SINGAPORE: Prime waterfront living will become more accessible, as development plans for Singapore’s city centre set aside land for housing, said real estate analysts.

But these locations are likely to come with a higher price tag, they stressed.

In his maiden National Day Rally speech last Sunday (Aug 18), Prime Minister Lawrence Wong highlighted five residential and mixed-use precincts to be developed near the waterfront.

Mr Wong said these redevelopments are major investments and will take decades to bear fruit, but it is critical to lay the foundations for a better Singapore now.
PRIME WATERFRONT LIVING
For instance, more than 10,000 new homes will be built at Marina South and Marina East. These areas can be sustainable and car-lite precincts, with cycling networks and pedestrian-friendly streets.

At Tanjong Rhu, which is currently made up of private housing, new Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats will be introduced so more Singaporeans can access affordable homes near the city centre.
The precincts of Nicoll and Kampong Bugis, which are near historic districts, will have new residential and recreational uses.

They are either in the city area or they are at the fringe of the city area, but I believe the government also has the intention to build communities there that are more inclusive and not just sell the land to private developers to build private condominiums or mixed-use developments,” said Mr Nicholas Mak, chief research officer at property search portal Mogul.sg.

“The value or the price also depends on what kind of restrictions the government is going to put on the new developments there.”

HDB flats that will be built in these locations are likely to be in the Prime category, he added, referring to a classification of Build-To-Order (BTO) projects with the tightest sale conditions.
“They will probably come with a longer minimum occupation period and also other restrictions.”

Mr Mak believes prices for four-room BTO flats in the Nicoll and Kampong Bugis precincts, for instance, if launched within the next few years, could range from “S$800,000 (US$611,000) to just shy of S$900,000”.

“It’s very likely not to cross that million-dollar benchmark,” he said, adding that there would be little impact on existing housing prices, as the plans will be implemented gradually and over a long period.

Source: CNA

Vietnam has been rated the least transparent property market in Southeast Asia, ranking behind Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines among the six countries evaluated.

The country placed 49th out of 89 countries and territories in property consultancy JLL’s 2024 Global Real Estate Transparency Index.

In Southeast Asia Singapore was 13th in the list, Thailand was 32nd, Malaysia was 33rd, Indonesia was 40th, and the Philippines was 45th.

The index assessed transparency by combining quantitative data and survey results from 151 cities in the featured markets.

Each market received a score of one to five, the lower meaning more transparent, based on six factors: investment performance, regulatory and legal, market fundamentals, transaction processes, corporate governance, and sustainability.

Markets scoring below 1.96 were labeled as “highly transparent” while those above this were divided into four categories ranging from “transparent” to “opaque.”

Vietnam was classified as a semi-transparent market and was in the bottom half in four areas, investment performance, regulatory and legal, transaction processes, and sustainability. In the Asia-Pacific, Japan was the most transparent market,
ranking 11th.

JLL said this year Asian markets improved the most since 2022, with India being the top global improver.

Sustainability was one of the least transparent factors globally as mandatory building performance standards, public disclosure of energy use, climate risk reporting, and resilience planning were limited outside of the most transparent markets, it noted, adding that money laundering is a key
concern to monitor.

Richard Bloxam, CEO of Capital Markets at JLL, said with investors increasingly focusing on transparency, markets with clear pricing and solid fundamentals, especially across diverse specialty sectors, would likely lead a recovery in real estate liquidity.

“On the horizon, additional drivers like artificial intelligence and higher standards of sustainability obligations and reporting will continue to push investors to seek greater transparency.”

Source: Vnexpress

Indonesian President Joko Widodo launched construction on Wednesday for a new line on Jakarta’s mass rapid transit (MRT) system, funded by a loan of nearly $1 billion from Japan, in a bid to alleviate traffic congestion.

Sometimes paralysed by some of the world’s worst traffic jams, Jakarta is home to more than 10 million, but three times the number live in surrounding towns, and it launched its first MRT line in 2019.

Expected to be completed by 2031, the new line will run 25 km (15 miles) between the city of Bekasi, on Jakarta’s eastern border, to its west, Widodo said in a statement.

“The first line has transformed the face of Jakarta and Indonesia’s transport,” Widodo said, adding that the new line promised further
benefits.

In May, the Japan International Co-operation Agency said it was providing a loan of 141 million yen ($998,000) for the project.

A JICA loan also funded the first MRT link, spanning 8 km (5 miles) between south and central Jakarta. Work to extend it further north is expected to be completed by 2029, seven years after it began.

Source: Reuters

Malaysia is on course to become the “Asian Tiger” with five unique advantages to attract foreign investment, said Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming.

Nga said Malaysia’s political stability is crucial for drawing investments, noting that the MADANI government has provided clear guidance through several strategic blueprints, including the New Industrial Masterplan 2030 and the New Energy Transition Roadmap.

He said these blueprints are
already yielding results, with the country’s economy back on track and gross domestic
product growth exceeding expectations over the past two quarters, resulting in international financial institutions upgrading their ratings for Malaysia’s market, which makes for an attractive foreign investment
destination.

However, Nga noted the importance of protecting local small and medium enterprises amid the influx of foreign investments, adding that foreign companies should not transfer unwanted industries
to Malaysia.

“When Chinese companies invest in Malaysia, they should employ 50 per cent local staff and allow local businesses to hold 50 per cent equity.

“It is crucial that while we welcome foreign investment, our local companies are safeguarded and benefit from these investments through strategic synergies,” he said.

Source: Bernama