theSun Property July 2016

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analysts add.
Savills director of residential
research Lucian Cook was
reported as saying that the
continuity of this uncertainty will
likely pull back price growth and
transactions in the short term
while Sussex-based mortgage
broker with Lyons Finance Gareth
Norris said two clients cancelled
their purchases since the
referendum, leaving himworried
about the future. Norris claimed
one client said it was because they
were worried about negative
equity while the other wanted to
postpone the deal as they wanted
to be in a more stable position
before committing.
“If a lot of people start thinking
like this, it could be house price re-
adjustment day,” he added.
PROPERTY FAIR
... iProperty Group launched
Rebecca, the industry’s first
artificial intelligence-powered
property chat platform, during
its three-day Home &Property
Investment Fair at Mid Valley
Megamall recently. Rebecca,
which stands for “Real Estate Bot
with Enhanced CommuniCation”,
was put under the spotlight,
alongwith its founder Mohsen
Damshenas and themany
speakers who delivered
insightful talks onmarket and
industry issues. Participating
developers promoting their
attractive developments also
pulled the crowdwith their offers
and bargains, ideal for those
looking for dreamhomes and
investments. iProperty Group
CEOGeorg Chmiel (right) and
general manager of marketing
Jonathan Adams are captured
here launching Rebecca.
Email your feedback and
queries to: propertyqs@
X
XFROMPAGE 23
For aneco-nature lifestyle
IMAGINE the scenes of
Thomas Hardy’s book Far
FromTheMadding Crowd and
one can somewhat envision
the lush greenery, expansive
estate grounds and spacious
parklands, the very essence of
Bandar Seri Botani in the
south of Ipoh City,
This fully integrated
township thrives with nature,
at the same time offers
residents extensive
landscaping in its Eco Park
that consists of a viewing deck,
outdoor gym, gazebo/lotus
pond, children’s playground
and jogging park.
GREEN ACRES
Amixed development project
under the Taiko Group of
Companies, Bandar Seri Botani
sprawls across 1,254 acres to offer
eight phases of real estate that
consists of semi-detached, link
and town houses, plus
bungalows. There are more than
6,000 residences appended to the
57 acres of land reserved for
recreational facilities.
ENHANCE SECURITY
An auxiliary police force has
been established, called Polis
Bantuan Pinji Botanics. These
personnel will join the Polis Di
Raja Malaysia (PDRM) and
undergo more than two months
of police training at Pulapol.
They will be assigned to patrol
the township and help maintain
public order, prevent and detect
crime, as well as conduct
criminal arrest if and when the
need arises. With this and the
newly set up police station at Eco
Park 1, residence can delight in a
safer andmore secured living
environment, apart fromenjoying
the facilities with one less thing to
worry about.
NEWLY LAUNCHED
The recently launched Seri
Beringin phase 7.3 (1) offers
double-storey terrace houses
that come in three different lot
sizes to choose from.
Each unit has a built-up area
of 2,225 sq ft encompassing four
bedrooms and three to four
bathrooms. Freehold units are
quality-finished and are fitted
with individual home alarm
systems. Selling price begins at
RM373,000.
Visit the new showhouse at
GPS Coordinates: 4°31’01.68” N,
101°5’42.43” E, log on to
or see the
advertisement on the previous
page for additional information.
The developer for this township
is Pinji Botanics Sdn Bhd.
ECONOMISTS’ SAY
Homes &Propertywebsite
uploaded an article byMatilda
Battersby stating that the
plummeting pound is expected to
have a ripple effect on the property
market, no doubt. She reported that
house builders’ shares, which
indicate the health of the property
market, were among the biggest
“fallers” on the FTSE 100, tumbling
more than 20%on June 25.
She also claimed that analysts
predicted that Brexit will impact
prices in the short tomedium term
but they remain upbeat, viewing
this as a welcome correction to the
market and that the industrywill
recover.
An excerpt fromher article
reads: “The weeks running up to
the referendum saw the average
price of a London home drop by
£971 (RM5,282) [0.2%] to £643,117
(RM3,495,432). Nationwide house
prices rose in the same period on
average by £2,320 (RM12,621)
[+0.8%], meaning that even before
the results were in Londonwas
already lagging behind the
rest of the UK by a full
percentage point. The
Treasury has predicted that
house prices could crash by
between 10% and 18%over
the next two years.”
Housingmarket analyst
and director of Rightmove
Miles Shipside however
claimed Brits have become so
accustomed to the rising
prices of London property
and now that the pace has
slackened, it’s easy to forget
that the price of property
coming tomarket is still
higher than it was six years
ago.
Over in the US,
economists are celebrating as
real estate investment trusts
(REITs) headed the opposite
direction of the Brexit-
bashedUS stockmarket. In
fact, Brexit will accelerate the
pace at which foreign
investors are pouring in
money into the US office,
retail and apartment space,
claimREIT analysts. “The
UK’s decision to exit the
EuropeanUnion underscores
the US investment thesis and
could trigger a newwave of
foreign capital inflows to
high-quality, well-located
assets,” said Chandon
Economics founder and chief
economist SamChandan.
London estate agent
company Stirling Ackroyd
reported a €50,900 discount
Eurozone buyers have gained
on average London house
prices since the EU
referendum result.
ON THE WHOLE
That said, JLL’s Challis
expects the cooling effect to
be chillier in London than
elsewhere in the UK. “The
interconnected trading
relationship between London
and the rest of Europemeans
the implications aremore
complex. This will
exacerbate the uncertainty for
London’s home owners,” he said,
adding that the company expects
price falls of three to five per cent
in both 2017 and 2018,” he said.
Most times what is
advantageous or favourable for one
may not be the same for the other.
However, with Brexit, there has
been a surge in inquiries and
interest in UK property, a hot topic
in the industry around the globe.
While property sellers in the
UK can celebrate as all eyes and
ears (and real estate investments)
are onUK, Malaysians among
others can revel in the plunging
pound. Says Chinese property
website Juwai.compresident for
UK, Europe and theMiddle East
markets BernieMorris:
“Developers and estate agents
point to Brexit as an opportunity
for offshore buyers to snap up
properties at bargain prices.
And if the fall in the pound persists
and if local buyers continue to sit
on their hands to some degree,
that will create amore appealing
environment for international
investors.”
Some years ago, there was
news of Malaysian conglomerate
YTL Corp going on a property
“shopping spree” inUK. With
Brexit, comes another opportunity
to snap up assets at lower prices.
Followour column over the next
fewweeks on real estate and the
market in the UK.
[Note: Content above is taken from
a fewonlinewebsites, including a
report by JLL.]
SIX PROPERTY MARKET
IMPLICATIONS FOR THE UK
PROPERTY MARKET.
1. Occupier demand will weaken in
line with economic growth and
declining business sentiment. The
impact on rents may be limited by
tight supply, but activity will be
adversely hit.
2. Investor sentiment will deteriorate,
further subduing capital flows in
the short to medium term.
3. There is likely to be a negative
capital value adjustment over next
two years (estimated at up to -10%
with yields moving around 50bp).
London sectors remain most
vulnerable to correction given
current keen pricing and their
multinational occupier base.
4. The residential market is expected
to cool despite lower interest rates,
but any correction will be mild,
except in London where values are
higher, making the market more
exposed.
5. For property markets, the initial
correction will be most severe but
this will be followed by an upturn as
opportunities re-emerge in UK core
markets and the benefits of a
weaker sterling are recognised.
Sentiment and relative pricing will
be key to shore up demand.
6. Much will depend on the speed of
negotiation, the wider political
picture and whether a clear and
favourable direction of travel is
established early on.
24 theSun ON FRIDAY | JULY 1, 2016