Here's what property owners can do amidst the virus crisis

Recycling capital is an option for owners.

Recycling capital into new opportunities that have risen from the COVID-19 crisis could be an option for Singapore’s property owners, according to Colliers International. This includes office and hotel assets for mid to long-term growth with favourable supply-demand drivers.

According to its forecast, investment sales could be weak in H1 with a possible rapid recovery in H2. But it maintained its projections for full-year investment sales to be up 6% to $31.3b in 2020.

As the outbreak persists, office leasing activity could slow as relocation and expansion plans as well as viewings are postponed, Colliers said.

However, the increase in remote working should encourage occupiers to accelerate tech adoption whilst considering flex-and-core strategies and/or split office locations. “Occupiers may also now prioritise wellness certifications as a key criterion for building decisions,” said Tricia Song, head of research for Singapore at Colliers International.

For the retail sector, Colliers expects landlords to pass on property tax rebates to their tenants through temporary rent rebates for tenants, along with increased spending on mall hygiene, and free parking and increased marketing.

“We urge retailers to take this opportunity to work with landlords to expand their offline-to-online strategies,” Song said.

The industrial sector is also expected to take a hit as manufacturing activities could decline in the near-term due to global supply chain disruptions.

In the meantime, industrialists and landlords could use this downtime to upgrade assets to align with Industry 4.0. “Warehouse owners should improve inventory and last-mile management processes,” Song added.