The week in real estate: creative cities, crazy rumours, Trump, and more

Friday’s round-up of property news from around the world

Could US politics have repercussions in Hong Kong?

Can one little real estate rumour spike divorce rates and bring down a government website? (spoiler alert: yes)

Why are cities competing to attract creative people?

Read on to find out…

New Research

Arcadis’ Sustainable Cities Index

Certainly no stranger to the upper-end of eco-related lists, Singapore took second place in this year’s Arcadis Sustainable Index, which measures sustainability from a business and economic perspective.

With Zurich snapping up the top spot, and the majority of the top 10 in Europe, next up in Asia is Seoul, claiming seventh place – the same position as last year.

Download the index here.

Knight Frank Global Cities Report

This report is extensive, but if we had to boil it down to two main points, they are:

First, that in order for a city to succeed, it must attract and retain the most talented people. This ‘war for talent’ means that cities are competing ever harder to nurture the right ecosystem to attract the best workers. Put bluntly, if you are under 40, educated, tech-savvy and have an interest in art and culture – you are in demand.

Second, mixed-use developments that combine residential, commercial and retail have been propelled into the foreground, marking a clear shift in priority from city authorities, developers, occupiers and residents.

Cities which can make mixed-use work for them – regenerating spaces and attracting creativity, will win.

Download the report here.

JLL Global Market Perspective: Q3 2016

The world’s dominant markets have largely weathered the political and economic storms of 2016 comparatively well so far. The biggest cause for concern has been the UK following the surprise EU referendum result.

In Asia Pacific, China’s economic slowdown and speculation that the government will start to rein in credit, is affecting sentiment and real estate activity.

Download the report here.

Country News

UK

While Brexit has certainly de-stabilised the market, Property developers in London have reported that they are still experiencing strong interest from Asian investors, and in particular those from Hong Kong and China.

“Despite the uncertainties following the referendum, we still believe there are no other cities in the EU that compare with London,” said Richard Zhang, who heads up CBRE’s China desk in London.

Housebuilding firm Crest Nicholson London revealed that it closed more transactions with Asian buyers in the weeks following the June referendum than the six months before it. Trevor Selwyn, managing director for the firm, says that “things are pretty much back to normal again.”

Hong Kong

With the US presidential election looming and the rise of controversial Donald Trump at the forefront of global political news, a prominent Dutch pension fund manager weighed in on the topic this week.

Hans Op ‘t Veld, head of listed real estate at PGGM, who heads up nearly USD13.5 billion of real estate equities worldwide warns that a Trump victory could lead to greater protectionism and impact world trade.

“The minute Trump gets elected I would worry about Hong Kong, not so much about the US,” he said. “China is the producer for the world, so you don’t want to be in China.”

China

Shanghai police have detained the originators of a rumour which led to a home-buying frenzy in the city in the last week of August.

The rumour, over speculation that the government had intentions to impose tightened measures on Shanghai’s housing market, sent home hunters into panic and saw Shanghai’s Real Estate Transaction Centre website crash due to unprecedented volumes in traffic.

Couples even filed for divorce on the premise that as legal individuals they were entitled to better rates.

Following the suspects’ detention, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development commended the investigators and reiterated a warning online against real estate agents disrupting the “market order.”

Source: Property Report