Survey Finds S'pore The Best Place To Live For Asian Expats

Source : Channel NewsAsia, 04 March 2008

When it comes to work and play for Asian expats, Singapore is the number one choice.

This is according to a recent survey by ECA International, a global human resources organisation.

Singapore has maintained the top spot for ten years now but regionally, it is getting tough competition from Japan and even Hong Kong.

The survey found that Singapore's infrastructure, low crime rate and lack of social and political tensions were the main factors behind its draw.

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"For us, it's very peaceful and we don't feel any hassle or difficulties. So I think for us it's the best place," said an expatriate.

"Growth is planned. That's one of the reasons we feel we have more value for money here," said another.

But there are some factors that Singapore needs to address if it wishes to remain at the top spot.

Firstly, it has to counter the haze issue caused by forest fires in neighbouring countries.

It also has to make sure that property and rental prices are affordable for Asian expats.

"It's pretty good to work here and earn money but not for retirement," said an expat.

"It's not like Australia is any worse than Singapore, so I would say it's personal choice at the end of the day," said another.

Sydney came in second in the rankings, while Melbourne and Kobe tied in third place.

Hong Kong went up the rankings by eight spots to reach the 15th position this year.

Most Chinese cities, like Beijing, while they are not in the top 100, they have risen quite rapidly in the rankings over the last five years.

But this progress may soon plateau. Lee Quane, ECA International's general manager in Hong Kong, explained: "Pollution levels in mainland Chinese cities are consistently high....the highest among the cities which we include in our rankings."

Air quality is one factor considered in the rankings. - CNA/ir

Survey Ranks Singapore As Best Place To Live For Asian Expats

Source : Channel NewsAsia, 04 March 2008

Singapore is the best city in the world for Asian expatriates to live in due mainly to its quality of life and low crime rate, a survey released Tuesday by ECA International showed.

Singapore's famed Merlion statue

Sydney was rated second in the survey, with third spot shared by Melbourne and Kobe in Japan, the human resources firm said.

Rounding out the top 10 list for Asian expatriates was Copenhagen in fifth spot, followed by Canberra and Vancouver. Wellington and Yokohama shared eighth spot, with Dublin next.

ECA said Singapore, Southeast Asia's most advanced economy, was also ranked above the other cities because it offered Asian expatriates a similar feel to their home countries.

"Since quality of living is relative to where someone comes from and to where they are going, our scores take into account the home and destination country," said Lee Quane, ECA International's general manager in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong, Singapore's long-running regional rival as a business hub, was ranked 15th in the global cities list, with the territory's air pollution cited as a drawback.

Among Chinese cities, Shanghai was seen as the best place for top Asian professionals while Xian ranked as the worst location, according to the survey, which compared living standards in 254 locations worldwide.

Beijing, host of the 2008 Olympic Games in August, fared worse than other Chinese cities such as Nanjing and Tianjin because of its notorious air pollution, the survey showed.

ECA International's annual survey is based on categories such as climate, air quality, health services, housing, political tension and personal safety.

Within Asia, Hong Kong and Tokyo were ranked joint fourth behind Singapore, Kobe and Yokohama, the survey said.

Trailing in sixth spot was Taipei, followed by Macau and Bangkok, with Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur and Georgetown cities sharing ninth spot while Shanghai and Seoul were in 11th and 12th places, respectively.

Brunei's Bandar Seri Begawan was in 13th place in Asia and 89th place globally.

Manila was ranked 24th in Asia and 133 globally, while Jakarta was in 39th place regionally and 190th worldwide.

Chennai was the highest ranked Indian city within Asia, in 26th spot, with Mumbai in 30th and New Delhi 37th. - AFP/ir

Expats Vote Singapore, Copenhagen Best For Living

Source : The Business Times, March 4, 2008

Asian expatriates have ranked Singapore as the best place to live in the world for its safe and clean environment, while Europeans chose Copenhagen, a survey showed on Tuesday.

Asian expats chose Singapore over Hong Kong (15th place) and Shanghai (78th place) and placed Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra as well as two Japanese cities Kobe and Yokohama in their top ten list of favourite locations, said ECA International, a human resource consultancy for multinationals.

Lee Quane, general manager of ECA International, said that Singapore's solid infrastructure, low crime rate and clean air made it a favourable place to live.

'While Hong Kong has seen an improvement in some categories, such as personal security, air pollution remains the biggest cause for its lower rankings relative to Singapore,' he said in a statement.

Singapore is competing with Hong Kong as a location for banking and financial services.

For locations in China and India, Shanghai and Chennai (138th place out of a total of 300 locations) came in top for Asian expats, said the annual survey.

European expats ranked Copenhagen as their top choice to live in the world. They placed three Swiss cities - Geneva, Basel and Bern - and three German cities - Dusseldorf, Bonn and Munich - in their top ten.

East European cities such as Bratislava and Bucharest have made improvements in this year's survey because of advances in security, housing and health, the survey said.

European expats rated Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, as their 20th choice and Romania's capital of Bucharest in 14th place.

In the Middle East, Manama, the capital of Bahrain, ranked top in the region along with Dubai and Muscat. Baghdad, in last place globally, lost marks for poor security, the survey said.

Top 10 best locations in the world for Asian expats

1. Singapore - Singapore
2. Australia - Sydney
3. Japan - Kobe
4. Australia - Melbourne
5. Denmark - Copenhagen
6. Australia - Canberra
7. Canada - Vancouver
8. Japan - Yokohama
9. New Zealand - Wellington
10. Ireland - Dublin

For Sale: 18th Floor Of Peninsula Plaza At $17.5m

Source : The Straits Times, Mar 5, 2008

NOVELTY Department Store Pte Ltd, part of the Novelty Group, has put the entire 18th floor of Peninsula Plaza up for sale, with a price tag of about $17.5 million or about $2,050 per square foot (psf) of strata area.

Peninsula Plaza is a 999-year leasehold building near Raffles City. DTZ is marketing the property.

The 18th floor comprises six strata units adding up to 8,514 sq ft - all of which are leased. Tenancies for five units are up for renewal/expiry later this year, while the lease on the sixth unit runs out in mid-2009.

The $17.5 million price tag reflects a passing net yield - that is based on existing contracted rents - of about 2 per cent.

However, DTZ notes that current monthly asking rents for offices in the building range from $7 psf to $8 psf.

Assuming an average rental of $7.50 psf, the $2,050 psf asking price reflects a net yield of about 3.5 per cent.

'The potential buyer may also further capitalise on this investment opportunity and subsequently offer to resell the six strata units individually to take advantage of rising capital values of smaller strata office space,' said DTZ senior director (investment advisory services and auction) Shaun Poh.

The property provides an opportunity to invest in 'good quality and well maintained office space', he said. 'Strong demand and rising rental rates for office space in the Central Business District are expected to continue, providing income growth from the asset.'

DTZ is marketing the property through an expression of interest exercise that closes on April 1.

In December, a first-storey freehold office unit at United House, behind Le Meridien Singapore Hotel at Orchard Road, fetched $2,497 psf of strata area at an auction.

Far East Organization is said to have sold an entire office floor last year at The Central, a 99-year leasehold development above Clarke Quay MRT Station, for $3,050 psf.

Novelty Group is involved in the property and department store businesses. Its upcoming residential developments include i Residences, a freehold development with 70 apartments in the Irrawaddy Road area, and the 35-unit Evania at Upper Paya Lebar Road.

Singapore Tops Among Asian Expats: Survey

Source : The Straits Times, Mar 5, 2008

The Republic is the best place for them to live worldwide; Baghdad ranks last

The Republic ranks as the best place for Asian expatriates to live worldwide, according to the latest survey by human resources consultancy firm ECA International.

Singapore surpasses cosmopolitan cities such as Sydney, Melbourne and Copenhagen in Asian expatriates' view, the survey showed. These cities are ranked second, third and fifth respectively in the top 15 locations for Asian expatriate living.




















Meanwhile, Kobe (joint third with Melbourne), Yokohama (eighth), Tokyo and Hong Kong (both 15th) are the only other Asian destinations that made it to the top 15 list.

Conducted annually, the Location Ranking Survey compares living standards in 254 locations globally, taking into account climate, air quality, health services, housing and utilities, isolation, social network and leisure facilities, infrastructure, personal safety and political tensions.

'High quality infrastructure and health facilities, combined with low health risks, air pollution, crime rates and a cosmopolitan population, make Singapore a very appealing location for Asians to live in,' said Lee Quane, general manager of ECA International.

'Although we did see a small deterioration in some factors, such as air quality and accommodation in 2007, it still retains its status as being the location with the best quality of living for assignees in this region.'

He explained that Singapore 'was much more affected by haze in 2007' compared with the preceding year, causing it to lose points in the air quality category. Meanwhile, 'recent market developments in en bloc (property sales) had an impact on the supply of standard accommodation'.

Nevertheless, Singapore has consistently been ranked the best location for Asian expats to live for a decade, said Mr Quane, who believes that it will retain that spot despite 'Hong Kong moving up our rankings' this year after sliding for several years, due to improved personal security scores and the movements of locations around it.

'We now see the narrowing in quality of living between Singapore and Hong Kong, but it is unlikely that Hong Kong will match Singapore. The main reason is (Hong Kong's) air pollution, which is unlikely to go away any time soon,' he explained.

At the other extreme, Baghdad is the least favourable place for Asian expats to live in, followed by Kabul (Afghanistan), Karachi (Pakistan) and Port-au-Prince (Haiti), due to the locations' risk to personal security and their lack of suitable facilities, according to the survey.