Besides the usual residential properties, offices and commercial or industrial spaces, what other assets can you hedge your funds in?
Hotels, student accommodation, and retirement resorts
Australia, New Zealand, the UK and USA are all places where Singaporeans like to live, work and play in. Study too. And it’s not wonder residential properties and student accommodations are highly valued international assets investors here are willing to put their money in. Parents sending their children to study in these places may find it more worth their money to own a property and then sell it or continue renting it out when their children have graduated. This train of thought than extended to investing in student accommodations. And now it seems, also nursing homes.
Thakral Corporation‘s GemLife brand has picked up sites in New South Wales and Victoria to develop senior homes. Construction work will commence as early as the end of 2017 and the final development will yield 369 homes. As a joint venture with Gems Lifestyle Resorts which is controlled by Australia’s Puljich family, these new retirement-living projects will add on to their existing portfolio of 2 such retirement resorts in Queensland. They had initially invested A$20.5 million in September 2016 for the Queensland sites.
Gated retirement communities with lifestyle offerings
GemLife‘s retirement units are all situated in gated communities where there are shared facilities such as bowling alleys, saunas and more. With the addition of the 369 units in the new developments, the brand will have 1,000 such units in total.
The demand for retirement housing in Australia is growing due to an ageing population. And even foreigners may be tempted to make a move into the country in the later part of their lives. Thus this market segment is one that will grow in the years ahead.
