China: Ghost Towns
Whether they are the result of speculation gone wild or shrewd planning, China’s ghost towns are spectacular.
VIVIENNE KHOO
Why Buildings Die Young in China
More bad news for the environment: many young, strong buildings are demolished in China amidst a frenzied appetite for “newer”, more prestigious ones.
ANNIE LEE
The “Most Hopeless” MTV in History
What, or how long, does it take you to buy a property in China? This MTV has the answers.
KEY
Mochtar Riady: The Banker Without a Bank
A close look at the career of Mochtar Riady, founder of Lippo Group.
LEE HAN SHIH
Why Building Skyscrapers on Expensive Land is Not Always Wise
“Go into land, they stopped making it,” Mark Twain was said to have told a friend who had inherited some money. In San Francisco in the 1860s, there was plenty of unused land. But Twain was not asking his friend to buy just any plot. His advice was to focus on property near the city centre.
LEE HAN SHIH
The Cantillon Effect Explains Property Prices
Everyone knows the property market runs in cycles. Not many, however, know that it was an obscure Irishman called Richard Cantillon (1680-1734) who laid the theoretical groundwork to explain why prices of property and other assets move in cyclical patterns.
LEE HAN SHIH
Risky high risers
This September, the Burj will be completed in the United Arab Emirates, making it the world's tallest building. Yet it seems everytime a record-breaking skyscraper goes up, the financial market in the country goes down. theasiamag.com measures the Curse of the Skyscraper Index.
LEE HAN SHIH
Fickle Fortune: Yoshiaki Tsutsumi
Heir to a railway and property fortune, Yoshiaki Tsutsumi's rollercoaster ride has sunk to new lows lately.
LEE HAN SHIH