HONG KONG: Soaring property prices have made rural land sites increasingly expensive — and highly sought-after — as indigenous villagers and developers hold on to land or snap up additional sites so they can make big profits by building village houses, property agents say.

HONG KONG: A failed attempt to enter Hong Kong's brokerage market has not deterred US property agency Intero Real Estate Services from seeking a foothold in the city to sell local properties.

In February this year, the Califorinia-based property agency opened for business in an office in the International Finance Centre.

HONG KONG: Japan's hotels are not expected to fully recover from the collapse in revenues that followed the March earthquake and tsunami until the first quarter of 2013, according to a report by agency Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels.

HONG KONG: Recipe: Crush two glass bottles into fine splinters. Mix with 0.9kg of coal ash and construction waste and 1.04kg of cement. Put the mixture under intense pressure in a brick-making machine for 25 seconds.

Follow the instructions and you won't have a tasty party cake but a 2.6kg "eco-glass" brick that can be used to pave roads.

HONG KONG: Water leaks are among the most common complaints flat owners have to deal with.

"If the source of a leak is found to be in your flat, it may begin by affecting just a small portion of a ceiling of the flat below yours, and cost you a small amount of compensation only," said Stewart Wong Shun-tai, manager at loss adjuster firm Professional Surveyors.

Property sector
Maintain overweight: Desa Park City's latest offering — The Mansions, comprising 127 units of terrace houses — was launched over the weekend with about 85% of the units sold at average pricing of RM620psf to RM650psf. The Mansions came in three variants — 2½-storey, 3-storey and 3½-storey units.

SEREMBAN: The Negeri Sembilan branch of Real Estate and Housing Developers' Association (Rehda) will hold Malaysia Property Expo (Mapex) from May 20-22, 2011 at the Seremban Parade complex here.

KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court of Malaysia has dismissed the summons-in-chambers instituted by Metroplex Holdings Sdn Bhd dated Apr 29, applying for injunctive relieve against OSK Trustees Bhd as trustee for Sunway Real Estate Investment Trust (Sunway REIT) to prevent them as exercising their rights as rightful owners of Putra Place in Kuala Lumpur.

BANGKOK: The Bangkok hotel market recorded strong numbers for the peak first quarter (1Q) 2011 period, indicating that the troubles of last year have been largely left behind, according to the latest Bangkok Hotel Market Report from Colliers International Thailand.

KUALA LUMPUR: Ireka Corporation Bhd's wholly-owned unit Ireka Engineering & Construction Sdn Bhd has been awarded a RM109.75 million to build a hotel at KL Sentral.

In a statement last Friday, May 13, Ireka said its unit had received a letter of award from Excellent Bonanza Sdn Bhd for the contract to build the hotel at Lot G of KL Sentral.