The American property billionaire Donald Trump will join in the investment and development of a new luxury retail plaza with Gaysorn Group on the four-rai plot that used to house the Narai Phand handicraft centre in central Bangkok.
An industry source said Mr Trump flew to Bangkok last month to talk with a Gaysorn executive about the site while Charn Srivikorn, director of Gaysorn Holdings, just returned from the United States last week.
''It's likely that Mr Trump will co-invest in this project. He will also co-design this new luxury shopping mall,'' said the source, asking not to be named.
The project at the Ratchaprasong intersection, Bangkok's prime retail site, is intended to compete with two direct rivals nearby, CentralWorld and Siam Paragon.
Mr Trump may buy shares in Gaysorn Land Asset Management Co Ltd (Glam), a joint venture between Gaysorn Group and the Hong Kong property firm Hong Kong Land, by buying stakes from the Hong Kong side.
In July 2008, Mr Trump's eldest son Donald Trump Jr told the Dubai-based daily English-language newspaper Gulf News that ''the Middle East and Asia will provide opportunities for growth in future''.
The executive vice-president of the Trump Organisation viewed Bangkok as one of the emerging markets, saying ''We're looking at a lot of the Pacific rim area. [In] Thailand, we've spent a lot of time looking in Bangkok.''
The portfolio of the Trump Organisation, renowned as an international developer of deluxe properties, includes office buildings, hotels, condominiums, casinos, golf courses and country clubs, mainly in major cities in the US.
It is developing Trump International Hotel & Tower at The Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, launched last year with an average price of US$2,450, equivalent to 905,000 baht per square metre.
According to the property consultant Colliers International Thailand, Gaysorn Group this year bought the Narai Phand site from Phahonyothin Group for a 30-year leasehold.
The company plans to develop three components: retail, serviced apartment with 178 six-star units managed by Starwood, and high-end residences with 30-year leasehold contracts.
Colliers managing director Patima Jeerapaet said the project was expected to be completed in 2010.
In the future, there would be an extension from Gaysorn to Amarin and CentralWorld to provide convenience for shoppers, who are equally divided between Thais and foreigners.
Late last year Gaysorn bought back Amarin Plaza, which had 7.5 years remaining on its leasehold, from Erawan Ratchaprasong Co Ltd at 300 million baht. The saleable area at Amarin Plaza is approximately 26,000 square metres with about 400 shops.
''Gaysorn wants to renovate Amarin Plaza and upgrade it to be a luxury complex,'' Mr Patima said. ''Unfortunately 40% of the tenants still have the remaining lease of 7.5 years so the plan is still pending until the leases expire.''
Besides 26,000 sq m at Amarin Plaza, Gaysorn Group has Gaysorn Plaza, managed by a joint venture with Hong Kong Land, with 12,600 sq m, compared to lettable space of 400,000 sq m at CentralWorld and 250,000 sq m at Siam Paragon.
Gaysorn also plans to develop luxury villas for sale at Cape Paradise on Patong Beach in Phuket, comprising 20 villas priced at around 100 million baht each. The show unit will be finished by the end of the year.
Thai Real Estate
Bangkok Property
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
private Villa In Gated Estate Ao Nang
This private Krabi villa is set within a private gated community of just 4 villas just 100 metres back from the pristine Ao Namao beach. This is a very peaceful area yet just a 5 minute drive to the main tourist spot of Ao Nang.
The owner has watched this home grow from the ground following construction all the way through to ensure it was finished just the way they liked it. Set on 950sqm of land, you can enjoy 430sqm of living space wrapped around your own private swimming pool.
We are able to market this property at under the market value due to the current strength of the Thai Baht and the owner relocating back to the UK.
Krabi Real Estate
Thailand Property
The owner has watched this home grow from the ground following construction all the way through to ensure it was finished just the way they liked it. Set on 950sqm of land, you can enjoy 430sqm of living space wrapped around your own private swimming pool.
We are able to market this property at under the market value due to the current strength of the Thai Baht and the owner relocating back to the UK.
Krabi Real Estate
Thailand Property
Istana Luxury Villas Phuket, Thailand
In coming up with the design for the Istana project the developers came up with a new term 'FOO' which means 'Feeling Of Oppulance'. Throughout the architectural process each minute detail was considered making sure it passed the new 'FOO' standard.
Following such strict criteria has resulted in one of the finest developments seen in the Thai real estate market today. With just 19 villas set on a huge 24 acre site you are guaranteed to feel like royalty when staying in any ofthe villas.
Care has been taken to ensure maximum privacy from any neighbours and that your villa fits perfectly into the contour of the plot that it lives in.
Only the finest products have been used to finish these homes so contact us today to find out how you can become an owner while there are still some available
Following such strict criteria has resulted in one of the finest developments seen in the Thai real estate market today. With just 19 villas set on a huge 24 acre site you are guaranteed to feel like royalty when staying in any ofthe villas.
Care has been taken to ensure maximum privacy from any neighbours and that your villa fits perfectly into the contour of the plot that it lives in.
Only the finest products have been used to finish these homes so contact us today to find out how you can become an owner while there are still some available
Monday, March 22, 2010
While the residents of Chiang Mai are breathing a sigh of relief that the Ratchaphruek Royal Flora festival is now over, developers have enthusiaticly noted the windfall some made from the city's biggest influx of tourists ever. With 3,000,000 visitors in 3 months it demonstrated the very real future of this northern tourist centre, as well as the possible effect it's likely to have on the property market.
Construction of a 22 storey Le Meridien hotel that has been changing the face of Chiang Mai's Night Market area. When it's complete in 2008 this enormous high-rise will join big names such as Shangri-La, Mandarin Oriental, Sofitel, GHM (Chedi) and Pan Pacific, along with the Dusit Group's new D2 concept and the long-established Four Seasons.
Both the Hyatt and Banyan Tree are rumoured to also have future plans in this city, once regarded as a quaint guesthouse venue in the north of Thailand. Yet just three years ago only one of these existed. The question on the minds of many in the hospitality industry is whether this sudden flood of luxury rooms will be sustainable? The question on the minds of realtors is: how much is it going to inflate property values?
But these are big names with big money and they certainly would have done their homework before moving in. The fact that several have simultaneously gone ahead sends out a very strong signal that Chiang Mai's tourism is not only set to increase but go markedly upmarket as well. As we have seen in other tourist centres, it tends to set off a buying and development spree in the adjacent areas, and this has already become evident.
According to several opinion leaders we spoke to, the single biggest catalyst has been the announcement by the ousted Thaksin government to develop a large convention centre as part of the deposed prime minister's grand tourism design for his hometown. Although those plans may now be on hold, the current tourism minister assured a local hotel manager recently that it would still go ahead. But even without it, the improvements to infrastructure and tourist profile are having an effect. The completion of an international air terminal and the publicity from the Flora Expo have raised the city's profile. The hospitality industry seems bullish, and this has been demonstrated none more clearly than the creation of the Dhara Dhevi in San Khampeng. This 60 rai Lanna and Burmese-themed masterpiece under the Mandarin Oriental banner is an extraordinary work of art featuring purpose-built temples and palaces from long gone kingdoms. It ranks as one of Thailand's most ambitious hotel projects and is aimed firmly at the super rich. Even if the city has yet to attract that kind of tourist numbers, it's an excellent confidence booster for Chiang Mai as a destination, attracting gob-smacked travel journalists and TV crews.
Another bold move is that of the uber-trendy D2 boutique hotel in the heart of the Night Bazaar area. Developed as a pilot project, it signals a new direction for the Dusit Group which specifically chose Chiang Mai as a more accurate litmus test for its funky new hotels. It's targeted at urban hipsters, and is a counter move to the usual Lanna style and soft-adventure sales pitch. The attention to stylised detail is refreshing and it detracts from the hotel's position among street-side vendors and girlie bars. But the decision to develop a renovated hotel in this bustling area was a shrewd one considering the recent hike in property prices since the TCC Group snapped up a clutch of properties here. Their recent acquisitions include the Kalare Centre, Chang Klan Plaza, Anusarn Market and Panthip Plaza, as well as building the new Le Meridien which will occupy one of the city's prime corners.
Nearby is another chic new hotel, the Chedi, and we spoke to GM Eleanor Hardy about her impressions of Chiang Mai's outlook. A relative newcomer to the North, Hardy feels confident of the city's appeal, provided it doesn't try to copy Phuket, and lose its charm in the process. The Chedi itself is an interesting property case study, for it incorporates the former British Consulate building � a grand colonial edifice that occupies an enviable position besides the Ping River. Other new hotels, such as the popular Tamarind Village, have incorporated historic or neo-Lanna buildings into their development to retain the character of this 700-year-old city.
But the coveted riverfront position also proved disastrous when unprecedented floods in 2005 wrecked the hotel's ground floor and basement installations, six weeks after it opened. The deluge might have had a profound effect on property in the area but the enormous Shangri La going up further down Chang Klan road has buoyed confidence, and the recent opening of a Lacoste outlet is evidence that posh retailers rate this street's potential. Hardy sees the floods as a freak one-off and is confident in their future. "When the big marketing machines of the Sofitel and Le Meridien kick in, it is hoped all of Chiang Mai will benefit," she says.
The most famous of Chiang Mai's luxury hotels is undoubtedly the Four Seasons, out in Mae Rim. Frequently mentioned as one of Asia's best hotels in travel magazines, the hotel was a pioneer in the luxury concept more than 10 years earlier. It's set around rice terraces and offers a complete hideaway experience that has attracted the likes of Hilary Clinton, among others. It also offers an interesting benchmark on what happens to property in the area. A serene lakeside housing project was subsequently developed across the road and trendy galleries and coffee shops gradually filled the pretty rural road adjacent to the hotel. A little further down, a futuristic luxury development named Baan Azaya is marketing itself as a "unique investment opportunity."
Four Seasons general manager Andrew Harrison, is cautious about the expansion. "We need the airflow, particularly from cities in China and India," he says. He also shares the cynicism of many about Chiang Mai's ability to step up to the challenge the boom is creating. For instance, guests staying at the Dhara Dhevi's US$500 a night rooms first have to be limosined past a shambolic road construction debacle that has been mired in incompetence and graft for the past two years. "If Chiang Mai goes upmarket," Harrison says, "it cannot exist with screwed up pavements and the Night Market the way it is now."
"We have to be careful this five star tourism is matched by city services, otherwise we won't survive at this level if we don't keep up."
But even if the public sector displays a typically lackadaisical northerner's approach, the private sector isn't waiting around. Sunday Night's walking street has breathed new life into the property along Ratchadamoen street. The opening of the smart new Kad Klang Wieng "cultural arcade" is evidence of the gentrification going on in these areas. In February last year, Property Report documented the emergence of Nimminhemin street and since then parts of this "avenues" suburb have become barely recognisable with trendy new arcades and modernist coffee shop facades. Property prices on this street have become almost unaffordable for residential use, but it wasn't always like this. The Amari Rincome, Chiang Mai's oldest surviving luxury hotel, occupied the corner with Huay Kaew road at a time when cow pastures comprised much of the adjacent land. Former GM, Marc Dumar, who has witnessed 19 years of changing Chiang Mai, was responsible for managing their property on the adjacent soi 1 with its humble shop houses. Today it is one of the most exclusive retail streets in the city, thanks to the annual Nimminhemin Arts and Crafts Festival which has turned the entire area into a home decor Mecca.
Dumar is now overseeing the opening of the city's newest luxury hotel, the Sofitel. Set to open in March, it too has a riverside location and meets all the expectations of modern upmarket Asia travellers. He has one major advantage too, the hotel is owned by the progressive mayor Boonlert Buranuprakorn. There was a previous wave of hotel development in the eighties, he explained. Big names have come and gone but he believes this time around the development is more genuine. "We need more sports and cultural events to keep the momentum going."
"The Royal Flora expo proved we can handle three million tourists, it was mostly well organised and it filled up the lower-end hotels, which pushing more foreign tourists to us." Indeed, numerous opportunist developers completed condos in time to rent them out for short stays during the unprecedented flood of tourists.
And herein lies the real secret for smaller investors and developers. A surprising fact to emerge was the lack of luxury serviced apartments in the city. Twin Peaks, developed by Siam Zokie and aimed at the Japanese ex-pat crowd, is one of the few luxury modern condos in the city. Not surprisingly it sits right beside the new Shangri-La, and hasn't had trouble selling despite the 'luxury price tags'. While many small boutique hotels are opening up on quiet sois, more and more visitors are coming back to Chiang Mai to spend months, not weeks here during the winter months. One of the hotel GMs we interviewed expressed frustration over the shortage of high-end condos in the city, and pointed out that several of the hotel's guests had since returned and settled here. If they can afford five star rooms, they'll certainly be looking for new, comfortable, luxury-priced serviced apartments. We had difficulty finding suitable suggestions other than the newly opened Frangipangi, tucked away quietly behind the historic Wat Chiang Man. Competitively priced compared to the hotels, yet offering a similar level of comfort, it seemed an ideal answer for the upmarket guests that Chiang Mai is forecasted to attract.
Construction of a 22 storey Le Meridien hotel that has been changing the face of Chiang Mai's Night Market area. When it's complete in 2008 this enormous high-rise will join big names such as Shangri-La, Mandarin Oriental, Sofitel, GHM (Chedi) and Pan Pacific, along with the Dusit Group's new D2 concept and the long-established Four Seasons.
Both the Hyatt and Banyan Tree are rumoured to also have future plans in this city, once regarded as a quaint guesthouse venue in the north of Thailand. Yet just three years ago only one of these existed. The question on the minds of many in the hospitality industry is whether this sudden flood of luxury rooms will be sustainable? The question on the minds of realtors is: how much is it going to inflate property values?
But these are big names with big money and they certainly would have done their homework before moving in. The fact that several have simultaneously gone ahead sends out a very strong signal that Chiang Mai's tourism is not only set to increase but go markedly upmarket as well. As we have seen in other tourist centres, it tends to set off a buying and development spree in the adjacent areas, and this has already become evident.
According to several opinion leaders we spoke to, the single biggest catalyst has been the announcement by the ousted Thaksin government to develop a large convention centre as part of the deposed prime minister's grand tourism design for his hometown. Although those plans may now be on hold, the current tourism minister assured a local hotel manager recently that it would still go ahead. But even without it, the improvements to infrastructure and tourist profile are having an effect. The completion of an international air terminal and the publicity from the Flora Expo have raised the city's profile. The hospitality industry seems bullish, and this has been demonstrated none more clearly than the creation of the Dhara Dhevi in San Khampeng. This 60 rai Lanna and Burmese-themed masterpiece under the Mandarin Oriental banner is an extraordinary work of art featuring purpose-built temples and palaces from long gone kingdoms. It ranks as one of Thailand's most ambitious hotel projects and is aimed firmly at the super rich. Even if the city has yet to attract that kind of tourist numbers, it's an excellent confidence booster for Chiang Mai as a destination, attracting gob-smacked travel journalists and TV crews.
Another bold move is that of the uber-trendy D2 boutique hotel in the heart of the Night Bazaar area. Developed as a pilot project, it signals a new direction for the Dusit Group which specifically chose Chiang Mai as a more accurate litmus test for its funky new hotels. It's targeted at urban hipsters, and is a counter move to the usual Lanna style and soft-adventure sales pitch. The attention to stylised detail is refreshing and it detracts from the hotel's position among street-side vendors and girlie bars. But the decision to develop a renovated hotel in this bustling area was a shrewd one considering the recent hike in property prices since the TCC Group snapped up a clutch of properties here. Their recent acquisitions include the Kalare Centre, Chang Klan Plaza, Anusarn Market and Panthip Plaza, as well as building the new Le Meridien which will occupy one of the city's prime corners.
Nearby is another chic new hotel, the Chedi, and we spoke to GM Eleanor Hardy about her impressions of Chiang Mai's outlook. A relative newcomer to the North, Hardy feels confident of the city's appeal, provided it doesn't try to copy Phuket, and lose its charm in the process. The Chedi itself is an interesting property case study, for it incorporates the former British Consulate building � a grand colonial edifice that occupies an enviable position besides the Ping River. Other new hotels, such as the popular Tamarind Village, have incorporated historic or neo-Lanna buildings into their development to retain the character of this 700-year-old city.
But the coveted riverfront position also proved disastrous when unprecedented floods in 2005 wrecked the hotel's ground floor and basement installations, six weeks after it opened. The deluge might have had a profound effect on property in the area but the enormous Shangri La going up further down Chang Klan road has buoyed confidence, and the recent opening of a Lacoste outlet is evidence that posh retailers rate this street's potential. Hardy sees the floods as a freak one-off and is confident in their future. "When the big marketing machines of the Sofitel and Le Meridien kick in, it is hoped all of Chiang Mai will benefit," she says.
The most famous of Chiang Mai's luxury hotels is undoubtedly the Four Seasons, out in Mae Rim. Frequently mentioned as one of Asia's best hotels in travel magazines, the hotel was a pioneer in the luxury concept more than 10 years earlier. It's set around rice terraces and offers a complete hideaway experience that has attracted the likes of Hilary Clinton, among others. It also offers an interesting benchmark on what happens to property in the area. A serene lakeside housing project was subsequently developed across the road and trendy galleries and coffee shops gradually filled the pretty rural road adjacent to the hotel. A little further down, a futuristic luxury development named Baan Azaya is marketing itself as a "unique investment opportunity."
Four Seasons general manager Andrew Harrison, is cautious about the expansion. "We need the airflow, particularly from cities in China and India," he says. He also shares the cynicism of many about Chiang Mai's ability to step up to the challenge the boom is creating. For instance, guests staying at the Dhara Dhevi's US$500 a night rooms first have to be limosined past a shambolic road construction debacle that has been mired in incompetence and graft for the past two years. "If Chiang Mai goes upmarket," Harrison says, "it cannot exist with screwed up pavements and the Night Market the way it is now."
"We have to be careful this five star tourism is matched by city services, otherwise we won't survive at this level if we don't keep up."
But even if the public sector displays a typically lackadaisical northerner's approach, the private sector isn't waiting around. Sunday Night's walking street has breathed new life into the property along Ratchadamoen street. The opening of the smart new Kad Klang Wieng "cultural arcade" is evidence of the gentrification going on in these areas. In February last year, Property Report documented the emergence of Nimminhemin street and since then parts of this "avenues" suburb have become barely recognisable with trendy new arcades and modernist coffee shop facades. Property prices on this street have become almost unaffordable for residential use, but it wasn't always like this. The Amari Rincome, Chiang Mai's oldest surviving luxury hotel, occupied the corner with Huay Kaew road at a time when cow pastures comprised much of the adjacent land. Former GM, Marc Dumar, who has witnessed 19 years of changing Chiang Mai, was responsible for managing their property on the adjacent soi 1 with its humble shop houses. Today it is one of the most exclusive retail streets in the city, thanks to the annual Nimminhemin Arts and Crafts Festival which has turned the entire area into a home decor Mecca.
Dumar is now overseeing the opening of the city's newest luxury hotel, the Sofitel. Set to open in March, it too has a riverside location and meets all the expectations of modern upmarket Asia travellers. He has one major advantage too, the hotel is owned by the progressive mayor Boonlert Buranuprakorn. There was a previous wave of hotel development in the eighties, he explained. Big names have come and gone but he believes this time around the development is more genuine. "We need more sports and cultural events to keep the momentum going."
"The Royal Flora expo proved we can handle three million tourists, it was mostly well organised and it filled up the lower-end hotels, which pushing more foreign tourists to us." Indeed, numerous opportunist developers completed condos in time to rent them out for short stays during the unprecedented flood of tourists.
And herein lies the real secret for smaller investors and developers. A surprising fact to emerge was the lack of luxury serviced apartments in the city. Twin Peaks, developed by Siam Zokie and aimed at the Japanese ex-pat crowd, is one of the few luxury modern condos in the city. Not surprisingly it sits right beside the new Shangri-La, and hasn't had trouble selling despite the 'luxury price tags'. While many small boutique hotels are opening up on quiet sois, more and more visitors are coming back to Chiang Mai to spend months, not weeks here during the winter months. One of the hotel GMs we interviewed expressed frustration over the shortage of high-end condos in the city, and pointed out that several of the hotel's guests had since returned and settled here. If they can afford five star rooms, they'll certainly be looking for new, comfortable, luxury-priced serviced apartments. We had difficulty finding suitable suggestions other than the newly opened Frangipangi, tucked away quietly behind the historic Wat Chiang Man. Competitively priced compared to the hotels, yet offering a similar level of comfort, it seemed an ideal answer for the upmarket guests that Chiang Mai is forecasted to attract.
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