Singaporean syndicate applauds Manchester vision – and Padel

Singaporean investor Germaine Chow, the founder of a Singapore-based property investment syndicate, has told TheBusinessDesk.com that Manchester remains attractive to her clients because the city has a clear masterplan and that developers know what they can build.

Chow and her husband Shawn Lee, founders of Crestbrick PTE Ltd, a Singapore-headquartered real estate investment agency, has already committed to purchasing 656 properties across the three cities.

She led a trip to the UK in December with a delegation of 130 Southeast Asian investors who visited Manchester, London and Birmingham to view available investment opportunities.

She said they shared her enthusiasm for Manchester as a prime location for her group’s real estate ventures.

Chow, whose syndicate has already invested over £400 million in properties across the UK, highlighted several factors that make Manchester an attractive market including “vibrant entrepreneurial and tech scenes” as major draws.

“You can feel the energy and passion in the city. Businesses and headquarters are setting up offices here, attracted by the talent pool from the strong education sector.”

The business environment and lower costs than London also impressed Chow’s syndicate. “In Manchester, everything is within walking distance, and the overhead costs are lower than in London, which can be a real headache to navigate,” she explained.

She said the syndicate has played an active role in shaping Manchester’s property landscape. Chow cited their involvement in developing Deansgate Square, which was an empty car park just a few years ago. “We worked with the developers to bring investment into the city and build communities that thrive,” she said.

But she said that for Birmingham to really have a huge spike, it needed to be more cohesive. “I think that the master plan needs to be more cohesive with big developers. In Birmingham, currently, there are not a lot of big developers so the buildings are a lot more fragmented in comparison to some.”

She added: “In Manchester Renneker has done a great job, in fact, FEC as well in the whole master plan. So then that gives the city a little bit more dynamics, a bit more predictability, and they work with a famous architect to build up the skyline of Manchester. And if Birmingham had that, I think it would be very successful as well.”

She said she has listened carefully to the needs of local tenants who rent apartments from her tenants.

“Every tenant here almost has a dog, so we worked with the developers to ensure there are parks and amenities that cater to that,” she noted.

She also applauded the opening of Club De Padel at Deansgate Square as part of the expanding range of amenities.

This attention to detail and focus on creating vibrant communities, she says, is a hallmark of Chow’s investment approach. “We don’t just want to flip properties. We’re here to make a difference and help the city grow in a sustainable way,” she said.

As well as hosting a party at the Imperial War Museum, Chow also met with Manchester Central MP Lucy Powell.

The group of mainly Singaporean investors are attracted to property investment in the UK because of a low tax environment. Stamp duty on second properties in Singapore is 23-24% due to additional buyers’ stamp duty.