Transport corridors predict property hotspots

Transport corridors predict property hotspotsNew transport corridors and changes in urban mass transit systems have a positive impact on house prices and can predict market hotspots, according to the Knight Frank Residential Review for June 2014.The Knight Frank report looks at 13 cities in the Asia-Pacific and identifies hotspots where infrastructure development has stimulated house prices. It also highlights potential hotspots that may benefit from new transport corridors and urban mass transit system infrastructure.The report states that nearly 70 per cent of additional metro lines in key cities in Asia are either under construction or planned for completion between now and 2020.Tier 1 Chinese cities have the most significant amount of new line planned over the coming years. Work on Line 7 in Beijing, for example, with a total length of 23.7 kilometres and 21 stops, is due for completion by the end of this year. House prices around Wufang Bridge and Huagong Bridge along the 5th Ring Road are predicted to rise by more than 20 per cent as a result.In Australia, the recently completed extension to Sydney’s light rail network has added nine stops between Lilyfield and Dulwich Hill, and the suburbs of Leichhardt, Haberfield, Summer Hill and Dulwich Hill have benefited from the increased access and reduced commuting times to the Sydney CBD. Apartment prices in these suburbs averaged a capital growth of 3.6 per cent in the three months leading up to the light rail’s maiden journey in March 2014, trending above the 2.3 per cent experienced across the rest of Sydney.Elsewhere, Mumbai has just opened its first metro line, while Jakarta is scheduled to open its first metro line in 2018.Cambodia’s Chroy Changvar Second Bridge, due for completion in 2014, has elicited a flurry of activity by developers eager to take advantage of the increased accessibility to prime river frontage. In Bangkok, developers are eyeing off the Bang Sue Hub, which is set to become a large terminal where many mass transit lines will intersect.The Knight Frank report proposes that the level of development in a market can be used to identify areas that need more access to transport infrastructure within a city’s boundaries, thus predicting new residential hotspots.To download the survey, go to: http://my.knightfrank.com/research-reports/asia-pacific-residential-review.aspx