800 acres for huge projects in Hambantota

The Government has allocated more than 800 acres of land for several foreign and local projects in the Hambantota District. Investment Promotion Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said the projects were aimed at attracting foreign investments in industries ranging from car assembling plants to glass and sugar factories.

Mr. Yapa said that 300 acres of land would be allocated for the setting up of three foreign universities and a local university. An Information Technology park would also be included.

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(Source: Sunday Times)

Lankans of foreign citizenship can now buy land

Persons of Sri Lankan origin currently holding foreign passports are to be granted concessions to invest in the real estate sector in the country.The concessions come in terms of the scheme of payment which was hitherto extended only to Sri Lankans living overseas, but continuing to hold Sri Lankan citizenship.

The Exchange Controller has offered concessions to Sri Lankans of foreign citizenship to allow them to purchase real estate in the country in Sri Lankan rupees, to be paid out from their Non-Resident Foreign Currency (NRFC) accounts.

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(Source: Sunday Times)

SUNCITY ADDS MODERN APARTMENT COMPLEX TO BATTARAMULLA SKYLINE

A pioneer in construction and real-estate, Suncity Property Developers (Pvt) Ltd unveiled plans on the latest addition to their extensive portfolio of apartment complexes, and introduced a new building at Battaramulla.

Located on Bodhiya Road, a mere 300 meters from the Battaramulla main road, the building will house 20 apartments over four floors, with modern facilities and conveniences including a 24-hour security service, a gymnasium, swimming pool etc. Each apartment will also be equipped with the trademark amenities including air conditioning, hot water and porcelain tiling. The apartment complex which is scheduled for completion by July 2013 is currently open for buyers who are interested in affordability, convenience and a great lifestyle.

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(Source: Adaderana.lk)

Krrish has paid only 10 % of lease for prime Fort property, admits Govt.

The Government on Friday conceded that M/s Krrish Group India has only made an initial deposit of Rs. 499.5 million or 10 per cent of the total lease premium for the Transworks House property in Colombo Fort.

Nimal Siripala de Silva, Leader of the House in response to a question raised by Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe said as a follow up action after making the initial deposit, the Urban Development Authority (UDA) has taken steps to vest the Heritage building site to seek the final approval to sign the lease agreement.

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(Source: Sunday Times)

BUDGET 2013: SELLING LAND TO FOREIGNERS TO BE COMPLETELY PROHIBITED

Selling land to foreigners will be completely prohibited from 2013 but will be granted on a lease system, the President proposed a short while ago in his budget speech.

Furthermore, it was proposed that land leased to foreigners will be taxed by 100%.

2012 3rd Quarter House Price Index - Prices fall across the board

LankaPropertyWeb.com's 2012 3rd quarter housing price index shows that all house, apartment, commercial and land prices in the country have suffered and are down compared to the last quarter. A weak global and local economy could be the factor behind the latest fall in prices. 

There is some glimmer of hope though as Apartment sale prices in Colombo have slightly increased and house + land prices in the northern province shows further increases. The land prices of Southern, Central and Western (apart from Colombo) have also gone up, however Colombo land prices have dropped. 

We have also noticed that most advertiser reduce their asking price after few days of posting their ads.

The full stats of the latest house price index can be found at http://www.lankapropertyweb.com/house_prices.php

Tourists seek cheaper accommodation

Tourists, this winter season are looking for low-priced accommodation, a development that has affected hotels and resorts with the season not attracting travellers to today’s “expensive” hotels. More visitors are arriving and the target of one million arrivals would be achieved but they find star-class hotels too expensive since the war ended with prices increasing since 2009.

Reasons for the sudden shift in tourist preferences were also blamed on the recession in Europe and increased regional competition. Jayantissa Kehelpannala, Sector Head Sri Lankan Resorts of the John Keells Hotels Group and newly appointed Hotels Association President, speaking to the Business Times admitted there was a drop in bookings but remained cautiously optimistic that nothing could be predicted today since last-minute reservations were observed lately in the winter season. As at now “there is a drop but I emphasise the booking patterns have changed drastically,” he said.

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(Source: Sunday Times)