Full-house turnout at BT Property Outlook Seminar

The event is part of a series of activities to engage readers; subscribers also had first dibs and received discounted access

Dylan Tan

Published Tue, Feb 21, 2023 · 08:08 PM

BT membership

ABOUT 130 subscribers and readers of The Business Times (BT) attended the Property Outlook 2023 seminar on Saturday (Feb 18).

The full-house half-day event took place at Raffles City Convention Centre’s Atrium Ballroom.

BT subscribers were entitled to a special discounted price of S$15 per head and could sign up a week before the event opened to the public, who paid S$40 each.

This seminar is part of a series of activities planned by BT to engage its readers. PHOTO: AMY LUI

Registration began at 9am with some attendees arriving earlier than that to ensure they had the best seats in the house.

While waiting for the doors to open, they helped themselves to morning refreshments in the foyer.

Attendees enjoyed a light breakfast before the panel discussion. PHOTO: AMY LUI

The event kicked off at 9.45am and the theme of the panel discussion was Opportunities Amidst Volatility.

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BT senior correspondent Leslie Yee, who also pens his weekly column The Level Ground and hosts the PropertyBT podcast, was the moderator.

The panel comprised PropNex’s chief executive Ismail Gafoor; Edmund Tie & Company’s (SEA) chief executive Desmond Sim; and Qian Wenlan, a professor of finance and real estate, and Ng Teng Fong chair professor in real estate at NUS Business School.

From left: PropNex Realty chief executive Ismail Gafoor; Qian Wenlan, professor of finance and real estate and Ng Teng Fong chair professor in real estate at NUS Business School; Edmund Tie chief executive Desmond Sim; and BT senior correspondent Leslie Yee. PHOTO: AMY LUI

The lively one-hour discussion touched on topics such as whether residential property prices would continue to defy gravity and stay up, why new launches could become more expensive, and more.

A 30-minute question-and-answer session capped things off before lunch was served.

As some tucked into their meal, attendees who did not get a chance to ask the panellists a question took the opportunity to approach them directly during the networking session to pose their query.

Attendees also enjoyed a buffet lunch after the panel discussion and audience Q&A session. PHOTO: AMY LUI

This seminar is part of a series of activities planned by BT to engage its readers and provide greater value to loyal subscribers.

“I like reading BT for its property coverage but it was even better to hear for myself the different expert views and be given the chance to interact with the panel,” said BT subscriber Mike Lim.

“The 90 minutes flew by too quickly because the topic is an interesting one; maybe you can consider conducting a full-day session next time,” shared Matthew Lim, who added that he will be signing up for a BT subscription soon so that he’ll receive perks such as discounted tickets to events like this seminar.