Real estate:

Slow-down in new housing projects

BANGKOK: -- Property developers have postponed new projects in Thailand because of higher costs, declining consumer purchasing power and the lack of confidence in the longer-term prospects of the housing market.

Thailand’s property business slumped in March because of the sluggish economy, as a result of rising oil prices which pushed up production costs, according to the latest Bank of Thailand (BoT) report.

Some developers have opted to either postpone or slow down their projects. Prospective house buyers are taking much longer to make their decisions.

In April, land sales rose by around 3% compared to the corresponding period last year, but fell by more than 13% from the previous month.

Land transactions throughout the country were worth more forty billion baht, down more that twelve percent from March.

There were nearly 4,000 new houses registered in Bangkok and surrounding areas.

The sales of cement in April grew by nearly 6 % from the previous month. In March cement sales soared by more than 20%, according to the Bank report.

Commercial banks' housing loans were worth more than 520 billion baht at the end of first quarter of 2005, an increase of more than 15 billion baht from the last quarter of 2004, the BoT report said.

--TNA 2005-07-03

Wonderful! That may give the water treatment plants some time to catch up with demand.

Most areas now have water in Chonburi but is not treated, very dirty. I even wonder if it does come from a water treatment plant at all or directly from the Ban Pakong river

effect of rising oil prices huh, but customers have to wise too. can't blame them prospective house buyers for taking much longer to make their decisions to buy properties....