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Thanks to sales of completed units. According to Maybank Kim Eng, Wing Tai posted a 1QFY Jun13 net profit of SGD72.1m, which is a 187% YoY increase and 43% QoQ improvement (excl. revaluation gains in the last quarter). Here's more from Maybank Kim Eng: 1QFY Jun13 net profit already accounted for 44.5% of our full-year estimate, but we are keeping our forecasts unchanged for now due to the lumpy earnings from the completed projects. The solid first quarter validates Wing Tai as our top pick amongst the residential developers. It is also benefitting from sales of completed units. The earnings growth in Q1 was attributable to additional units sold in Belle Vue Residences and Helios Residences. Since the projects have already been completed, profits can be immediately recognized whenever additional units are sold. Progressive recognition of profits from Foresque Residences and L’VIV also contributed to the profits. Actively marketing Foresque Residences. In

Deal is already sealed. According to a release, CapitaLand Limited announced that it has entered into strategic co-operation agreements with Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), Bank of China (BOC), China Construction Bank (CCB) and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) to grant a credit limit allocation of up to RMB50 billion (about S$10 billion) to CapitaLand Group’s China businesses. The allocations would enable CapitaLand and the banks to enter into definitive agreements to draw on the credit limit, if required, subject to terms and conditions to be mutually agreed. Mr Liew Mun Leong, President & CEO of CapitaLand Group said: “We are very pleased with the strong support that we are getting from the four Chinese banks. The strategic co-operation agreements with a credit allocation of up to RMB50 billion will provide funding for the Group’s growth plans in the residential, commercial, retail, serviced residence, integrated developments and financial services

Only 70 residential units were sold in Singapore in 3Q12. According to Barclays, CAPL’s 3Q12 earnings were in line with our expectations, with YTD core PATMI up 24% y/y. The key highlight was continued improvement in its China residential projects in 3Q12, with sales up 180% y/y and value +251% y/y. Here's more from Barclays: Core earnings in line, all-round growth. CAPL’s 3Q12 reported PATMI came in at S$148.5mn (+85% y/y, -62% q/q), bringing 9M12 PATMI to S$667.6mn (+15% y/y). Stripping out revaluations in 1H12, core 9M12 PATMI of S$435mn (+24%) makes up 74% of our FY12 forecast of S$585mn. Stripping out divestment gains as well, 9M12 PATMI of S$239mn (+22%) makes up 70% of our FY12E of S$343mn. We expect 4Q12 operating profits to be seasonally stronger. In 3Q12, there was a portfolio gain of S$58.7mn, mainly on divestment of Ascott Guangzhou and Ascott Raffles Place to ART. Revenues rose 13% y/y to S$687mn mainly on better China residential sales (+67%) and C

my paper Tuesday, Oct 30, 2012 WHILE public- and private-home prices in the third quarter have reached their highest for the year so far, they are showing signs of stabilising, property experts said. Figures released by the Housing Board (HDB) yesterday showed that HDB resale prices rose by 2 per cent in the third quarter from the previous quarter to hit a new high. This is higher than the 1.3 per cent increase in the second quarter. The HDB resale-price growth for the first three quarters of this year stands at 3.9 per cent, lower than the annual growth of 14.1 per cent in 2010, and 10.7 per cent last year. Data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority showed that prices of private homes rose by 0.6 per cent in the third quarter, higher than the 0.4 per cent rise in the second quarter. Mr Mohamed Ismail, chief executive of PropNex Realty, said that HDB resale prices are "slowly heading towards stabilisation" as their increase in the third quarter of t

HONG KONG : Potential home buyers and sellers in Hong Kong are still digesting news of the government's latest property cooling measures. While the surprise announcement last Friday sent property counters sharply into the red on Monday, some market watchers said the new duties are likely to only have a short-term effect, and will do little to help first-time home buyers. Potential home buyers in Hong Kong may be looking, but many are holding back from making that purchase. According to agency Centaline Property, the number of second-hand buyers fell 40 per cent over the weekend, as the latest cooling measures kick in. Meanwhile, Ricacorp Properties said initial reports show that transactions of new flats dropped to nearly zero. Nicholas Brooke, chairman of Professional Property Services, said: "Effectively, the market stalled. As we have seen over the weekend, essentially no one - until they can get a better feel, a better understanding of what the gove

It's an uphill climb. According to resale price index release by National University of Singapore's Institute of Real Estate Studies, overall prices rose 0.6% in September compared to August data. Units in the Central region, exclusive of small ones, saw price hikes of 0.4% while those in the non-Central region saw 0.9% price hikes. Small units rose 1.4% compared to August data. The National University of Singapore (NUS) Singapore Residential Price Index Series (SRPI) is a transactions-based index that tracks the month-on-month price movements of private non-landed residential properties in Singapore. Developed by a team of researchers at IRES, the SRPI provides a resource for the development of property derivatives that would help to expand the suite of financial products offered in Singapore, particularly in the context of obtaining exposure to and managing risks associated with the real estate market. It will also complement existing property information on t

Homes in OCR hit the highest increase. According to URA's 3Q12 Real Estate Statistics, prices of private residential properties increased by 0.6% in 3rd Quarter 2012, compared to the 0.4% increase in the previous quarter. Prices of non-landed properties in Core Central Region (CCR) increased by 0.1% in 3rd Quarter 2012, compared to the increase of 0.6% in the previous quarter. Prices in Rest of Central Region (RCR) increased by 0.8%, compared to the 0.4% increase in the previous quarter. For Outside Central Region (OCR), prices increased by 1.0% in 3rd Quarter 2012, compared to the increase of 0.5% in the previous quarter. Rentals of private residential properties increased by 0.9% in 3rd Quarter 2012, compared with 0.3% in the previous quarter. The volume of resale transactions decreased from 3,830 units in 2nd Quarter 2012 to 3,370 units in 3rd Quarter 2012. Resale transactions accounted for 34% of all sales in 3rd Quarter 2012, lower than the 39% in t

Go and get one. According to Knight Frank, the number of unsold private residential units fell by 4.3 per cent from 39,408 units in 2Q 2012 to 37,728 units in 3Q 2012. This is  partially due to the increase in the number of units sold by developers from 5,402 units in 2Q 2012 to 5,916 units in 3Q 2012 (9.5 per cent increase q-o-q). However, total private residential supply in the pipeline, including units under construction and planned, increased 0.9 per cent q-o-q to 83,975 units in 3Q 2012. The increase in pipeline supply together with the rising vacancy rate (from 5.9 per cent in 2Q 2012 to 6.1 per cent in 3Q 2012) amidst existing cooling measures might put downward pressure on prices of private residential properties in the near to medium term. In view of the existing market conditions, we envisage prices of non-landed homes to remain stable and could register marginal increase of around 0.1 to 0.3 per cent for the last quarter this year. Martin Koh | 

The biggest rise was in prices of multiple-user factory space. The Urban Redevelopment Authority reported: Prices of private residential properties increased by 0.6% in 3rd Quarter 2012, compared to the 0.4% increase in the previous quarter. Prices of office space rose 1.9% in 3rd Quarter 2012, after a decline of 0.9% in the previous quarter. Prices of shop space increased by 1.1% in 3rd Quarter 2012, compared with the 0.7% increase registered in the previous quarter. Prices of multiple-user factory space increased by 10.1% in 3rd Quarter 2012, compared with the rise of 8.3% in the previous quarter. Martin Koh | 86666 944 | R020968Z Sherry Tang | 9844 4400 | R020241C Senior Sales Director Email: marshe_inc@yahoo.com.sg DTZ Debenham Tie Leung (SEA) Pte Ltd (L3006301G) | www.marshe.sg | www.marsheproperties.com.sg | www.hudcsg.blogspot.com | | www.hausatserangoon.sg | www.8riversuites.com | www.newagents.sg |

SINGAPORE: The Singapore real estate investment trust (REIT) market is up about 40 per cent this year -- double the returns in major REIT markets like the US and Japan. While returns and yield spreads on Singapore REITs may be the best in the world, some analysts said the market could become over-invested In 2002, CapitaMall Trust became the first Singapore-listed REIT. A decade on, there are over 20 REITs across the commercial, industrial, hotel and healthcare property sectors. Low interest rates on bank deposits have helped to keep investor interest high in REITs and other stapled securities. Industrial REITs for example pay dividends of up to eight per cent -- more than the five to six per cent offered by blue chip stocks. Gabriel Yap, executive chairman of GCP Global, said: "The REITs are trading at about 20 times the PE (price to earnings ratio) as compared to the real estate developers at only 12 times. Because it's a REIT structure that pays stab

The 2% rise is actually surprising. According to PropNex Realty, HDB resale price index (RPI) continued its upward momentum by inching up 2% in Q3 to reach 197.9 points, which is a new record high – rising more quickly than the 1.3% gain in Q2, according to the latest data released by HDB today. Here's more from PropNex Realty: This also represents the sharpest rate of increase for 2012 so far. Chief Executive Officer of PropNex Realty, Mr Mohamed Ismail, said “The 2% increase in the resale price index came as a bit of a surprise, in the wake of a greater oncoming supply of BTO flats since last year and the moderation of HDB resale prices in the first two quarters of this year. The possible reason for the growth is that the demand is still strong for public housing, and that the supply of BTO flats takes a few years to be ready for move-in. Thus, the demand for resale flats is mainly by those who prefer not to wait. Moreover, there is also continued strong d

SINGAPORE: More than 80 horses at the Bukit Timah Saddle Club (BTSC) may have to be relocated if the club fails to win a public tender after its tenancy expires on December 31. The Singapore Land Authority (SLA) said it informed BTSC in May 2011 that its lease will not be automatically renewed. SLA's Private Land Operations Division Director Mr Lee Seng Lai said a public tender will be called on Tuesday for 51 Fairways Drive. This is to ensure fairness and transparency. It also said that so far, three parties, including BTSC, have indicated their interest in bidding for the land. The use of the site must still cater to horse-riding activities for the public. If the BTSC does not win the bid, it will have to move by June 30, 2013. The winning bidder will have use of the 104,567 square metre site till 2018, when the land returns to the government for redevelopment. BTSC did not comment when approached by Channel NewsAsia, as it does not operate on Mondays.

SINGAPORE: Singapore's private home prices in the third quarter rose 0.6 per cent from the previous quarter. This is the highest rate of increase this year compared to the 0.1-per cent drop in the first quarter and the 0.4-per cent increase in the second quarter. It was also higher than the flash estimate of 0.5 per cent released earlier this month. Meanwhile, resale prices of Housing & Development Board (HDB) flats in Singapore hit a record high. HDB's Resale Price Index (RPI) rose from 194 in the second quarter of this year to 197.9 in the third quarter. This represents an increase of two per cent over the previous quarter, the same as that of the flash estimate released on October 1. But with a bumper crop of 27,000 Build-to-Order flats being rolled out this year, analysts said the resale market may be showing signs of moderating. Growth for the first three-quarters of this year is 3.9 per cent. This is lower than the annual RPI growth of

It's the same as the October flash estimate. According to an HDB release, its Resale Price Index (RPI) rose from 194.0 in 2nd Quarter 2012 to 197.9 in 3rd Quarter 2012, representing an increase of 2.0% over the previous quarter. This is the same as that of the flash estimate released on 1 October 2012. The RPI growth for the first three quarters of this year is 3.9%, lower than the annual RPI growth of 14.1% in 2010, and 10.7% last year. Resale transactions fell by about 6% from 7,011 cases in 2nd Quarter 2012 to 6,560 cases in 3rd Quarter 2012. HDB has ramped up the BTO flat supply to meet the housing needs of first-time buyers. In view of the strong housing demand and a buoyant resale market, HDB will offer 27,000 BTO flats in 2012 – 2,000 units more than the original 25,000 planned this year. This is the largest BTO supply in a year. To-date, HDB has offered about 20,600 BTO flats for sale. On top of this, HDB has also offered a total of 7,153 flats in th

This is after a 0.9% decrease. According to URA's 3Q12 Real Estate Statistics, rentals for office space decreased by 0.1% in 3rd Quarter 2012, following a decline of 0.5% in the last quarter. Prices of office space rose 1.9% in 3rd Quarter 2012, after a decline of 0.9% in the previous quarter. As at the end of 3rd Quarter 2012, there was a total supply in the pipeline of about 1.17 million sq m GFA of office space in the pipeline. The amount of occupied office space increased by 71,000 sq m (nett) in 3rd Quarter 2012, as compared to the increase of 33,000 sq m (nett) in the previous quarter. On the other hand, the stock of office space decreased by 22,000 sq m (nett) in 3rd Quarter 2012. As a result, the island-wide vacancy rate of office space as at the end of 3rd Quarter 2012 decreased to 9.7%, from 10.9% as at the end of 2nd Quarter 2012. Martin Koh | 86666 944 | R020968Z Sherry Tang | 9844 4400 | R020241C Senior Sales Director Email: marshe

YOUTH POWER: Twenty-something young investor turned author reveals foundation of his success in property investment At first glance, Faizul Ridzuan, a nine-to-five employee, does not seem extraordinary, except perhaps his good looks and charisma which would not be out of place in a Bollywood movie. To those closely following the property investment industry, however, this man is known as the rising star of property investment with his first book “WTF? 23 properties by 30” which has been selling like hot banana fritters and was at the top five MPH bestseller list for weeks. How did it all begin? Fateful beginnings: Faizul reveals that it all began near the end of his studies at University of Malaya. Studying computer science, he needed to take an elective subject and he opted for Financial Planning 101. In hindsight, the choice proved to be life-changing. “The lecturer kept on advising us to invest in properties,” Faizul reminisces, adding that one day a fellow student ask

There was progress on all fronts, says analyst. OCBC Investment Research noted: Suntec REIT delivered a good set of 3Q12 results, in our view. Despite the partial closure of Suntec Singapore and Suntec City Mall for Phase 1 of the asset enhancement works (AEI) and divestment of Chijmes, NPI and distributable income showed only a 19.5% and 6.3% YoY decline to S$38.4m and S$52.8m respectively. DPU, on the other hand, dipped 7.2% to 2.35 S cents, coming in ahead of our projection. For 9M12, DPU totalled 7.164 S cents (-3.9%), forming 78%/77% of our/consensus full-year DPU forecasts. No proceeds from Chijmes sales, we note, were used to cushion the fall in 3Q DPU. The office segment continued to be the star performer in 3Q, registering a 10.3% YoY growth in revenue to S$31.4m amid positive rental reversions. In particular, Suntec City Office achieved its second consecutive quarter of full occupancy. This helped to maintain the overall office occupancy at 99.9%. Leas

At least until CapitaGreen launches 2015. Here's more from Maybank Kim Eng: Resilient quarter. CCT’s 3Q12 distributable income came in at SGD57.9m (+12% YoY; -1% QoQ), translating to a DPU of 2.04 cents. 9M12 distributable income stood at SGD170.2m, (77.5% of our full-year estimate), slightly ahead of expectations largely due to lower property tax and finance costs. CCT has outperformed the FTSE REIT Index by ~15% YTD and is expensive, in our view. Upturn in average office portfolio rent. After seven quarters of decline, CCT’s average office portfolio rent improved from SGD7.39 psf/mth in 2Q12 to SGD7.53 psf/mth. Of the new and renewed leases of 139,000 sq ft signed in 3Q12, 59% are new tenants from various business sectors. Companies in the manufacturing and distribution space accounted for the bulk of the new leases signed at 28%. Future rental reversions likely mitigated. CCT’s office lease expiry profile is fairly well-spread, with 28.8% by mo