Property developer Habitat Group will continue tapping into investment buyers and wants to expand to new overseas markets to introduce condo projects as local demand drops.
Chief executive Chanin Vanijwongse said the company joined ECG-Research, a property investment management consultancy, to introduce a package to attract investors.
If a unit is priced at 10 million baht, an investor can spend 8 million baht on the booking date. Of the amount, 1.5 million baht is for a down payment, or 15% of the unit price.
The remaining 6.5 million baht will be managed by ECG-Research, which will also invest in the property. When the project is completed, which usually takes about two years, the 6.5 million baht should return a rate of 7-9%, which will be paid on the transfer date of the project, Mr Chanin said.
"This strategy will attract investment buyers who want to diversify from other investment vehicles," he said. "They can spend up to 80% of the unit price on the booking date and do not need to come up with the additional 20% of the unit price on the transfer date."
The first project introduced by the company under this investment package is Walden Thonglor 8, an eight-storey condo project on a 423-square-wah plot of Thong Lor Soi 8.
The project will have 122 units sized at 35-66 square metres and priced at 180,000 baht per sq m on average. The soft launch was last month, with 20% of units sold.
The property market this year was unfavourable, Mr Chanin said, with weak local demand slowing property purchases, but the investment market will play a key role next year.
"We need to diversify to new buyer segments by educating potential investment buyers about this alternative investment tool," he said. "We will also expand to new overseas markets to balance with existing ones like China, which accounts for 70%."
The new markets will include buyers from Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong, who make up 20-30% of foreign buyers.