Two Asian cities made the list of CBRE Residential Global Living Report of top 5 highest value residential property markets worldwide by CBRE international, James Whitehead from Realestate.com.kh reports.
Decided by average property prices, the Global Living Report covered property market trends in 31 cities across the globe including Shanghai, Paris, New York, Tokyo, London and Madrid.
Ranking first in having the highest average price per square foot this year is Hong Kong. Meanwhile, for the country with the highest property price by capital value worldwide, Singapore snags the top spot, but only ranking fifth internationally if viewed on a per square foot basis.
Hong Kong saw a 13.5 percent jump in property prices for last year alone, which means that its market had a 20 percent average annual price growth, putting it in the second spot for the fastest residential growth market in the world.
According to the report, this boom is likeley fueled by an increase in Chinese investments: "As Hong Kong attracts a substantial amount of Chinese (as well as other international buyers), the market is likely to be buoyed by the recent Chinese stock market crash, which may lead to investors finding alternative homes, such as property, for their capital."
The report shows that only 65 percent of residential properties in Hong Kong are owned for occupation. Cambodia on the other hand, although pegged to the U.S. dollar, may also be beneficiary to investors seeking diverse assets.
"Cambodia's real estate market had been historically ignored as the country wasn't viewed as a 'quality of life' or 'property investment' destination by foreign investors," Anthony Galliano of Cambodian Investment Management.
In Asia, Hong Kong and Singapore are considered as the most expensive and priciest markets, which leave similar countries like Cambodia a favorable choice for developers for being more economically viable. Cambodia "has benefited [from] an influx of both foreign developers and investors seeking to take advantage of the comparatively low property prices and the relative ease at which foreign buyers can acquire freehold property (above ground floor level)," Ross Wheble, country manager for Knight Frank in Cambodia, shares to Post Property last September.
Galliano believes that the wave of investments in Cambodia property market is brought about by several economic fundamentals: "a more positive image of the country from frontier to developing market, and to an extent, herd instinct."
However, due to how property markets operate, positive indicators may not always be and stay reliable.
"While property prices currently remain attractive, and the country, more specifically Phnom Penh, has welcomed developers with open arms, inevitably once you do the math it is blatantly obviously there will be oversupply given the expected developments coming online in the next two years," he said.
