Residential launches gather pace as Eastern corridor gets the nod

According to a survey by the Government Housing Bank’s Real Estate Information Centre, Chon Buri leads the way with up to 400 project launches comprising 53,000 units worth Bt157 billion.
Sri Racha district is a particularly popular area in the province, with 105 projects comprising 18,300 units worth up to Bt50 billion, followed by Pattaya district, the survey found.
Some 94 per cent of Chon Buri’s new projects are by local developers, with the remainder coming from listed property firms headquartered in Bangkok.
Rayong province has project launches worth around Bt50 billion combined for both condominiums and low-rise homes such as detached housing and townhouses, with a mix of local developers and property firms from Bangkok putting them on the market.
Chachoengsao province, meanwhile, has recorded new residential projects comprising around 4,000 units worth up to Bt20 billion combined, with prices ranging between Bt2 million and Bt4 million for condos, detached houses and townhouses, according to a survey by Marui Real Estate.
Marui itself has launched a project valued at around Bt2 billion in the province.
“Residential projects in the East of Thailand have started to expand following the government’s policy decision to develop the Eastern Economic Corridor, which will entail more infrastructure to link the Eastern Seaboard with other provinces, and will also develop the new industrial investment across the area.
“This is the main reason boosting the demand for homes for newcomers who will have to move to location close to their places of work,” said Jones Lang LaSalle Thailand’s managing director, Suphin Mechuchep.
On October 4, the Cabinet approved the draft bill authorising development of the EEC, with the legislation next being forwarded to the National Legislative Assembly for consideration and ratification.
Industry Minister Atchaka Sibunruang said after the Cabinet meeting that the new law would pave the way for development of the economic corridor by focusing on the provinces of Chon Buri, Rayong and Chachoengsao.
The law will support industrial investment in the area, leading to the creation of many more jobs, he added.
“We believe that in the 10 years from 2017 to 2027, we will have investment in both infrastructure and industrial development worth up to Bt1.5 trillion,” Kobsak Pootrakool, vice minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, said earlier.
Up to Bt500 billion would be for developing new industry in the area, Bt400 billion for developing the basic infrastructure, and Bt600 billion for developing other key facilities to serve local communities, such as schools, universities, hospitals and housing, he said.
Following the planned aggressive investment in the EEC, residential developers are expanding their investment to serve future demand in the area.
For example, leading developer Pruksa Real Estate is interested in launching more projects in Chon Buri province, where overall residential demand averages around Bt49 billion a year.
“Chon Buri is a welcome challenge for our business expansion because the province has many industrial estates and is also a tourist destination. This results in a workforce wanting homes priced no more than Bt3 million per unit,” Piya Prayong, the company’s president of value-added products, said.
LPN Development, Sansiri, Property Perfect, CP Land and other listed property companies are also expanding their investment to develop residential projects to the east of Bangkok in provinces such as Chon Buri, Rayong and Chachoengsao, in order to serve strong demand in the region.
“The strong demand to develop both industry and residential property in the EEC will drive up land prices in the region next year, when the EEC law comes into effect and the government kicks off its investment programme,” a property expert said.
A number of developers are already buying up land before prices rise over the next year, he added.