Luxury property prices in Singapore expected to rise by up to 8%

Prices of luxury property in Singapore are set to rise between 5 and 8% due to solid economic fundamentals, strong cash holdings by Singaporeans and low interest rates, it is claimed.

According to a leading strategist at Swiss bank UBS prices of mid and lower range real estate could hold at current levels for at least the next 12 months, prices of high end properties will grow.  ... more

Some signs of stability in hard hit Dubai property market but levels still way below peak

The value of residential property transactions in Dubai is increasing but is still well below what it was this time last year, according to a report from consultants. Total transaction values rose 50% during the second quarter of 2010 with the number of residential transactions up by 49% but this is still down 35% on a year earlier, according to the report from Jones Lang LaSalle.

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Faisal Avenue Underpass road carpeting

Islamabad: The Capital Development Authority’s (CDA) Internal Audit Department has sought a detailed report from its Engineering Wing on award of Rs 25 million supplementary grant to Machinery Pool Organization (MPO) for carpeting of Faisal Avenue Underpass road.

According to the sources, CDA awarded Rs 820 million contract of the Faisal Avenue Underpass construction to Metracon i ... more

Dubai preferred location for first specialised real estate exchange for Middle East and North Africa

Dubai is set to house the Gulf regional branch of the world’s first specialised real estate exchange operated to serve the Middle East and North Africa, it has been announced.

The Irex Group said it plans to launch its first group of exchanges, Irex Europe/Mena and Irex Canada in 2012. It will also seek permission from the Financial Services Authority (FSA) to operate an Irex exch ... more

South of the River London property developments proving popular with Middle East buyers

Parents who swapped London for the Home Counties a generation ago in order to raise their children are heading back to the capital city, according to property consultants Cluttons.

With their children having left home for good and prices in some areas of London at a more affordable level than they have been for several years, Cluttons has seen an upturn in middle-age-to-retiree ho ... more

Road-digging banned in Jamshed Town

Administrator Jamshed Town, Syed Aqeel Tazeem Naqvi has imposed a ban on digging of roads in town and said that legal action would be taken against those who were found guilty in this regard. He expressed this while addressing a meeting with DDO Revenue Jamshed Town Waseem-ud-Din, other officers on Wednesday.

He said that legal action would also be taken against residential plots  ... more

100 buildings built in violation of KBCA rules since Aug 2008

Over 100 multi-storeyed buildings have been constructed in different towns of Karachi since August 31, 2008 in violation of the rules and regulations concerned, Sindh Local Government (LG) Minister Agha Siraj Durrani noted in his written reply to a question raised by Pakistan Muslim League-Functional’s (PML-F) Syeda Marvi Rashidi

Many of the afore-mentioned buildings were construc ... more

Commercial real estate sales in Europe, Middle East and North Africa set to rise by 30% this year

Direct commercial real estate transaction volumes are predicted to increase by 30% in 2010 in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, according to a new report.

The positive outlook comes on the back of a better than expected first three months of the year which is traditionally a quieter time for the market. But volumes reached €20 billion, a 75% increase on the first quarter o ... more

Property buyers urged not to skimp on surveys and searches as subsidence becomes more widespread

As talk of a drought this summer hits many part of the UK property owners are being warned of the dangers of subsidence.

Such dry conditions can also affect property buyers and sellers with both advised to check that insurance policies are in place during the purchase procedure.

There is evidence that subsidence is on the increase, perhaps due to climate change. Halifa ... more

Punjab govt ‘grabbing’ yet more private land

Lahore: While the “sword” of the Ravi National Park still hangs over the heads of poor citizens, the Punjab government has introduced another alleged land grabbing scheme in the name of the Khadar Area project.

The government had silently notified the construction of the new project a few days back, aiming to usurp a piece of land spreading over 500,000 kanals.

The pre ... more

CDA approves Saudi Embassy’s layout plan

Islamabad: Capital Development Authority (CDA) board on Thursday formally approved the layout plan for the construction of Saudi Arabia Embassy, the source told Daily Times.

CDA Chairman Imtiaz Inyat Elahi presided over the board meeting attended by Member Finance Saeed Ahmad, Member Estate M Farooqi, Member Administration Shaukat Memund and Member Engineering Abdul Jabbar Mallano ... more

Property prices in Singapore set to fall as transaction volumes dip by up to 88% in some districts

The residential property market in Singapore is too hot and set for a correction in coming months, according to analysts. Industry experts say prices are already reaching a plateau and transaction volumes are slowing. Some districts have seen transactions drop by up to 88%.

Figures from the Singapore Institute of Surveyors and Valuers (SISV) show that there were only 899 caveats l ... more

‘Work under Gizri flyover nearing completion’

The Defence Housing Authority (DHA) has said that construction of roads and allied work underneath the newly-constructed Gizri Flyover had begun and was likely to be completed by July 15, 2010.

A meeting of the DHA Executive Board held here on Tuesday was informed that the work on the construction of roads under Gizri Flyover had been inordinately delayed due to repairs and renova ... more

Falling Euro not putting off foreign investors buying prime US property, conference hears

The sinking Euro hasn’t seriously derailed foreign appetite for premiere US real estate but the next few weeks will reveal whether the Euro zone crisis will eat away at demand, according to experts.

‘We thought our foreign buyers would flee, but they haven’t as yet,’ said Pamela Liebman, president and chief executive of The Corcoran Group told the Reuters Global Real Estate and In ... more

Economists predict slower price growth in Oz but no price falls as US guru warns of property timebom

Fewer first time buyers and increasing interest rates will result in slower residential property price growth in Australia in 2010, according to economic forecasters. But residential prices will not fall and rents are expected to continue rising because of a lack of supply, according to the Residential Property Prospects Report 2010 to 2013 from BIS Shrapnel.

Senior project manage ... more

King Abdullah Economic City named as first opportunity for foreign property investors

Saudi Arabia is to allow foreigners real estate investors to own property for the first time in one of four cities under construction in the country. King Abdullah Economic City will be the first freehold city in Saudi Arabia and is being built by government controlled Emaar Economic City at a cost of $27 billion with an expected completion date of 2025. It will cover an area the size of Bru ... more

Increased interest in French property market reported by mortgage specialists

The last two months have seen a rise in the number of people looking to buy property in France with new enquiries for mortgages more than doubling in May compared with April. France is particularly appealing to UK investors at the moment because of the weakening Euro and the availability and competitiveness of mortgage products being offered by French banks to attract foreign investors, accor ... more

New facilities for St Lucia as West Indies island goes upmarket to attract more lifestyle investors

A new airport terminal, a multi million pound shopping mall, a super yacht marine and luxury casino are among plans that are set to boost St Lucia’s profile as an investment and second home destination, it is claimed. St Lucia, part of the Windwards Islands chain in the West Indies, did not suffer a property boom and crash as did the US and the UK and is poised to attract more lifestyle prope ... more

CDA identifies 20 more sites for rainwater harvesting

ISLAMABAD: Capital Development Authority (CDA) Chairman Imtiaz Inayat Elahi on Tuesday directed the teams concerned to make 20 more projects of rainwater harvesting functional before the on-set of the monsoon.

Elahi was presiding over a meeting to review the progress on Rain Water Harvesting programme. He said CDA intended to benefit from the natural source of water to re-charge u ... more

Law passed for construction of skyscrapers

Karachi: Provincial Assembly (PA) of Sindh unanimously passed a law on Monday to allow construction of high-rise buildings in certain areas of the city and various urban centres in the province.

Under the law, “Sindh High Density Development Board” would be created to identity and earmark the high-density zones in urban centres to construct high-rise buildings to ease, what Law Mi ... more