cam02

Cambodia: Digitalisation said to be good for real estate transactions amid pandemic

Industry insiders say digitalisation has played an important role in real estate business transactions as it struggles under the Coronavirus pandemic.

Speaking during a webinar series hosted by realestate.com.kh, Chandy Mann, country head of Juwai IQI Cambodia, said Coronavirus will provide lessons in new ways of doing business, especially in the in real estate market.

He said the local market has not yet adapted to ways of closing deals on a digital platform.

“I think the way of doing business will see a significant change in the real estate business because we will see transactions done online rather than withtraditional measures,” he said.

Edward Liu, general manager of Yi Fung Real Estate Service, said business operations at his company use digital platforms, especially when it comes to doing presentation for customers.

Regarding the local market situation in terms of performance of sales, Chandy said there were still few deals closed in the Cambodia market, especially in the condominium segment. Investors closing deals were from Singapore and Malaysia.

He added there is still demand for landed housing (boreys) but the condo segment is tough for domestic customers.

Both Chandy and Liu agreed that a better economic situation in China will see a positive impact on the Cambodian economy, especially the real estate market.

Chandy said: “This is as good sign for Cambodian real estate, especially in the condo segment. According to Juwai, Chinese investors are now looking again at investing in property outside their own country. So, we expect to see those investors to come to Cambodia.”

The International Monetary Fund said that rebounds in economic activity in China and major markets in 2021 will improve Cambodia’s growth outlook next year.

According to a report from real estate company CBRE, during Q1 2020, the market will continue to see a downward correction in sale prices in the mid-range and high-end condominium segments. The mid-range sale price weakened by 1.4 percent and the high-end sector adjusted downwards by just 0.5 percent.

Meanwhile, the affordable segment witnessed an uplift of 0.3 percent, leading average sale prices in this segment to $1,549 per square metre. Throughout Q1, rental values stood relatively stable at approximately $14.2 per square meter for high-end places and $11.8 per square metre for the mid-range supply, a quarter-on-quarter downward adjustment of 0.4 percent and 0.6 percent respectively, in part because of the substantial completions witnessed in Q1.

Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50722122/digitalisation-said-to-be-good-for-real-estate-transactions-amid-pandemic/