CapitaLand buys Ho Chi Minh City site for US$38.9m to develop US$177m residences

CAPITALAND has bought a 14,474 square metre site in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, for US$38.9 million (S$53.5 million), to develop into residences that it estimates will be worth US$177 million.

The 1.45 hectare site in District 4 will be developed into an 870-unit residentail development with a retail component, with views of the Saigon river and city Skyline, CapitaLand said. The project will comprise three 24-storey towers, split into two single blocks and one triple block, with retail units on the lower floors. The average size of each apartment will be about 79 sq m.

The property developer said that the acquisition is part of its strategy to diversify its real estate portfolio and to strengthen its foothold in Vietnam. The developer said it had a record year of home sales in the country, with almost all of its newest residential development, d'Edge Thao dien in Ho Chi Minh City, sold in under two months after its July launch.

The consideration price matches the adjusted net tangible asset value of the site based on management accounts of the site's owner, CapitaLand said.

The company said that this will be its 11th residential development in Vietnam. The country is the third largest market for CapitaLand in South-east Asia, after Singapore and Malaysia.

As at end-September 2017, it had S$2 billion of gross assets under management in Vietnam. The latest acquisition will expand CapitaLand's portfolio to 11 residential developments, 21 serviced residences with around 4,700 units and one international Grade A office development across six cities in Vietnam.