Thai Builders Face Tough Times as Crisis Drags On

Thai Builders Face Tough Times as Crisis Drags On

By Khettiya Jittapong on 9:44 pm February 26, 2014.

Bangkok. Political unrest and an over-supplied $20 billion real estate market in Thailand are the latest challenges threatening developers who are canceling new launches in the hopes of staving off a bubble.

New project launches are expected to drop as much as 30 percent this year, which should help ease concerns about oversupply, but other sectors of the market may suffer. The number of new housing units hit a record high last year with a boom in condominiums, which accounted for 58 percent of the market. This year the market, which accounts for about 5.5 percent of Thailand’s gross domestic product, is expected to contract by 2 percent to 5 percent after rising 4 percent last year. The decline has already hit developers and could impact banks as well.

“The unrest should put a brake on a possible bubble in the sector. What we will see from now will be more cancellations on transferring new houses,” said Naporn Sunthornchitcharoen, president at Land & Houses.

Thailand’s property index has dropped 10 percent in the past three months compared to a 5 percent fall of the broader index. Thailand’s consumer confidence and housing demand indices dropped for a 10th consecutive month in January, a survey showed.

“In the worst-case scenario, if the unrest persists until June, consumer confidence will be weakened further,” said Tongma Vijitpongpun, chief executive at Pruksa Real Estate, the country’s second-biggest developer. “The market will see a contraction because no one wants to buy houses at this moment.”

Pruksa Real Estate, which posted record high net profit and revenue in 2013, now expects revenue to rise 3 percent to 4 percent this year, the lowest since the 1997-98 financial crisis, versus average growth of 25 percent a year in the past decade.

Pruksa’s new bookings dropped 30 percent in January as potential buyers delayed purchases. Among the worst performing stocks for Thai developers, Pruksa has retreated 16 percent over the past three months. Its net income is expected to erode by 1.85 percent over the next 12 months, the worst estimate among local peers, according the ThomsonReuters SmartEstimates.

Land & Houses, the country’s largest homebuilder, saw a 50 percent fall in December presales — the value of bookings for property units — and is aiming for 6 percent growth in 2014, far lower than the 20 percent rate in 2013.

High household debt and a rising rejection rate due to stricter loan regulations have also deterred homebuyers, especially in Bangkok. Home loans are already slowing, potentially weakening earnings of major banks like Siam Commercial Bank and Kasikornbank.

“We aim to lend 52 billion baht ($1.6 billion) for housing this year, or on average 3-4 billion baht a month,” said Chatchai Payuhanaveechai, executive vice president at Kasikornbank. “In January, we lent less than 1.5 billion baht. That showed a 50 percent reduction from our target.”

Growth of the 2.48 trillion baht home loan market has been cut to 8 percent to 9 percent this year from 9.5 percent last year, the banker said.

Thamrong Panyasakulwong, president of the Thai Condominium Association, voiced concerns that some developers may face cash-flow shortages if the crisis is prolonged. Increasing inventory and softer demand have prompted analysts to take a cautious view on Sansiri given the company has the most unsold condominiums on the market. Sansiri, where foreigners make up 2 percent of customers, has seen its rejection rate rising to 10 percent to 15 percent from the usual 5 percent to 10 percent. It aims to launch 19 new projects this year, down 46 percent in terms of value, and the number could be cut further if the unrest is prolonged, the company said.