Land and Houses has announced its business plan for 2025, setting a sales target (Bookings) of 23 billion baht and a transfer of ownership target of 20 billion baht. The revenue from rental properties is projected at 9.24 billion baht.

Mr. Watcharin Kasinrerk, Managing Director of the Operations Division of Land and Houses Public Company Limited stated that for 2025, the real estate market may receive positive factors from an expected economic growth of about 2.9% and a trend of decreasing interest rates. Economic growth is anticipated to come from government spending and a growing tourism sector, although the export sector remains sluggish, limiting overall economic growth. Additionally, demand in the real estate market is pressured by an increase in non-performing loans (NPLs) and high household debt levels, leading financial institutions to maintain strict lending policies for housing loans. Therefore, operators must prioritize liquidity and cautious investment in project development this year.

In 2024, single-family homes, duplexes, and townhouses will continue to be the main products driving sales for the company, accounting for approximately 80% of total sales. When categorized by area, Bangkok and its vicinity remain the primary regions for generating sales, contributing about 88% of total sales, with over half of the total sales coming from homes priced above 10 million baht.

The company has launched a new brand of single-family homes called “vie,” under the concept of The Limitless Life, featuring a Modern Minimal style that emphasizes open space and functionality. In 2024, three projects were launched in locations including Ratchaphruek New Intersection, Ram Inthra-Outer Ring Expressway, and Pinklao-Phutthamonthon Sai 5.

In 2024, the company plans to open a total of 12 new projects worth 30.85 billion baht, all of which are horizontal products. Compared to the original plan announced at the beginning of the year, there is an increase of one project, namely the “vie Ram Inthra-Outer Ring” project valued at 650 million baht. Overall, the value of new horizontal projects has increased by 8.4% from the previous year, and during the year, the company invested approximately 4.3 billion baht in land acquisition for residential project development.

Preparing to Launch 4 New Mid- to High-End Projects

As the company still has sufficient inventory for sale, it plans to launch only 4 new projects in 2025, with a total value of 11.18 billion baht, a 64% decrease compared to the previous year. All new projects this year will be single-family homes located in Bangkok and its vicinity (3 projects) and Phuket (1 project). These will include single-family home brands priced between 8 – 15 million baht, namely Siwalee, and high-end brands priced between 30 - 80 million baht, namely Nantawan and VIVE, which will increase mid- to high-end products or replace projects that sold out last year.

Therefore, combined with ongoing projects, the total number of projects in 2025 will be 75, valued at approximately 93 billion baht, consisting of 69 horizontal projects valued at about 79.5 billion baht and 6 condominium projects valued at over 13.5 billion baht. The average selling price per unit in 2025 is expected to be around 10.5 million baht, up from an average of 9.8 million baht last year.

No Plans for New Condominiums in 2025, Focus on Selling Existing Stock Worth Over 13.5 Billion Baht

Mr. Chokchai Walitwarangkoon, Managing Director of the Operations Division of the Condominium Projects, stated that in 2025, the condominium market is expected to recover gradually, supported by a decrease in unsold units in 2024 and a reduction in interest rates. However, the high loan rejection rate, slow economic recovery, and LTV measures remain pressure factors that may prevent condominium demand from being as strong as before the COVID-19 pandemic.

For the performance in 2024, the company achieved condominium sales of over 3.4 billion baht, accounting for approximately 20% of total sales, primarily from the “One Time at Chao Phraya” project, which generated about 2.5 billion baht. This riverside project launched in late 2023 received a positive response. Last year, the “One Time at Chao Phraya” project opened a new phase, selling Tower C in September 2024, with total sales currently around 7.7 billion baht, representing 52% of the project value. The project is approximately 20% complete and is expected to start transferring ownership by late 2026.

By the end of 2024, the company had 6 condominium projects ready for sale, valued at over 13.5 billion baht, including 5 completed projects ready for transfer valued at approximately 6.2 billion baht and the “One Time” project under construction valued at over 7.3 billion baht. In 2025, the company will focus on selling condominium products from existing projects.

Strong Financial Position, 2025 to Continue Rental Business with 8.5 Billion Baht Investment in Hotels and Land Acquisition, Plans to Issue Additional Bonds Worth 12 Billion Baht

Mr. Achawin Asavapokin, Deputy Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer revealed the company's financial position and operations in the rental real estate sector. The company maintains a strong financial position due to effective liquidity management and existing investment assets. Last year, the company issued bonds totaling 12 billion baht with a maturity of 2-3 years at an average interest rate of 3.14% per annum to support operational liquidity. By the end of 2024, the company had interest-bearing liabilities of approximately 67 billion baht, with a net debt-to-equity ratio of about 1.3 times and an average financial cost of 3.11%.

For the rental and service real estate business, the company currently has 18 projects developed and managed, including 7 operational Grande Centre Point hotels (6 sold to a trust) and 3 under construction, as well as 3 Terminal 21 shopping centers (2 sold to a trust), and 5 apartments and hotels in the United States.

Last year, this business performed better than planned, with projected revenue for this year at 9.24 billion baht, expected to grow about 16% from last year's 7.6 billion baht, particularly from hotel operations in Thailand, especially revenue from Grande Centre Point Surawong, which operated for a full year in 2024, and the acquisition of the Residence Inn Manhattan Beach hotel in March 2024, which doubled revenue from hotel operations in the United States compared to the previous year.

Overall, the company invested 5.8 billion baht in the rental and service real estate business, including the acquisition of the Residence Inn Manhattan Beach for 2.4 billion baht, developing Grande Centre Point Lumphini for 2.1 billion baht, and developing other hotel and apartment businesses for 1.3 billion baht.

In November 2024, the company sold the Terminal 21 Pattaya shopping center to the LH Shopping Center Real Estate Investment Trust for 5.68 billion baht through a capital increase trust unit offering. However, due to higher-than-expected demand for trust units from both institutional and retail investors, the company's investment proportion in LHSC changed from 9.0% to 7.8%.

The operational plan for 2025 continues to focus on the rental business while reducing the debt-to-equity ratio. The company has prepared a total investment budget of approximately 8.5 billion baht, including 4 billion baht for land acquisition for residential project development and 4.5 billion baht for rental real estate investment.

This year, a new project will be launched in April, Grande Centre Point Lumphini, which is a mixed-use building comprising approximately 12,700 square meters of office space and 512 hotel rooms, along with the largest banquet space in the Grande Centre Point hotel chain, followed by Grande Centre Point Ratchadamri2 next year and Grande Centre Point Pattaya3 the following year.

Additionally, the company plans to adjust its investment portfolio in the United States by reducing the proportion of apartments based on the post-COVID-19 situation, where most still maintain a Work From Home model, and will focus on hotel operations instead.

The company plans to issue bonds worth 12 billion baht to replace maturing bonds and expects that by the end of 2025, the net debt-to-equity ratio will be around 1.0 times, down from the end of 2024.