Better Analysis, Wiser Decision

We publish our own newsletter "Real Estate Tech" which is the same name as this website. Together with our other publications which collectively have been / are being published in other media and websites, readership may number tens of thousands including major business tycoons, top corporate executives, senior managers, professionals, academics, and students locally and globally. Since late 1999, guest writers have also been invited to share their ideas and experience with readers. A sample list of institutions and corporations (or the type and nature of such groups) with which our readers are affiliated is given below:

• Real Estate Development Companies: e.g. Cheung Kong, Sun Hung Kai Properties, Henderson Land, Hang Lung, Hong Kong Land, Swire Properties, Trammel Crow and the like
• Real Estate Investment Companies and Funds: e.g. Rodamco (HK), GIC, CWS Capital, and the like
• Real Estate Owners and Operators: Hong Kong & Shanghai Hotels, Regal Hotels, Hong Kong Telecom, China Light & Power, Cendant Corporation, and the like
• Banks and Finance Companies: HSBC, Hang Seng Bank, Bank of East Asia, Royal Bank of Canada, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and the like
• Multi-Nationals: BP, IBM, Dell, Coca-Cola and the like
• Global Services Companies: McKinsey & Co, PricewaterhouseCoopers, KGPM, Deloitte, Arthur Anderson and the like
• Universities and Professional Institutions: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, York University (Canada), University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, City University of Hong Kong, Baptist University, Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors, American Association of Cost Engineers, Canadian Institute of Surveyors, National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, and the like
• Civic Organizations: Hong Kong Government, Po Leung Kuk, Tung Wah Group, and the like

Note: We intend to share our INDEPENDENT analyses on real estate markets or sectors and technical topics with readers through the newsletter. While admittedly there may be other more viable analyses and views, and we do not rule out the possibility of us having missed the target on occasions as the world becomes more complex, we will not publish these articles if we do not believe in them ourselves. This is not stated to avoid proper responsibility but to let the readers be aware of the difficulty and danger in regarding such views and observations as principles or predictions cast in stone. Constant review and a critical approach are needed. Views expressed by our guest writers are entirely his / her own and may not represent our own views and opinions.

To subscribe, please go to Free Subscription. We also welcome comments, article contributions (subject to our sole discretion to edit / publish) and discussions from our readers. We have assembled some of our past issues / articles for reference:

1Q 2024

• Hong Kong and Toronto residential real estate: correlated until recently
• Investing in a foreign real estate market: start with macro
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

4Q 2023

• Canada: performances of selected residential real estate markets
• Argentina: what a steak dinner in Buenos Aires might tell
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

3Q 2023

• Canada: car prices versus home prices
• A question of perceived purchasing power?
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

2Q 2023

• Canada: demographics
• Returnees to Canada take note: deemed disposition of real estate
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

1Q 2023

• Real estate investment: timing, places, and people
• Canada tax time: guesses on income taxes to be paid in different provinces
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

4Q 2022

• Canada: overall residential real estate prices have slowed or dropped
• Entry: high prices, low rates, abundant $ OR low prices, high rates, tight $?
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

3Q 2022

• Using market price volatilities to gauge investment risks
• Condo price per ft2 to construction cost per ft2 vary from city to city
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

2Q 2022

• A deal's a deal
• Canada home prices and political parties: any correlation?
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

1Q 2022

• The Ladder Hypothesis
• Canada: average home prices to average incomes in selected markets
• Home prices and COVID new cases
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

4Q 2021

• Canada: home price to GDP per capita, prime rate, and mortgage rate
• Tracking price ratios to find investment possibilities
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

3Q 2021

• Deciphering the Confucian "Middle Way" Hypothesis
• Residential real estate: Hong Kong versus Toronto since 1997
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

2Q 2021

• Across Canada: the average home price is up 38% but unevenly distributed
• Same return, different risk
• City of Toronto residential real estate: charts and tables

1Q 2021

• Metro Toronto residential real estate: where, which, and what
• Greater Toronto Area residential real estate: not risky in the short term yet...
• Canada's work visas for prospective Hong Kong applicants: intuition

4Q 2020

• GTA: COVID19's impact on residential real estate in metro and nearby suburbs
• Canada: COVID19's imapct on residential real estate across cities
• Global: COVID19's impact on residential real estate in selected metropolitans

3Q 2020

• Between Toronto residential real estate and the TSX index
• Toronto: effects of rental controls on residential rental incomes
• Crimes and average home prices across cities in Canada
• The case for charging a vacancy tax: from the angle of city administration

2Q 2020

• Canada: average home prices across provinces and territories
• Greater Toronto Area condominium investment: where  and what?
• City of Toronto: which is the best price performing residential real estate sector?
• Impact of COVID 19: just a thought

1Q 2020

• Canada: population estimates on ten cities
• Toronto construction costs: across use, quality, scale, and structure
• Toronto real estate: what you get for different budgets, buy or rent
• Same IRR, difference income streams

4Q 2019

• Toronto residential: prices failed to beat the 2017 spring peak
• Toronto residential: the scale and strata of the tenant pool
• Canada residential rental affordability: quite affordable to half the tenant pool
• Prices may change but the price ratios between properties are fairly constant

3Q 2019

• MMT
• Toronto residential: buy when hot or cold, sell when warm or cool
• Toronto residential: interesting price gyration…
• Toronto: is it suitable for you?

2Q 2019

• Real estate investing: avoid having all three highs at the same time
• Overseas real estate investing: sort out your primary objective
• Continental European real estate: a few investment challenges
• Toronto residential condo market: approximately 3% net rental yield

1Q 2019

• Hong Kong: speculating on older residential real estate ripe for redevelopment
• Toronto residential condos: unit prices across the GTA
• Toronto residential condos: where the pre-sale projects are

4Q 2018

• Hong Kong residential real estate market: risk guessing
• Toronto apartment condos beating the rest
• Not about market ups and downs, but return to risk ratios

3Q 2018

• Hong Kong: where you can buy tons of international real estate in one afternoon
• Toronto residential condo investment: where, what, and why
• Leverage up when prices are down, deleverage when prices are up

2Q 2018

• 1994 to 2017: five cities' residential real estate marathon, who won?
• Toronto and Vancouver: how impactful are non-resident real estate purchases?
• Toronto apartments: getting smaller like Hong Kong
• Typical Canadian household income and expense profile

1Q 2018

• Hong Kong residential real estate since 2008
• Toronto residential real estate: apartment condos performed best in 2017!
• Toronto residential versus Hong Kong residential
• Three things to bear in mind in 2018

4Q 2017

• Toronto residential real estate prices bounced back
• High real estate costs: a sign of 'attractive' cities
• Hong Kong: is "parents helping kids with home purchases" risky?

3Q 2017

• Toronto residential real estate: overall average price has dropped 20%
• Toronto residential: how different home types in different regions fair
• Hong Kong real estate: how the housing estates actually perform

2Q 2017

• Toronto real estate market: it is hot, it feels bubbly, but it is still cheap - relatively that is, and looking from 7,797 miles away

1Q 2017

• Hong Kong real estate: global factors trump local factors
• New Zealand: an anecdote showing pricey real estate needs no big population
• UK overall home price does not feel bubbly

October 2016

• USA: overall GDP per capita growth > overall average home price growth
• Hong Kong and USA real estate: having both may reduce risks in the long run
• To Canadians: QE and low mortgage rates are culprits too
• Trade down when the market is up and trade up when it is down

July 2016

• The Brexit Bet: short bad long good, and pain even if remain
• Next: contemplate a probable doctrinal change in US global engagement
• Canada residential real estate: Risky? Yes! Everywhere? No!
• Hong Kong residential real estate: returns drop but risks stay the same

April 2016

• USA single family home price recovers lost ground but condo still hasn't
• USA residential real estate beauty pageant and the winner are...
• USA real estate buying: logistics, tax-structuring, and non-recourse mortgages!

January 2016

• Real Estate Price Boxing: a handy method for picking the better of the two
• Real Estate Price Boxing: a sample analysis using actual market data
• Real Estate Price Boxing: a supplement to help count the scores

October 2015

• Hong Kong real estate: start buying IF prices do drop 50%
• No need for or want of mortgages? Buy some REITs instead
• USA and Canada real estate: a few differences
• Toronto residential real estate: where to invest?

July 2015

• Hong Kong parking spaces: low transaction volume, high price volatility
• To taxi drivers: Uber is only a competitor, the self-driving car will be the killer
• Same investment return% does not necessarily imply investment indifference

April 2015

• If Americans were unhappy, it has nothing to do with their homes
• 12 USA residential markets: which is > than which in investment terms?
• Residential apartment complexes: cash cows and where they are

January 2015

• Hong Kong residential parking: from 1st hand < 2nd hand to 1st > 2nd
• What were observed in a recent real estate expo
• Guessing which markets might be riskier using a price to construction ratio

October 2014

• Hong Kong residential real estate needs good upside to be worth investing
• USA: Boston is better value for money
• Global: Pricey homes are not unique to Hong Kong

July 2014

• Hong Kong beats Singapore in HNWI growth
• USA rental apartment vs residential home
• QE: has it been put to good use?

April 2014

• Hong Kong REITs: Timing is vital but no first mover advantage
• Hong Kong Residential Real Estate: A 10% price drop is not attractive at all
• Toronto Residential Real Estate: Bubbly? Yes but not too

January 2014

• The LINK REIT: top price growth, volatile, and jives not with the HSI
• The UK Real Estate Market: London dominates!
• USA Real Estate Investment: 8% rental return and US$75 unit price
• Lack of evidence is not the same as evidence of non-existence

October 2013

• Hong Kong Residential Real Estate: The Betting Ratios
• Nobody dies from not being a homeowner
• The Renter Generation: by Invited Guest Author Mr. Gary Carmell of CWS Capital Partners LLC

July 2013

• Turn! Turn! Turn! To Every Thing There is a Season

April 2013

• Hong Kong Residential: Supply does not really affect prices much
• China: The richer the city, the lower the average household size
• Population decline alone does not spell lower real estate prices

January 2013

• Hong Kong Residential: Compare Using Usable Floor Area Unit Prices

• China 3rd Tier Cities Demonstrate the Power of QEs and Urbanization

• Liquidity, De-Compartmentalization, and Incorporation: Choose 2 Not All 3

October 2012

• Mitt's Illogicality
• Hong Kong CBD Office Rents Top Asia and the Investment Implication
• Conservative Real Estate Investors Should Embrace Down Markets

July 2012

• A Typical Hong Kong Family with a Mortgaged Home Can Buy 6ft2/month
• Versus Mainland Cities, Hong Kong Has Higher Price to Income Ratios
• Manhattan Apartment Prices Are Lower Than Tai Koo Shing's

April 2012

• Hong Kong Residential Real Estate Prices: Stress Test 1
• Hong Kong Residential Real Estate Prices: Stress Test 2
• China Real Estate: What Some Surveys Say

January 2012

• Hong Kong Real Estate: Bricks & Mortar Versus the REITs
• Your Home is NOT Unique!
• Hong Kong: How Many Homes 1% of Land Area Can Provide

October 2011

• Hong Kong Residential: When 1st Hand Sales $ > 2nd Hand Sales $...
• China Residential Real Estate: Getting Smaller and Pricier
• Global: Let It Be!

July 2011

• Hong Kong Real Estate and Stock Markets Do Not Always March Together
• China's Rising Real Estate Prices: Urbanization is NOT a Cause!
• Kuala Lumpur: Semi-Detached > Detached > Terraced > High Rise

April 2011

• Hong Kong 18 Districts: Which Ones Offer Easier Homes?
• China Real Estate Prices: Rise > Drop in the Long Run
• Make a Bet on Las Vegas!

January 2011

• 33%, 66%, 99%
• Hong Kong: Pros and Cons of Reverse Mortgages
• "Location, location, and location" Sucks!

October 2010

• Which is Bubblier: Mainland China Real Estate or Hong Kong Real Estate?
• Baby-boomers can Take Care of Themselves
• Differentiating between Really Luxury and Simply Pricey Homes

July 2010

• Shanghai GDP will be 50% Higher than Hong Kong GDP in 10 Years
• Hong Kong-based REITS Beat the HSI and Popular Real Estate Stocks
• Hong Kong: Residential Price Trend and Household Income Distribution

April 2010

• China: What is there to buy?
• Hong Kong Compulsory Sale: Of course 80% is easier than 90%!
• Hong Kong Residential Real Estate Complexes: Which are bubblier?

January 2010

• Global Real Estate Markets: Who's a Bargain and Who's Not
• USA Residential Real Estate Makes European Investors :(
• Hong Kong Residential Real Estate: Island Trends Up, the Rest Down

October 2009

• Is it 1932 or 1942, 1958, 1962, 1970, 1975, 1978, 1982, 2002? (By Gary Carmell, Invited Guest Writer, President, CWS Capital Partners LLC)
• China Residential Real Estate: as Bubbly as a Bubble Bath?
• China Residential Real Estate: SZ>BJ>TJ>GZ>SH
• China Residential Real Estate: Shanghai Dominant, Shenzhen Mature

July 2009

• D-NT and E-NT are Relative Bargains
• 1st and 2nd hand Luxurious Sectors Go Their Own Ways
• 2008 Supply = 1/4 o 1999! But E Bucks the Trend...

April 2009

• Global Residential Ratios: US$ Price per m2 to US$ GDP per capita
• Hong Kong Residential: A Naughty Boy - either a Leader or Laggard
• The LINK REIT Leads the REIT Pack

January 2009

• Hong Kong Residential: New Territories West Gives Bigger Bang for Buck
• Hong Kong: Some Homeowners of Older Pricier Properties Need to Cash In
• To Some China Real Estate Developers: You Have Not Seen Anything Yet!
• Who Says Hong Kong REITS Offer a Safe Haven?

October 2008

• BIG TIME LOSS = BIG TIME Gain
• Residential: Beijing and Shanghai, or London and New York, Anyone?
• China Real Estate and Stocks: Which Leads Which?
• China Real Estate versus Stocks: Which Does Better?

July 2008

• Hong Kong REITS: Not All are Good Shelters from a Falling Stock Market
• Effects of Investment Timing on NPV and IRR
• Hong Kong Residential Real Estate: Rental Returns and Risks by Location

April 2008

• An Average Hong Kong Home has only 1/4 of its 1997 Buying Power
• You Need an Astrologist, not an Analyst, to Predict Actual Sale Prices
• Reasons NOT to Include Currency Appreciation in Financial Analysis

January 2008

• China Real Estate: Relative Price Ratios and What They May Tell
• Hong Kong REIT: Allow Some Participation into Development Projects
• USA Real Estate: Worth Start Monitoring

October 2007

• Diminished Expectations by our invited guest writer Mr. Gary Carmell, President, CWS Capital Partners LLC
• China Real Estate Return: Gauging by Price per Floor Area Yuan / m2
• USA Home Price Has Only Doubled in Real Terms since 1890

July 2007

• Insights for a Marketable China Real Estate Fund (Continued)
• Return to Risk Ratio and Risk Reduction
• Hong Kong Residential Real Estate: Past, Present, and Future

April 2007

• Insights for a Marketable China Real Estate Fund
• Same Home Price No Matter How You $ per Square Foot It
• Hong Kong Residential: Supply and Household Formation Projections

January 2007

• China: 10 Real Estate Market 2006 Summaries
• Real Estate Development Joint Ventures: Basics
• China Cities: Degree of Internationalization & International Flights

October 2006

• Hong Kong Private Residential Real Estate: Larger Beats Smaller
• Real Estate Premium: Sex Appeal, Trophy, and Vanity
• USA & China Real Estate: Different or Not So Different?

July 2006

• China Real Estate: Some Interesting Computations
• Residential, Office, or Retail = Apple, Orange, or Pear?
• Hong Kong Residential: No Point in Diversifying by Location or Grade

April 2006

• USA Real Estate: Return Performance Comparison between Sectors
• Hong Kong Fund Scene: Strong Stronger, Weak Weaker
• Hong Kong: Good Track-Record Properties Give No Investment Guarantee

January 2006

• China Residential Real Estate: Good Buys or Good Byes?
• Robotic Butlers and Maids
• “Location, location, and location” is Too Simplistic

October 2005

• China Real Estate Risk Management: Cross-Market Considered
• Beijing: Price Differentials between Private, Assisted, and Public Housing
• Why Do Real Estate Presales?

July 2005

• China: A Highly Dominant Coastal Region Residential Sector

• Overstated Factors are still Factors

• USA: Pays 13% Tax Rate on Average

April 2005

• USA Data: Home Price Jives with Income Not Population nor Density, by Stephen Chung, Managing Director of Zeppelin Real Estate Analysis Limited with kind assistance and advice from our honorary business advisors, Dr. Anthony Ko, PhD (HKU), of the Chinese University of Hong Kong - TWG Community College, and Dr. E. Yegin Chen, PhD (MIT), Principal of Cardinal Advisors based in the USA.

• Genetics and Neuroscience Changing Ways of Analysis

• China: Bubbly Debates on Real Estate Bubbles

January 2005

• Urban Land Use Policy and Patterns in Hong Kong: An Empirical Analysis with Findings, by invited guest writers Professor Eddie Hui, Manfred Lam, and Vivian Ho, Department of Building and Real Estate, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and by courtesy of the Editorial Board, Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors for permitting the publication of an abstracted version in this newsletter
• Hong Kong Retail Real Estate Macro Figures
• A Few Notes on Sizing Up the China Real Estate Market

October 2004

• China: Commodity Real Estate Correlates With City Competitiveness, a joint study with Dr. Anthony Ko, PhD, of the Open University who advised us on the technicalities
• Comparing Recent Performances: Funds, Stocks and Real Estate
• China: Observed Effects Of The Economic Measures On Real Estate
  　

July 2004

• Investing In China / Hong Kong Through Dragon Shares, by our invited guest writer Dr. E. Yegin Chen, PhD(MIT), Founder of Asia Clipper, an independent investment analysis bulletin publication

• Assessment: From Which Angle?

• Life Expectancy, Men To Women Ratio, And 3G

April 2004

• Views From The USA: On Global Economics, China, and USA Real Estate (By Invited Guest Writer Mr. Gary Carmell, CFA, President, CWS Partners LLC)

• IF People Live To 800 Years Old

• Hong Kong Real Estate Market: No Bubble Yet

January 2004

• Global REIT Comparison (By Invited Guest Writer Mr. Felix Wehrli, Mountaintop Research, USA, sharing his knowledge and research study on REITS worldwide)
• What if USA Residential Sector Pops?
• Beijing Residential Market: North East South West

October 2003

• What's Going On? (By Invited Guest Writer Mr. Gary Carmell, President, CWS Capital Partners LLC, sharing his knowledge and experience in USA real estate)
• Premium For Good Joint Venture Partners
• Guns of America: Interesting Statistics

July 2003

• Excess Earnings Method and Economic Profit (By Invited Guest Writer Mr. Lawrence Pang, FRICS FHKIS MBA CFA, an experienced practicing chartered surveyor in Hong Kong
• Asia REITS Are Viable
• Real Estate: How Real Is It?
  

April 2003

• People-Ware Vital in Tackling SARS (By Invited Guest Writer Dr. Man Wai Chan, PhD, FRICS FHKIS F.PFM HKIFM, a practicing facility manager for a large educational institute in Hong Kong)
• Wars, SARS, and Risks
• Taking a Guess on the Long Term Prospect Of Grade A Offices in China

January 2003

• China Top Ten Listed Real Estate Companies (By Invited Guest Writer Dr. Vincent Mo, PhD - Indiana, of Soufun = A real estate research and data group in China)
• China: Suggestive Real Estate Tactics
• REITS Beat Stocks in Recent Years

October 2002

• China Real Estate Market Post-WTO (By Invited Guest Writer Mr. Howard Zhang BS (Tsinghua), MS in Real Estate Development (MIT), a real estate fund manager with an European fund in Hong Kong)
• Paralysis By Analysis
• Average Real Estate Market Prices Could Mislead

July 2002

• Without A Brain, IT is Just Junk (By Invited Guest Writer Mr. Eric Lau, City University of Hong Kong and Author of several books on IT in Hong Kong
• China Real Estate: Choose Carefully, Don't Over-Leverage, and Reserve Cash for Capturing Down-Time Opportunities
• Stable Housing Policy, and Housing Policy to Stabilize the Market

April 2002

• GDP As A Tool To Track Hong Kong Residential Real Estate Prices (By Dr. Anthony Ko)
• 8,000,000 x 800 ft2 Floor Area @ Residential Units ('as if' being built in China)
• Market Descriptions Could Be Misleading

January 2002

• Shanghai Grade A Office Market: Will WTO Drum Up Enough Demand to Catch Up with the Supply? (By Guest Writer Mr. Thomas Nam, A Real Estate Investment Fund Manager based in Hong Kong)
• Data and Statistics: Issue of Accuracy
• Intensity in the Use of Land: More Outbidding Less

October 2001

• Cover Page

• Entering China: What Hong Kong Property Developers Err

• It Boils Down to Effectiveness and Efficiency

• Why We are NOT a Big Fan of Japan Yet

July  2001

• Give to Caesar what is Caesar? The Bankruptcy Law of Urban Renewal (By Dr. K. C. Wong, University of Hong Kong)
• Which is better: A Brand New Home or An Older Property?
• Risk Reduction: Invest in Uncorrelated Markets

April  2001

• Market Drowned by Large Supply in Coming Years (By Mr. Jim Yip, Asia Financials) 
• 1 Shenzhen Home Purchase  = 1 Less Purchase in Hong Kong?
• Rewritable Paper, Learn to Fly in Minutes and A Robot Which Eats

January 2001

• Partnering: A Brand Label (by Dr. Anita M.M. Liu, Dept. of Real Estate and Construction, The University of Hong Kong)
• Interest Rate Goes Down, Economy Goes Up?
• Home to (Private) Car Price Ratio
• Facility, Asset and Property Management: Inter-changeable?

October 2000

• Cyberport in Abacus (by K. C. Wong, PhD)
• Real Estate "Cooling Off" Period Makes You Even Less "Cool"
• Michael Dell says it: "It's Education!"
• Grammar and the Price of Real Estate: No typo Here

July 2000

• A Home Warranty Scheme for Hong Kong? (By CHAN Man Wai)
• 85,000? (Residential Units Per Year) Opposed for the Wrong Reason
• Las Vegas: A Marketing, Urban Planning and Hotel Management Showcase
• Some Factors Are More Equal Than Others

• Real Estate Development in the New Millennium (By Our Guest Writer: Mr. Bo-sin Tang from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University)
• Another Crisis, Another Opportunity, 2001-2002?
• Internet House Viewing = Yes, Internet House Buying = Not Yet
• A Nice Real Estate Trading Portal: from a User's Perspective

• Demystifying Real Estate Analysis
• What Would Happen to Hong Kong Real Estate IF ??
• Comparative Real Estate Global Indexes