Sansiri looks for growth abroad
SET-listed developer Sansiri Plc (SIRI) aims to increase its overseas sales to 12 billion baht over the next five years from 8 billion baht as it seeks to tap into growing foreign demand.
The company plans to open a sales office in Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou early next month.
Chief operating officer Uthai Uthaisangsuk said demand for Thai condominiums among overseas buyers, particularly those from China and Hong Kong, has seen a healthy rise since 2016.
“These foreign buyers prefer a condo project near the current mass transit lines,” he said. “They buy for their own use and as investment. At one of our condos on Sukhumvit Soi 77, for instance, the unit owners from Hong Kong and Singapore stay there once a month.”
China is set to be a strong market this year with potential buyers interested in all segments, ranging from the lower to the upper end. Some have even bought single houses in Chiang Mai as holiday homes under a leasehold contract, according to Mr Uthai.
During the first half of 2017, Sansiri recorded 3.7 billion baht in presales from overseas markets. It aims to reach 8 billion by the end of the year, up from 1.5 billion in 2014, 3.5 billion in 2015 and 5.4 billion last year.
Of the six-month overseas presales, 71% was from buyers in Hong Kong and China, followed by Singapore (18%) and Taiwan (5%). Currently, it has around 2,000-3,000 overseas buyers on hand.
Projects with good presales among foreign buyers this year included The Line Sukhumvit 101 and The Line PhahonPradipat in Bangkok, and The Base Central Pattaya.
Mr Uthai said presales growth was driven by the company’s marketing activities, which include outdoor media, coordination with electric car producer Tesla, a representative office in Singapore and long-term property agents.
“Overseas buyers are a secure market as they need to pay a 30% down payment of unit price once they book a unit. The remaining 70% is paid on the transfer date. All use cash,” said Mr Uthai, a former senior executive vice-president.
He said the overseas market will be one of Sansiri’s key drivers for growth. It is targeting 12 billion baht in overseas presales in the next five years, which will represent 30% of presales in 2021, up from 22% this year.
For the first half of 2017, Sansiri posted 15 billion baht in presales, a rise of 20% from the same period last year. It expects presales of 36 billion baht by the end of 2017.
In the second half, Sansiri will launch 16 new projects worth a combined 39.3 billion baht, comprising seven condos, eight single houses and a townhouse.
In a related development, Sansiri yesterday launched San:Dee, a delivery robot priced at 3 million baht and developed by an Indian-owned startup in Singapore. The robot, which can help deliver light items such as mail and parcels, will be in service at The Monument Victory, a condo project due for unit transfers in September.
SIRI shares closed yesterday on the SET at 2.14 baht, down six satang, in trade worth 188 million baht.