Slow residential sales in the Phuket villa market was the headline of the latest research report covering the popular sector on the Thai island.
In its Phuket Residential Q2 2015 research report, published on Thursday evening, real estate firm CBRE noted that property developers in Phuket remained cautious. It also revealed that sales performance declined during Q2 2015 compared with the same period in the previous year.
“We continued to see evidence of some (PRC) Chinese buying entry-level villas priced between THB 5 million and THB 15 million,” it noted.
It said that three projects were launched during the quarter – and all three were entry-level villa developments priced at less than THB 15 million.
The real estate firm added that currently Chinese buyers are not yet evident in sufficient numbers to offset what it described as the rapidly declining number of Russian buyers. This also applies to Western expatriate groups working in Asia, it said.
It added that property developers on the island remained cautious because they are aware of the slow state of the villa market.
Interestingly CBRE said that some projects on the island now employ Chinese-speaking sales staff in the hope that the Chinese will start buying in increased numbers once they gain confidence in the market.
“We believe that the recovery of the Phuket villa market will depend on a marked improvement in the local, regional, and global economy as it will boost consumer confidence and purchasing power.
“We do not expect Chinese buyers to be able to offset the decline in the number of Russian buyers in the coming quarters,” it said.
Image: CBRE is marketing The Andaman Villas in Phuket with prices starting from THB 8.9 million.
