PROPERTY WATCH Baht Heads North

The Thai baht has bounced back from last years depreciation and flood worries to hit an exchange rate of THB30.93 to the US dollar.
Favorable appreciation of the Thai currency is bad news for upscale property developers who look at attract overseas investors.
Last year one of the island's largest developers Laguna Phuket took strategic decision to peg real estate unit prices to the US dollar. This has proved to be a successful tactic in stimulating a substantial uplift in residential sales during the first four months of the year.
Interesting feedback from Laguna is that these sales have occurred on primary residences and not hotel branded properties. Of interest is the Russian market, which prefers private homes versus lifestyle investment type offerings.
Expect more economic gyrations in the region as oil prices continue to skyrocket, though regional economies have for the most part continued to experience uplift.