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Archive for November 17th, 2008

Launches of private homes in Oct drops almost 80% on-month

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 17, 2008

Only 159 private homes were launched in October this year – the lowest in more than a year.

The slide of almost 80 per cent from the 767 units launched in September is due to poor economic conditions, and the technical recession that has hit Singapore.

About 194 units launched in August 2008, during the traditionally slow market in the seventh lunar month.

The central region made up almost half the new launches in October, at 74 units.

The number of new homes sold in October also fell to 112 units from 373 a month ago.

Homebuyers stayed out of the market in October as confidence was shaken by financial turmoil and news of job cuts.

And buyers were only willing to spend on properties that offered value for money.

“Price is a factor in today’s market. Projects priced well in very good locations have a strong take up,” said the head of research and consultancy at Jones Lang LaSalle, Chua Yang Liang.

Analysts expect the housing market to stay weak.

Dr Chua said: “This pendulum effect we see in supply and demand will continue going into next few months as developers try to ascertain what the demand is. Buyers being sensitive to market news will continue to fluctuate in their behaviour.”

Analysts also say new home sales could hit lows not seen since the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

“Taking into consideration the continued lack of activity in the next two months going into the end of 2008, we expect total homes sales to hit just above 4,000, potentially below 4,500. It will probably be the first time in almost 11 years that new home sales take up will hit below 5,000,” said the managing director of Cushman & Wakefield, Donald Han.

Experts say the earliest recovery could be in mid-2009, if the global economy and stock markets also pick up.

Dr Chua said: “We have to see the global economic situation coming to more stable conditions before the buyer market would stabilize. Global economic fundamentals must return (and) stock markets must be predictable.”

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 17 Nov 2008

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S’pore’s October new home sales dive 70% on-month

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 17, 2008

New home sales in Singapore dived 70 per cent in October compared to September as home buying sentiment continued to sour.

According to Urban Redevelopment Authority’s (URA) data, developers sold 112 new and uncompleted private residential homes last month, versus the 380 units sold in September.

They launched just 159 units for sale, compared to nearly 767 in September.

The most expensive unit sold was at the Orchard Scotts development at Anthony Road, which went for S$2,407 per square foot.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 17 Nov 2008

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112 pte homes sold in Oct, down 70% from Sept

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 17, 2008

Developers sold just 112 private homes in the month of October, down from 376 units in September, according to latest official data from Urban Redevelopment Authority.

Developers launched 159 private homes in October, a fifth of the 767 units they released in September.

The data was obtained through a survey of developers by URA and this information has been released every month since July 2007. This additional data supplements existing data provided by URA and provides greater transparency in the market, helping home buyers with their decisions, URA said.

Source : Business Times – 17 Nov 2008

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Resorts World confirms IR opening on track

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 17, 2008

A Singapore integrated resort (IR) developer confirmed on Monday that its project was on track for a phased opening beginning early in 2010.

‘It hasn’t changed,’ a spokesman for Resorts World at Sentosa told AFP.

The spokesman, who declined to be named, was commenting after a minister said in parliament that the country’s Genting International had sought government permission for the progressive opening.

‘We’ve always said we will open in stages,’ the spokesman said.

Last Thursday the Singapore Tourism Board said the city-state’s other IR developer, Las Vegas Sands, had asked to open its Marina Bay Sands complex in stages instead of in one go at the end of next year.

The government is ‘considering these requests by Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World at Sentosa with due reference to what they have committed’, Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry, S. Iswaran, told parliament.

‘Even as we do so, our expectation remains that each development will open as an integrated resort, and not just as a stand-alone casino,’ he added.

Mr Iswaran said Genting cited ‘physical on-site constraints’ for its progressive opening.

The development is to include a Universal Studios theme park, which the Resorts World spokesman said will require an on-site storage area while the rides are assembled. That accounts for the site constraints, he said.

But the theme park, casino, four hotels and a dining and shopping area are to open as scheduled in early 2010, he reiterated.

Other features of the project will open later, also as previously announced, he said.

Stephen Weaver, the head of Las Vegas Sands Asia, said last week that his company had run into construction difficulties in Singapore.

Las Vegas Sands has announced a halt to some developments in the southern Chinese gambling enclave of Macau due to trouble accessing credit during the global financial crisis.

But the company said completion of the Singapore project remains its top priority. Marina Bay Sands is to include hotel and convention facilities as well as gaming tables.

Source : Business Times – 17 Nov 2008

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Strong team spirit helps CCM clinch certification

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 17, 2008

FOR CapitaLand Commercial Management (CCM), property goes beyond bricks and mortar.

‘We are always driven by our commitment that the properties we manage will be different from the others,’ says Jessie Yong, general manager of CCM, which manages property under CapitaCommercial Trust (CCT).

‘The properties that we manage are not merely physical assets put up for letting. We strive to create living communities within the properties we manage, whereby over 11,000 occupants at these properties can work, play and interact with each other and network for business opportunities,’ she adds.

CCM – which was awarded the Singapore Service Class (S-Class) certification for the first time – says it is committed to delivering quality service and aims to constantly exceed its customers’ expectations to achieve service excellence.

‘CCM has always been adopting the best practices in building management and proactive asset management strategies since its establishment in mid-2003 to manage the prime commercial properties owned by CCT,’ Ms Yong says.

In February this year, CCM said it received the ISO 9001 certification and implemented the environment management system in line with the ISO 14001 certification that was attained last year.

‘All these testify to the effectiveness and efficiency of our platforms and applications,’ Ms Yong says.

CCM says its strong team spirit helped the company clinch the S-Class certification.

‘CCM’s management adopts a ‘walk-the-talk’ leadership style and leads by example to actively participate in customer service delivery and effectively communicate our service credo to all employees,’ says Ms Yong.

‘It’s through this initiative that a strong sense of service culture emerged within our team of about 80 employees and all our employees are able to exhibit their dedication to service excellence at all times.’

Having gained the S-Class certification, the staff is now motivated to set higher benchmarks and achieve new heights in customer service.

‘CCM will continue to benchmark itself against the global best practices to raise the service bars for the real estate industry,’ says Ms Yong.

‘We will provide value to all our stakeholders through innovation such as adopting new technologies and allocating resources for our building enhancements.’

The company also believes in building up its people and says it is committed to creating the right environment for its employees.

‘ We will continue to nurture talent from within the organisation and provide opportunities for growth and recognition,’ Ms Yong adds.

CCT reported a 46.1 per cent jump in distributable income to $43.2 million for the third quarter ended Sept 30.

Source : Business Times – 17 Nov 2008

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Joo Chiat hotels: No more hourly rates

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 17, 2008

FROM Jan 1 next year, all hotels in the Joo Chiat Road area will be banned from offering hourly rates in a bid to crack down on sleaze in the heritage area.

The ruling requires hotel operators to let rooms at full-day rates. It will apply to the nine hotels there now and any new hotels opened in the area.

The Joo Chiat area boasts several Peranakan restaurants, many conserved shophouses and a notorious 50m stretch of Joo Chiat Road noted for prostitution.

Residents and legitimate businesses have long complained of vice in the area.

A ‘Save Joo Chiat’ group was formed by local residents in 2004 to preserve the area’s heritage. They had been alarmed at the sudden proliferation of bars and the large number of scantily-clad women wandering into their estates in the evenings.

The Hotels Licensing Board (HLB), which is imposing the full-day rate condition, said the affected hotels were informed about the condition in mid-July.

‘The big objective is to see how we can improve the appeal of Joo Chiat,’ said a member of the board, Ms Caroline Leong, who is also the Singapore Tourism Board’s director of travel and hospitality.

‘On STB’s front, it will be to allow more tourists to visit the area.’

It is not the first time that HLB has imposed restrictions of this type. On Jan 1, 1998, it banned more than 50 hotels in the Geylang red-light area from letting out rooms for less than a day.

However, that ban was lifted just three months later. Geylang hotel operators suffered a 50 per cent slump in business after the ban.

When it was lifted, they attributed the slump to ‘bad times’ as the tourism industry had been battered by the Asian financial crisis.

All hotels affected by the latest ban are budget hotels. At Hotel 81-Sakura, for instance, rates start at $30 for the first two hours, and $79 for a full day.

Of the nine affected hotels, six are under the Hotel 81 group. Five are under the Hotel 81 brand along with New Changi Hotel. The others are Joo Chiat Hotel, Gateway Hotel and The Fragrance Hotel.

Seven of the nine affected hotels are on Joo Chiat Road. One Hotel 81 outlet is on Onan Road and the New Changi Hotel is on Changi Road.

A Hotel 81 director acknowledged that the firm had been informed of the new rule but did not want to comment further.

Another affected hotel operator, who declined to be named, said that business would be only slightly affected by the new ruling as they had switched from being a transit hotel to a tourist hotel a few years ago.

‘Save Joo Chiat’ spokesman Colin Chee said the ban is ‘wonderful news’.

‘We cannot stop prostitution but at least we make it less convenient for them. It is one step towards making the area more conducive for residents and tourists,’ he said.

Currently, Joo Chiat ranks too low on tourists’ itineraries for any visitorship data to be captured.

But STB feels the area has a lot of appeal, with its rich cultural heritage, and wants to promote the Peranakan experience for tourists.

Joo Chiat was gazetted as a conservation area in 1993 as the Government wanted to retain the heritage and architecture of key buildings in this area.

STB’s Ms Leong said she and the other authorities involved had visited Joo Chiat to get a better feel for the issues there.

While the condition was imposed to enhance Joo Chiat’s appeal, it would also address the vice situation there, she said. ‘This area is not among the top visiting spots in Singapore, which is a shame.’

Mr Chee said the ‘Save Joo Chiat’ group had written to publisher Lonely Planet after they realised that the guidebook had lumped Joo Chiat in with Geylang, saying it was a red-light district.

Earlier this year, the group hosted a trip by a Lonely Planet writer, who will be devoting pages originally meant for Chinatown in next year’s edition to Joo Chiat, he said. ‘We communicated this to the authorities.’

But a key issue is whether the enforcement of the new condition will be effective, he noted.

‘I think the decision on daily rates is a good one but enforcement will be difficult and there will be widespread lapses,’ said a businessman in Joo Chiat who declined to be named.

‘Joo Chiat’s proximity to Geylang hotels and boarding houses will still mean that the man can pick up in Joo Chiat but go to Geylang to complete the transaction.’

Ms Leong said HLB will monitor the situation. ‘If hotels go against the restriction, HLB can revoke their licence.’

Source : Straits Times – 17 Nov 2008

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Credit Suisse’s mega IT hub rises in S’pore

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 17, 2008

Despite crunch, 40,000 sq ft facility to be operational next May

UNDETERRED by the global financial crisis, Credit Suisse is driving ahead with plans to open its biggest Asia Pacific data centre in Singapore next May.

The 40,000 square foot Serangoon facility will also rank as one of the company’s largest in the world, and is a ’significant milestone in Credit Suisse’s IT strategy’, the Swiss financial services giant told BT.

‘This facility is further evidence of Credit Suisse’s endorsement of Singapore as a key IT hub for the region,’ said Credit Suisse’s chief information officer for Asia Pacific, Divyesh Vithlani.

Finishing touches are now being applied to this facility. The building is due for completion next month. It will then be fitted out with various IT systems and be ready for operation in May 2009, the company said.

Stemming from a business review in 2005, this facility is part of the Swiss bank’s strategy to centralise and consolidate its data centre operations in fewer but bigger premises, it said. Current adverse market conditions have had ‘no material impact’ on this project, Mr Vithlani added.

The capital investment on this project, which will be named the Credit Suisse APAC Regional Data Centre, is in the region of ‘tens of millions of dollars’, he added.

Credit Suisse employs around 5,500 staff in three locations in Singapore – at One Raffles Link, Changi Business Park and One Raffles Quay. Across Asia Pacific, it operates data centres in Sydney, Tokyo and Hong Kong. Singapore is the company’s fourth largest office after New York, London and Zurich, and its largest one in Asia Pacific.

When completed, the Serangoon data centre will serve as the company’s regional IT hub, providing support for the company’s operations in Asia Pacific including Australia. It will also house IT systems that support Credit Suisse’s offices in New York, London and Zurich. This facility will bring the benefits of centralisation and consolidation, as well as avoiding future investments in terms of data centre expansion in smaller locations such as Hong Kong.

When completed, the Singapore facility will be comparable in scale to the Swiss bank’s similar facilities in the US, UK and Switzerland.

In an unusual move, Credit Suisse has chosen to build its Singapore data centre from scratch, instead of leasing facilities from specialist data centre vendors. A plot of land in Serangoon was purchased for this purpose.

The capital investment incurred is justified considering the long-term business payback and the scarcity of data centre space in Singapore, explained Mr Vithlani. ‘From a risk management strategy, (this move makes sense) as it ensures that we are in complete control,’ he added.

The Serangoon data centre is expected to serve Credit Suisse’s IT needs for the next 15 years, he said. A team of in-house IT staff will manage the data centre.

A major facet of this facility will be its green credentials, Mr Vithlani said. A key portion of it will be fuelled by the use of an energy-efficient IT concept known as virtualisation. This technology, touted to improve utilisation rates of IT resources and therefore enhance power usage economy, is a rising trend among enterprises that operate IT centres. The Serangoon facility will also feature solar panels to generate self-sustaining power. It is also constructed to reduce heat absorption, hence saving on air-conditioning.

Source : Business Times – 17 Nov 2008

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