Foreign Property News | Posted by Shwe Zin Win
Singapore now has the best investment prospects in the Asia Pacific region, benefiting from the unrest in Hong Kong.
The fortunes of Singapore and Hong Kong – two of Asia’s hottest property markets – are going in different directions, reported Bloomberg citing a Urban Land Institute and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP report.
Singapore now claims the top spot for real estate investment prospects in terms of price increases in 2020. Hong Kong, rocked by months of violent political protests, has fallen from 14th place to the bottom of the pile in 2019.
The city-state has benefited from a surge in interest among investors who are steering clear of Hong Kong and China, which are viewed as “geopolitical flashpoints”.
For the past few quarters, apartment prices in Singapore have rebounded.
Hong Kong’s problems bode well for Singapore, at least for a little while, according to Urban Land Institute CEO Ed Walter.
Singapore also saw a rise in property transactions in the first half, with majority of the activities driven by cross-border capital. Deals amounted to $4.9 billion (S$6.6 billion) in the period, a 73% year-on-year growth.
Walter described Hong Kong as having a “very resilient market”, backed by its high property prices. He believes that after the protests, sectors such as retail can recover quickly.
Singapore ranked second-to-last in the list of 22 centers as recently as 2017. In 2017, Hong Kong ranked 18th. Ref: Propertyguru
