At least four new condo projects in the luxury and super-luxury segments are set to launch in inner-city Bangkok locations between next month and mid-2025, driven by a limited supply this year and strong demand from foreign buyers.
Artitaya Kasemlawan, head of residential sales and projects at consultant CBRE Thailand, said both established developers and newcomers are launching these projects, expecting the residential market to rebound in 2025.
"The residential market slowed this year, causing some developers to be cautious about launching new projects," she said. "However, not all locations and segments face challenges."
Demand for luxury condos remains solid, with sales performance depending on factors such as location, product offerings and pricing, which should not be significantly above the market rate, said Ms Artitaya.
In the super-luxury segment, where units are priced at 350,000 baht per square metre and higher, and in branded residences, sales were robust in the first half of 2024, with 86% and 90% sold, respectively, partially attributed to limited supply.
Throughout the first nine months of this year, only one new condo project in the luxury and ultra-luxury segments was launched in Bangkok each quarter: Muniq Phrom Phong in the first quarter, The Embassy Wireless in the second quarter, and Adler Chan Road in the third quarter.
Next month, the final condo project in this segment for the year is slated for launch: Marquis Phayathai.
"Foreign demand for Bangkok condos in this segment also showed signs of recovery, led by buyers from Taiwan between 2022 and the first half of 2024," she said. "From 2018 to 2021, buyers from China dominated the market."
According to CBRE's condo sales data for the first half of 2024, the proportion of foreign buyers increased to 33%, up from 25% in 2022-23 and 12% in 2020-21. The rate was 23% before the pandemic in 2018-19.
"Factors that will influence a developer's decision to launch a project are the global and Thai economies, which will impact the high-end and luxury segments, as well as the medium and lower-end segments, more than the super-luxury segment," said Ms Artitaya.
She said buyers in the luxury segment will be hesitant to purchase or invest in condos, especially if they are second homes or investment properties, unless they have confidence in the economic outlook.
However, buyers in the super-luxury segment remain unfazed by economic forecasts, said Ms Artitaya.