[ionitiesk]

No homes to go to
By Anan Paengnoy
DAILY XPRESS

Greedy real estate developers and a muddled government are leaving poor families out in the cold, say experts

The economic downturn has resulted in a 50-per-cent drop in house sales in Thailand, compared to the peak volume before the 1997 crisis, a recent Bangkok housing seminar was told.

Somchao Tantherdtha, chairman of the Thai Real Estate Association, said the drop was mainly due to banks' tighter loan policies, and homebuyers being unable to pay instalments in these tough times.

Clear and consistent government policies on housing were vital for economic growth and employment, he told the seminar of more than 300 real estate developers, government officials and academics from around the world.

Policy in chaos

Professor Pree Buranasiri, a former National Housing Association governor, said government support and soft loans were needed so that low-income earners could buy homes more easily.

He attacked the government's lack of coordination, saying there were 28 departments under 14 ministries and six independent organisations involved in working out the national housing policy.

Pree said that the average size of a Thai home was 32 square metres but that dropped to eight sqm in the case of a low-income family of four.

More homes needed

Somchai Jitsuchon of the Thailand Development Research Institute said that the widening income gap meant more homes for low-income earners were needed as more people migrated to Bangkok to seek work.

He also expressed worries about the mental health of children living in low-cost NHA apartments.

Pree said key NHA housing projects in Samut Prakan's Bang Phli district and Nawa Nakhon in Pathum Thani were failing residents.

Incumbent NHA governor Suchart Siriyophan brought some good news, telling the seminar that 120,000 homes would be built next year if a Bt30-billion budget was approved.

Ignoring the poor

On the real estate front, Dutch analyst Cor Dijkgraaf drew parallels between the US subprime crisis and the collapse of the Thai economy in 1997.

Over-investment in real estate played big factors in both crises, he said, adding that developers had sunk their money into niche-market housing while ignoring low-income earners.