Developer Adds Touch of Nature in Luxury Condo Project

One of the country’s fastest-growing developers, Orkidé Villa, is making a move for a share of the premium condominium  market with a $350 million condo and mall project that will cover a 36-hectare area of Sen Sok district adjacent Street 2004, it announced this week.

Called Orkidé the Royal, the project will have six 19-floor condominium towers with a total of 1,400 units as well as a shopping mall, the company said, describing the project as the jewel in its crown.

Construction of Orkidé the Royal will begin in the middle of next year and be completed within three years, executives at the company said.

Khieu Sarsileap, a member of  the company’s board who oversees its new mall and condominium division, said the project aims to attract locally buyers because the company has established a reputation for quality among Cambodian property buyers with its previous projects.

“It is the vision of Orkidé the Royal condominium to create a modern, world-class lifestyle with luxurious nature integrated into it,” Ms. Sarsileap said, adding that the project would bring a safe and beautiful community to a prime location of Phnom Penh.

She made the comments during a VIP preview of the project on Wednesday.

“We want people to live in our condos,” she told those who gathered at Sofitel for the event. Most foreign buyers of condominiums buy the units as investments, Ms. Sarsileap added.

The new condo project is in line with trends in neighboring countries, she said, referring to the regional trend of young urban families switching from houses to condominiums in the centers of cities. “We are developing this project because people want a new lifestyle,” she added.

“We do not care about the competition. What we focus on is living in natural way,” Ms. Sarsileap said, adding that prices would be $1,500 per square meter.

Demand for condo units will rise because the population is increasing, she said.

Ms. Sarsileap said that 50 units were sold on Tuesday and that the company expected to sell another 230 on Thursday. “We are not in a rush to sell because we have enough investment capital to develop the project,” she added. “Most of our customers bought units in our projects to live in, but some also bought as investment.

Ken Yeo, general manager of the company’s condominium and mall division, said the new project will also benefit from its proximity to two of the best international schools in the country. Its premium location will ensure long-term value, Mr. Yeo added.

Plenty of recreational facilities as well as park space are also features of the new project, he said. “We believe in investing in lots of green space and recreational facilities for this development,” he said, saying 3.2 hectares of the project had been set aside for landscaped gardens and more than 100 recreation facilities are included in it.

“This is unheard of in Cambodia,” Mr. Yeo said.

Construction of villas and shop houses at the site is already underway, he said. The project will include an artificial island, beach and swimming pools and will “add luster to Phnom Penh’s most glittering development,” Mr. Yeo said.

Chrek Soknim, CEO of Century 21 Mekong, said recently that the condo sector has great potential because of the return on investment, which the company has said is the highest in Asia.

“It is easy to find customers to rent condos to because most condo projects are located in the heart of Phnom Penh. As the city becomes more crowded people are opting to buy condos because it is easier to get to work and more comfortable,” Mr. Soknim said.

“It the prices are from $1,400 to $3,000 per square meter they are still lower than those in neighboring countries, so the opportunities from investment are higher,” he added.

Sear Chailin, CEO of CL Realty Co. Ltd. said the project would be successful due to the location and price.

“The price, $1500 per square meter, is affordable and the location is in a prime area near international schools,” Mr. Chailin said, adding that the company’s focus on local customers is strategically sound because it differentiates it from other projects.

Tweet