In today’s ‘global village’, travel is ubiquitous, a fact of modern life, available to the masses and accessible to a far greater spectrum of society than ever before.
Myself and my fellow designers now boast a client base that has seen top-end real estate in world class cities. They have stayed at five star hotels and resorts in the sorts of destinations highlighted by luxury travel magazines, so the bar on expectations has been raised. What was ‘good enough’ yesterday isn’t today.
This is good news for the design industry, because it puts a premium on quality design – the upper end of the market appreciates stylish, luxurious and functional design and is willing to pay extra for it. But just what constitutes good design? ‘Good design’ is an ephemeral term and one that demands to be defined.
The modernist architect Louis Kahn once wrote: “I believe that in architecture, as in all art, the artist instinctively keeps the marks which reveal how a thing was done.’’ I’m a firm believer that design should not be reduced to style, likes or dislikes. Design is the business of matching meaningful form to the complexities of project parameters: site, orientation, brief, budget, market demands and more. Arriving at the most appropriate solution should be process driven.
Too often, design is seen by non- architects as a moment of divine inspiration, whereas in reality, good design is very Darwinian in its progress – that is to say that it evolves over a series of stages. Many ideas are explored, and many, needless to say, end up on….
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Property Report #105
In today’s ‘global village’, travel is ubiquitous, a fact of modern life, available to the masses and accessible to a far greater spectrum of society than ever before.
Myself and my fellow designers now boast a client base that has seen top-end real estate in world class cities. They have stayed at five star hotels and resorts in the sorts of destinations highlighted by luxury travel magazines, so the bar on expectations has been raised. What was ‘good enough’ yesterday isn’t today.
This is good news for the design industry, because it puts a premium on quality design – the upper end of the market appreciates stylish, luxurious and functional design and is willing to pay extra for it. But just what constitutes good design? ‘Good design’ is an ephemeral term and one that demands to be defined.
The modernist architect Louis Kahn once wrote: “I believe that in architecture, as in all art, the artist instinctively keeps the marks which reveal how a thing was done.’’ I’m a firm believer that design should not be reduced to style, likes or dislikes. Design is the business of matching meaningful form to the complexities of project parameters: site, orientation, brief, budget, market demands and more. Arriving at the most appropriate solution should be process driven.
Too often, design is seen by non- architects as a moment of divine inspiration, whereas in reality, good design is very Darwinian in its progress – that is to say that it evolves over a series of stages. Many ideas are explored, and many, needless to say, end up on….
Read more
track2realty.com
Track2Realty: Tata Housing has announced the outstanding over-subscription of its newly launched project – Gateway Capital, located at sector 112, Gurgaon. The company claims that for the first time in the history of Indian real estate industry, Tata Housing introduced a unique strategy of selling its units through an IPO-styled concept by floating a range of Basic Sales Price in the market, from Rs.9000 psf to Rs.11000 psf.
Acceptance of Expression of Interest (EoI), along with a booking amount of Rs. 10 Lakhs, for the first phase consisting of 200 units started on 11th February and was closed on 28th February. During this period, Gateway Capital was over-subscribed 20 times at the pre-launch stage, with an astonishing 2200 application forms.
The allotments will be made through a software generated, externally audited, random selection process, ensuring fair and transparent allotment process. Post the allotment process the customers will be given ….
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Auris Serenity Launched
Sustainable Green Architecture India
Despite its considerable public relations problems — an overwhelmed bureaucracy, widespread corruption, well-documented violence against women and massive inequality among other pressing issues — investors are forging ahead in India. The country’s property market is robust and the construction boom is underpinning markets in other parts of the world due to a trickle down in demand for resources: think Perth’s property growth on the back of the regional mining industry.
Jones Lang LaSalle India’s review of Indian residential property in 2012 stated that Mumbai’s residential section started to pick up after almost two years of relative sluggishness, driven largely by increasing demand and stable pricing. Capital values grew between 9 and 10 percent. “The increased demand for residential units came from robust commercial office market activity in south central Mumbai. Also, these sub- markets benefited from more attractive pricing when compared to premium addresses of South Mumbai,” explained Ramesh Nair, Managing Director for West, Jones Lang LaSalle India. Nair predicted 2013 would see more project launches, particularly in Mumbai where demand is strongest.
So India is a major mover and shaker on the investment front, but investors are well known to be increasingly choosy about where they live and/or work. Here in Hong Kong, commercial developers will admit to making sure their buildings stand up to global sustainability standards or run the risk of losing blue chip tenants to other properties. The same holds for residences, where more and more owner-occupiers and tenants alike want a better building. Given India’s perceived lack of organisation and considerably bigger fish to fry (general housing stresses make Hong Kong’s look like a minor inconvenience) how is it possible the country can be a green leader?
India is the world’s largest democracy and has one of the worst track records in …
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Property Report #102
Ask most internationally renowned architects where they think their finest moments in design would take shape, and the answer – at least until recently – is unlikely to have been India.
India is becoming fertile ground, seeded with significant architectural opportunities for those with the concepts and courage to take them on. What I find astonishing is the rate at which the reality in India is changing. Combined with the sheer scale of construction being rolled out, there is a quite surprising openness to creative design and innovation. I believe we will see some extremely innovative and exciting large-scale architectural projects arising in India over the next five to 10 years.
In my last column, I suggested that the highly speculative real estate markets of the subcontinent might not seem the natural habitat of ecological thinking, but…
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asialifemagazine.com
Contemporary Ho Chi Minh City isn’t especially known for its architecture. Most of the old French buildings have been torn down, and many areas of the city look identical, packed with tube houses and hastily constructed concrete towers. But the people behind President Place, located at 93 Nguyen Du in District 1, are working to bring something unique to the city.
Sapphire, the building’s developer, set out to create the greenest building in the city, and their effort has paid off in the form of a LEED Gold certification. LEED is a system designed by the US Green Building Council to determine how environmentally friendly buildings are. President Place is the first building in the city to receive this status.
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Property Report #100
The River’s combination of style, location, amenities and creativity saw it sweep the 2012 Thailand and South East Asia Property Awards in the best condo category. “It has taken years and hard work to see this ambitious project completed. It may have been one of the most challenging projects that I have been involved in, but also the most rewarding,” said Piaras Moriarty, vice president of client management at Raimon Land. “Thanks to our very dedicated team and to the excellent cooperation with our partners, we have seen the project through.”
The River is a city development with a bit of everything, but it all starts with the location. Situated on the banks of the Chao Phraya River amidst world-renowned neighbours such as The Oriental, Peninsula and Shangri-La hotels, The River boasts a prime Bangkok location. The 829-unit development stands at approximately 250 metres in height and offers uninterrupted views of the city. The property has already become a landmark on the capital’s skyline and one of the most prestigious real estate developments in the entire country.
“Every element of The River was carefully detailed to make it a truly special place,” Moriarty said. “It really is an impressive sight and one that brings something different to Bangkok.” The towers have been carefully sculpted, breaking down the mass into a series of cascading volumes of varying heights and articulation. The interplay of the restrained elegance of the curved….
Condominium Focus 11th Edition
In your view, what are some of the key trends influencing design and architecture in Pattaya?
The biggest trend at the moment is the demand for more compact condominium units in Pattaya, and we believe this is being driven in part by more middle class Thais wanting a second home by the sea. They don’t need a huge opulent place, just somewhere that has a great location, great views, convenient and stylishly done. Because during their days, they will be out at the beach, shopping malls, dining … so they just want somewhere comfortable to come home to.
However, they do want great facilities and they want quality fixtures, fittings and amenities. So even if the room isn’t huge, buyers still expect great pools and gardens, quality bathroom and kitchen fixtures and fittings, great facilities for kids, modern fitness centre, plenty of parking, somewhere nice to relax and have a coffee, drink or snack. Also, it’s important to have a view from both your living room and your bedroom, which a lot of one bedroom condos on the market here don’t offer.
How important is it for you to integrate sustainable or “green” innovations into your projects and how have you been able to manage this in Pattaya?
UNIXX is my only project in Pattaya so far as lead architect, and because this is a mid-tier product, there are budgetary constraints as to how far you can go with green initiatives. Double glazing wasn’t feasible, for example, but…
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Property Report #94
a+a
El diseiio de “The Heights” es la sfntesis de un lugar dramatico, de vistas excepcionales y de una arquitectura tropical contemporanea. El concepto toma inspiraci6n de! diseiio de las ciudades de colina italiane, donde el contexto natural y la arquitectura creada por el hombre, forman un todo organico. La forma rectangular de los edificios que bajan en cascada de la colina, intercalados por “green fingers” y senderos que interrumpen lo masivo de! proyecto, crean un oasis de calma tropical en esta apartada comunidad. Las unidades habitativas han sido diseiiadas para maximizar las vistas hacia las playas y el horizonte atras. Las areas comunes, ubicadas en la parte mas baja de! lugar, imponen vistas panoramicas y forman una culminaci6n adecuada de las unidades. El proyecto es el resultado de una vision arquitect6nica inteligentemente combinada con un lugar dramatico todo mirando hacia unas de las playas mas pintorescas de Phuket