Cambodia sets out to beef up real estate valuation services
Cambodia sets out to beef up real estate valuation services
The Cambodian Valuers and Estate Agents Association (CVEA), a member of the ASEAN Valuers Association (AVA), is open to exploring new ideas and partnerships in its push to streamline real estate appraisal procedures and techniques in Cambodia, according to its president Chrek Soknim.
Accurate and precise real estate appraisals will provide a lot of benefits that instil investor confidence and propel national economic growth, Soknim told a virtual press conference on November 3 ahead of this year’s AVA Congress.
Cambodia will be the rotating chair of AVA and host the association’s 23rd congress on November 24-25, held virtually under the theme “Valuation in the Midst of Pandemic [Covid-19]”.
The congress aims to strengthen member-to-member cooperation, as well as discussing the real estate market and ASEAN technical valuation standards during the ongoing global Covid-19 epidemic.
Deputy Prime Minister Aun Pornmoniroth is slated to preside over the event, which is expected to have between 5,000 and 6,000 participants, about 500 of which have registered.
Soknim said that real estate appraisals not only facilitate transactions and ensure transparency, but also contribute to the banking sector by encouraging efficient and quality credit.
Property sales and rentals trend up as economies expand, he noted, saying that Cambodia needs an independent and professional appraisal institution with a degree of international recognition.
He underlined that many valuation experts would attend the event, and that Cambodia hopes to reap many benefits for developing the skill.
“Through the upcoming AVA Congress, I hope that Cambodia will be able to learn from the experience and techniques of real estate valuation from experts in each country to ensure a high level of effectiveness, and to obtain support from government institutions, the private sector, investors and the banking sector,” Soknim said.
AVA was established in 1981 with five founding members, one each from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. AVA currently has eight members, which represent all ASEAN countries except for Myanmar and Laos.
Soknim emphasised that a diverse range of multinational investors are currently looking for investment opportunities in the Cambodian real estate market.
“The influx of investors and tourists will revitalise the real estate sector,” he said predicting that the market would only start to see solid signs of recovery after the Lunar New Year – which falls on February 1 next year.
AVA secretary-general Susan Widjojo said that although the real estate market situation in each country is different, the association aspires to bring the appraisal process in the eight represented countries to a common standard.
Providing services that follow a common standard is vital to maximising the satisfaction of all stakeholders, she said.
“We will discuss to find opportunities to raise common assessment standards.”
