Singapore is now Asia Pacific’s number one city for real estate investment in 2011, according to a global survey led by the Urban Land Institute and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
The city state has overtaken Shanghai, which has seen falling investor interest due to record-high property prices.
But Shanghai’s property prices could fall by as much as 20 per cent next year.
India presents great returns of up to 25 per cent – in particular Mumbai and New Delhi.
“When people look at India – what I would call an emerging market – these are markets with higher rates of growth and substantial change. But with that comes risk; regulations are not as mature, the capital markets are not as mature, and the infrastructure is not as mature,” commented Stephen Blank, Senior Fellow of Finance, Urban Land Institute.
Going forward, analysts said investors can find several property gems in Southeast Asia.
Dr Chua Yang Liang, head of Research, Southeast Asia, with Jones Lang LaSalle said: “I’ll look at also Indonesia, given the very strong robust and economic performance. Longer term, I am looking at Jakarta’s office market, and emerging markets like Vietnam could prove quite attractive, as well as Bangkok. The market has been quite stable despite the political upheaval in the last few years.
Looking ahead, analysts said further capital controls are key challenges to returns in Asia’s property sector.
Source : Channel NewsAsia – 8 Dec 2010