Developers unfazed by earthquake

The 4.3-magnitude earthquake that rattled Phuket’s Thalang district on Monday has not had a significant impact on the plans or structures of developers of residential and hotel projects in the province, where some buildings are designed to cope with quakes measuring above six on the Richter scale. 

Suriya Wannabuit, executive vice president for project management and marketing at Sansiri Plc, which is developing four residential projects in Phuket – three of them condominiums under the dcondo brand – said construction of the projects was proceeding. The company conducted a survey of its building projects, and found no structural damage from the latest earthquake. 

“We make sure that our building structures are strong enough to handle earthquakes over five in magnitude,” he said. 

However, the quake could have a psychological effect on potential homebuyers in Phuket, causing them to delay their decisions in the short term. 

“We believe that demand to buy residences will return to the market within one or two months,” he said. 

Pruksa Real Estate Plc’s director and chief business officer, Prasert Taedullayasatit, said the townhouses the company is developing in Phuket would not be impacted by the earthquake. 

“Earthquakes prompt homebuyers to opt for low-rise residences rather than high-rise units,” he said. 

The firm’s townhouses were structurally sound enough to cope with earthquakes of above 6 in magnitude, he said. 

Yutthachai Charanachitta, president and CEO of Amari Estates Co Ltd, which is developing both luxury hotels and condominium projects in Pathong district of Phuket, said the company has continued to develop both hotels and condominiums, according to its business plan. 

“Earthquakes do not impact on our business plan because we believe that this is a short-term situation. There was no impact on buildings structurally, either,” he said. 

According to a survey by the Real Estate Information Centre (REIC), 23,340 new residential units were launched in Phuket as of October 2011. Nearly half, or 9,940 units, are low-rise residences, both single detached houses and townhouses, worth a total of Bt36.7 billion. Another 6,970 units are condominium projects worth Bt22 billion; 1,280 units are vacation residences; 720 units are low-rise residences of the Baan Ua-Athorn low-income housing project; and 4,430 units are condominiums under Baan Ua-Athorn with a combined value of Bt14.7 billion. 

The most popular location to develop residential projects in Phuket is Muang district, which has 5,890 residential projects for sale, followed by Thalang district, which bore the brunt of the earthquake early this week, with 3,320 units, followed by Krathu district.