Ol’ Blue Eyes Frank Sinatra might be gone but who can forget those tuneful lyrics “Fly me to the moon,let me play among the stars, let me see what spring is like, on a Jupiter and Mars, in other words…”
Well in other words what has taken flight in Phuket real estate over the past few years have been the stratospheric growth of commercial land parcels at inland locations. As the Millennium turned in the early 2000’s the focus on island land prices was all about the beach. Beachfront, cliff hanging, ocean view property was all the rage.
Though over time as build restrictions got tougher, legal issues over encroachment into public land headlined the news and Phuket started to urbanize, the wisdom of yesterday has flown out the window.
Take Cherngtalay for example. Long ago the popularity of the iconic destination resort Laguna Phuket was all about spending a holiday in seclusion and within the confounds of La La Land. Today an escape plan has been hatched, with sidewalks leading to the larger community at large. One of the most resounding successes has been the Friday night street market at Boat Avenue where locals, expat residents and tourist all mingle with retail joy. The world has changed.
Today in peripheral areas of the town, on the major roads going to the Heroines Monument land that a decade ago would have fetched one or two million baht a rai and a few years ago went at five or six, now is seeing prices quotes at ten to fifteen million for prime location. Do the math. The capital appreciation far exceeds that of much of the developed landscape of condos and villas.
Commercial is indeed all the rage, be in the convergence of Patong and Phuket City in Kathu which is likely the new CBD of the island. Or down south in Rawai, where every paved road is seeing development of multi-story commercial properties. Jack and the Beanstalk have nothing on this urban bedtime tale.
So what is the lessons for real estate investor? It’s to not always follow what is thought to be the flavor of the month, or year but to take a forward look at the future and imagine how things might be very different.