Bangkok faces growing condo vacancies as demand from Chinese investors plunge

Local authorities introduce measures to combat the property market’s gloomy outlook

According to Retail News Asia, there are approximately 100,000 vacant condominiums in and around Bangkok as demand from Chinese investors drop.

In the last two years, one-fifth of property investments in the kingdom’s capital was from foreigners, revealed Agency for Real Estate Affairs. Nevertheless, the coronavirus outbreak has cut the numbers in half since most investors are Chinese who are not only barred by travel restrictions, but are also facing economic uncertainties in their own country.

If the forecasts do transpire, Bangkok’s real estate market will be hit hard, particularly the condominium segment where there are already around 100,000 vacancies.

More: Coronavirus outbreak to further disrupt property investment sales in Thailand in 2020

Apart from the looming impact on the real estate market, the kingdom’s economy has already felt the pressure last year amid the US-China trade war and strengthening currency. The local government said the projected domestic growth product will only be 1.5 percent in 2020, a six-year low if materialised.

To counter the effects, local authorities have already introduced measures to help the property market, such as more lenient lending rules from the Bank of Thailand to motivate local buyers.

However, global real estate consultancy firm Collier calculated that the newly-developed condominiums in the first quarter of the year will reach 6,000, a year-on-year drop to 40 percent.