The Real Estate Information Center of the Government Housing Bank has reported a summary of the supply and demand survey for residential projects currently for sale in the second half of 2019 in the western region, including Prachuap Khiri Khan and Phetchaburi provinces. The survey focused on projects with at least 6 units available for sale. It found that the overall market is slowing down, with few new projects entering the market. The decrease in newly sold units has led to a decline in absorption rates in 2020.

Dr. Wichai Wiratthakhan, the inspector of the Government Housing Bank and acting director of the Real Estate Information Center stated that by the end of 2019, there were a total of 6,795 residential units for sale in the western region, accounting for 1.9% of the total residential units in 26 key provinces, which number 355,145 units. This indicates the least development of residential projects among the 26 provinces, with 3,692 units in Prachuap Khiri Khan and 3,103 units in Phetchaburi.

According to the survey, the overall residential projects in Prachuap Khiri Khan in the second half of 2019 had a total supply of 95 projects, totaling 3,692 units. There were 1,069 new units launched in the second half of the year, all of which were housing projects. In the second half of 2019, 942 new units were sold, leaving 2,750 units unsold, valued at 13,059 million baht.

The top three locations with the highest new sales are:

1. Tabaek Subdistrict with an absorption rate of 8.8%

2. Hua Hin with an absorption rate of 4.8%

3. Khao Takiab with an absorption rate of 2.0%

Among these, there were 505 completed units available for sale (ready for transfer) or inventory at the end of 2019, valued at 2,866 million baht, consisting of 173 housing project units worth 820 million baht and 332 condominium units worth 2,046 million baht.

The top three locations with the highest completed units available for sale are:

1. Hua Hin with 207 units

2. Khao Hin Lek Fai with 96 units

3. Pranburi with 83 units

In 2020, the market is expected to adjust significantly due to the large number of unsold units in both single-family homes and condominiums, leading to a downward trend in absorption rates across all types of residential properties. Based on the overall picture in the second half of 2019, the absorption rate was at 4.3%, down from 5.1% in the first half of 2019.

"In 2020, it is anticipated that the absorption rate will decrease to between 0.9% and 1.7%, with approximately 981 new units expected to be launched for sale. Meanwhile, the accumulated unsold units are around 3,244 units. If no new unsold units are added to the market and new supply does not increase in the problematic segment of condominiums priced between 2-3 million baht, the overall market is likely to improve in 2021," he added.

Regarding the housing market survey in Phetchaburi province, it was found that by the end of 2019, there were 55 projects offering a total of 3,103 units for sale, a decrease of 22.9% from the first half of the year, with only 499 new units launched in the second half, all of which were housing projects.

When considering the new sales units, it was found that in the second half of 2019, there were 460 new units sold, an increase of 26.7% from the first half of the year, including 147 condominium units and 313 housing project units. There were 2,643 unsold units, a decrease of 27.8% from the first half of the year, with a total value of 10,575 million baht, consisting of 1,809 condominium units and 834 housing project units.

The top three locations with the most unsold housing units are:

1. North Cha-am with 1,793 units

2. South Cha-am with 604 units

3. In the city of Phetchaburi with 239 units

The top three locations with the highest new sales are:

1. South Cha-am with 275 units, absorption rate of 5.2%

2. North Cha-am with 160 units, absorption rate of 1.4%

3. In the city of Phetchaburi with 25 units, absorption rate of 1.6%

There are 1,873 completed units available for sale (ready for transfer) or inventory in the surveyed area of Phetchaburi, valued at 6,992 million baht.

The top three locations with the most completed unsold units are:

1. North Cha-am with 1,706 units

2. South Cha-am with 85 units

3. In the city of Phetchaburi with 80 units

In 2020, the market is expected to adjust significantly, especially in the condominium segment, due to the large number of completed unsold units. This will likely lead to a downward trend in absorption rates across all types of residential properties, even though the overall absorption rate in the second half of 2019 was 2.5%, an increase from 1.5% in the first half of 2019.

"However, due to the significant number of unsold units still remaining, it is expected that the absorption rate in 2020 will decrease to between 0.8% and 2.4%, with approximately 364 new units expected to be launched for sale, while the accumulated unsold units are around 2,610 units. Among these, the condominium segment remains concerning due to the high number of unsold units, totaling 1,660 units," he concluded.

Source: Real Estate Information Center, Government Housing Bank