Shimao Deal Triggers Fresh Developer Rout and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

A sudden announcement that Shimao’s property services unit is paying $259 million for one of the group’s subsidiaries has moved the Hong Kong-listed developer centre stage in China’s developer drama, and to the top of Mingtiandi’s list of real estate headlines.

Also in the news today, international retailers have begun leasing up prime spots in Hong Kong after shop rents fell by a third, and CapitaLand Development is has purchased a site for $804 million residential project outside of Ho Chi Minh City.

China Developer Selloff Deepens as Shimao Deal Raises ‘Red Flag’

Chinese property stocks plunged for a third day, heading for the lowest level since early 2017, after a deal between two units of Shimao Group Holdings heightened corporate governance concerns in an industry already grappling with a liquidity crisis.

Shares of Shimao Group and its property-services unit were among the biggest losers in Hong Kong trading on Tuesday (Dec 14) as a Bloomberg index of property stocks sank 4.1 percent. Read more>>

Retailers Grab Prime Spaces as HK Shop Rents Drop by a Third 

With rents along Queen’s Road Central declining by about a third over the last three years, brands and retailers such as athletic apparel maker Lululemon Athletica and appliances and mobile phones giant Samsung are taking up space in a prime business and retail area in Hong Kong’s main business zone.

Shop rents in the area have declined by 34 per cent from HK$745 ($95.5) per square foot a month in the first quarter of 2018 to HK$495 per square foot a month in the third quarter of this year, according to property consultancy Colliers. Read more>>

Capitaland Acquires VN Site for $804M Residential Project 

CapitaLand Development (CLD), the development arm of CapitaLand Group, announced on Dec 14 that it will acquire a prime site for its first large-scale residential project in Vietnam.

The project will have an estimated total gross development value of VND18,330 billion ($804 million). Read more>>

POBA, CalSTRS Invest $40M in California Multifamily Assets

South Korea’s pension fund Public Officials Benefit Association (POBA) and US retirement fund The California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) have jointly invested $40 million in multifamily assets in downtown San Jose, California, an official from POBA told The Korea Economic Daily.

The investment was made through the two investors’ $600 million joint venture for US commercial real estate loan investment, which was founded in April 2021 marking their fourth co-investment fund since 2018. Los Angeles-headquartered real estate investment firm PCCP LLC runs the fund. Read more>>

VNET Announces China Data Centre JV With Sovereign Wealth Fund

Chinese data center firm VNET (formerly 21Vianet) has formed a joint venture with an unnamed sovereign wealth fund to develop and operate build-to-suit hyperscale data centers in China.

Under the agreement, VNET will establish individual project companies to undertake the development of each data center, which, upon completion of the development of each facility will transfer 49 percent equity interest in each project company. VNET will hold the remaining 51 percent equity interest of each project company and also provide management and operating services to all the JVs. Read more>>

Patrizia Sells Astro Tower in Brussels on Behalf of Korean LPs

Patrizia AG, a Germany-based global leading real estate investment firm, said on Dec. 13 it has sold the shares of the company owning Brussels’ first green office building Astro Tower on behalf of AIP Management Co., Patrizia’s single-mandate South Korean client. Hamburg-based Union Investment GmbH, the investment arm of German DZ Bank Group, purchased the building through its UniInstitutional European Real Estate fund.

AIP Asset Management acquired the asset in 2016 after receiving commitments from three Korean limited partners including Government Employees Pension Service (GEPS), non-bank financial holding company Korea Investment Holdings Co. (KIH) and an unknown institutional investor. Read more>>

Sales of Singapore’s New Private Homes Doubled in November

Sales of new private homes rebounded in November as developers moved 1,546 units, up 70 per cent month on month and about double the number of homes sold in the corresponding month a year ago.

The figures are analyst estimates based on caveats lodged and exclude executive condominiums (ECs). Read more>>

Industrial, Logistics Top Investor Targets for 2022 Says Colliers

Industrial and logistics (I&L) assets will be the most sought-after real estate assets in the Asia-Pacific region next year, while core and core-plus office spaces are the top investment preference for investors globally, consultancy Colliers International said in its 2022 Global Investor Outlook Report.

With cross-border capital flows likely to return following the progressive resumption of travel and business activity, more investors are expected to put delayed investment plans into action in the new year. Read more>>

Tune in again soon for more real estate news and be sure to follow @Mingtiandi on Twitter, or bookmark Mingtiandi’s LinkedIn page for headlines as they happen.