates.
For More Information: https://www.bangkokpost.com/property/2666848/condo-prices-suffer-from-glut
Foreigners account to 18.8% of new property transfers in Bangkok
According to the president of Agency for Real Estate Affairs (Area), Mr. Sopon Pornchokchai, foreigners accounted for 18.8% of new property transfers in the first half of this year. Last year's foreigner property transfers were 11%, while pre-pandemic records were 15%. The agency speculates that foreigners will buy up to 4,203 residential units in metropolitan Bangkok. This would total up to 20.36 billion baht.
For More Information: https://www.nationthailand.com/business/property/40031977
