Thai developers told to get greener

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Thai developers told to get greener 
Bangkok Post: 16 Dec 2009
Developers told to get greener
Environmental impact among top concerns

Property developers next year will need to take environmental impact management much more seriously as government scrutiny will become stricter, according to Anant Asavabhokin, the president of the property giant Land & Houses Plc.

The debate surrounding industry in Map Ta Phut has brought demand for higher standards and the Office of National Environment Policy is responding. As a result, he said, environmental issues will be followed closely in real estate developments.

"Environmental issues are already being considered seriously in Thailand so developers should prepare for possible tougher monitoring though it may not be immediately become a legal requirement," he said.

In Mr Anant's view, the property market next year will remain stable because the economy is likely to stay at the bottom.

It will remain a tough year for small and medium-sized developers because banks will continue to lend cautiously, while large developers will enjoy financial support at low interest rates, he said.

Small developers will also be at a disadvantage to larger ones in terms of IT, which will become a significant factor to determine business growth in the future. Land and Houses has invested 1 billion baht to improve its IT system while another large developer has put 200 million baht into its system.

Mr Anant expects the 10 biggest developers to raise their collective market share to 70% in the next three to five years, supported by efficient information technology systems that help them expand customer bases.

"Politics is not going be the key indicator for the Thai economy because it is not going to get any worse than it has been," he said.

But he expressed some doubt over the sustainability of the growth in the property industry despite signs of strong sales among many developers, because unemployment is still high as companies are still reluctant to hire new permanent workers.

Though the overall property market has improved since midyear, developers are still cautious about the outlook next year. Only condominiums seem to be doing well as developers can tap real demand.

Opas Sripayak, managing director of the condo market leader L.P.N. Development, said the economy next year will not fully recover but consumer confidence is better, so developers who focus their projects toward real demand will be able to sell.

"The condominium market should resume its active pace next year," he said.

Visanu Suchatlumpong, chief marketing officer at Asian Property Development Plc, said new launches of single houses had decreased by 20% on average every year since 2005. The proportion of condominium units has increased to 51% of the 80,000 estimated newly registered units in 2009, up from 38% last year.

Khan Prachuabmoh, president of the Government Housing Bank said the property market next year would improve due to better economic sentiment and real demand, but developers have to monitor inflation, politics and the exchange rate.

Commercial banks will be competing more heavily with promotional packages of zero or low interest for a short period so homebuyers should be careful in their long-term purchases, he added.

www.bangkokpost.com/business/economics/29348/developerstold-to-get-greener