\nGlobetrotter, highly successful property investor and Real Estate Personality 2016, the CapitaLand Vietnam CEO talks about the country\u2019s exciting future, top investment tips and his humble origins in Malaysia\u2019s rubber plantation country
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The chic surrounds of The Deck in Ho Chi Minh City where Chen Lian Pang arranges to meet for a sunset coffee is far removed from the CapitaLand Vietnam CEO\u2019s roots in rural northern Malaysia. Taking a seat at a shaded table with sweeping views of the Saigon River and the city\u2019s crane- studded skyline beyond it, 59-year-old Chen recalls his upbringing in the rubber plantation town of Sitiawan.
\n\u201cMy mother worked two shifts every day as a rubber tapper, so I hardly saw her,\u201d he recalls. \u201cMy five siblings and I essentially grew up on our own. My older sister cooked for me, took me to school and stuff like that \u2013 we took care of each other.\u201d
\nYet learning to fend solo is a trait that has led Chen, who was recently named the Vietnam Property Awards 2016 Real Estate Personality of the Year, on an adventurous and often unpredictable path.
\nThe long hours his mother, who Chen holds up as a great inspiration, invested clearly paid off, when at the age of 18, he traded the plantations for the bright lights of London.
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\n\u201cAt that point, I\u2019d never been to Kuala Lumpur, in fact I\u2019d never even left my hometown! And there I was in London, waiting for my brother to pick me up,\u201d Chen says. \u201cIt was a huge culture shock, a brand new environment, but I immediately liked it.\u201d
\nHe credits his upbringing for his passion for taking on fresh challenges.
\nBUY PROPERTY IN A GOOD LOCATION. IT MIGHT BE EXPENSIVE BUT STRETCH YOUR DOLLAR BECAUSE DURING THE GOOD TIMES THE VALUE OF PROPERTY IN A PRIME LOCATION WILL ALWAYS GO UP, AND DURING BAD TIMES IT DOESN\u2019T DEPRECIATE TOO MUCH
\n\u201cI grew up with minimal supervision and I think that\u2019s why I\u00a0find it easy to adapt to new environments. It is probably why my bosses have always sent me to new frontiers.\u201d
\nChen had stints in Taiwan, Vietnam, China and Thailand over the last three decades before assuming his current role in with CapitaLand. But he wasn\u2019t always such a journeyman.
\nAfter studying in the UK, Chen was headhunted by Singapore\u2019s Housing Development Board (HDB) and headed for the island state \u2013 another country he\u2019d never before stepped foot in. Over the following decade, Singapore became the stage for many defining acts in Chen\u2019s life and career.
\nStarting out initially as a design engineer, he later moved into the Profit and Loss department and learned about the business end of the industry. He also gathered skills that would prove invaluable in the emerging markets where he\u2019d later carve out a reputation.
\n\u201cI learned about the procedures and process of controlling a big company,\u201d he says. \u201cEverybody was very strict on corruption, so I was educated on how bad it can be for a person, for a company and for a country.\u201d
\nIt was in Singapore that Chen met his future wife. Their first joint venture \u2013 even prior to marriage \u2013 was an investment in a condominium project. Chen continues to invest in property and believes that Singapore remains the best bet for buyers looking for strong returns.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver the last 30 years, Singapore has been one of the only places in the region where property prices have constantly appreciated,\u201d he says. \u201cBuy property in a good location. It might be expensive but stretch your dollar because during the good times the value of property in a prime location will always go up, and during bad times it doesn\u2019t depreciate too much.\u201d
\nAfter 11 successful years with the HDB, Chen joined a family-run construction firm as general manager and relocated to Taiwan shortly after.
\n\u201cIt was a really rough place back then\u2026 nobody wanted to work there apart from me,\u201d he recalls.
\nHis first time at the helm of a company, Chen describes it as a challenging period, albeit one that taught him the value of managing different cultures and volatile personalities. He transformed the two loss-making units he was overseeing to break even by the time CapitaLand came calling in mid-90s.
\nChen went on to spend five years in Thailand with the developer where he was instrumental in the development of 10 landmark properties, including the Athenee Residences. He also managed three start-ups in three different Chinese cities and was involved in the inception of Singapore\u2019s iconic Clarke Quay.<\/p>\n
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Globetrotter, highly successful property investor and Real Estate Personality 2016, the CapitaLand Vietnam CEO talks...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26282","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-property-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p75ss1-6PU","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":15638,"url":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/property-news\/capitaland-vietnam-ceo-chosen-as-vietnams-2016-real-estate-personality\/","url_meta":{"origin":26282,"position":0},"title":"CapitaLand Vietnam CEO chosen as Vietnam\u2019s 2016 Real Estate Personality","date":"June 6, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\r The 30-year property veteran will be feted at the Vietnam Property Awards gala in Ho Chi Minh City When asked how to lead a successful real estate development company, Chen Lian Pang, CEO of CapitaLand Vietnam, has a thoughtful answer. \u201cI believe that the best-run companies connect effectively with\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Property News"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":97018,"url":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/property-news\/capitaland-buys-landed-housing-site-in-vietnam-for-s81-4mil\/","url_meta":{"origin":26282,"position":1},"title":"CapitaLand buys landed housing site in Vietnam for S$81.4mil","date":"August 31, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"\r CapitaLand is buying a prime site in Ho Chi Minh City for VND1,380 billion (approx. S$81.4 million), with the 60,000 sq m land parcel expected to contain over 100 landed housing when the development is completed by 2021. This marks the Singapore-listed property developer\u2019s third acquisition in August 2018\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Property News"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16172,"url":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/property-news\/vietnam-property-awards-2016-the-complete-winners-list\/","url_meta":{"origin":26282,"position":2},"title":"Vietnam Property Awards 2016: the complete winners list","date":"June 11, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\r Nam Long Investment Corporation wins Best Developer (Vietnam), while\u00a0The D\u00e0lat at 1200 Country Club and Private Estate sweeps with 5 awards An action-packed evening full of celebration and surprises, the second annual Vietnam Property Awards Gala Dinner saw Nam Long Investment Corporation crowned Best Developer 2016. The housing developer\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Property News"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16102,"url":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/property-news\/vnrea-chairman-confirmed-to-attend-vietnam-property-awards-2016-gala\/","url_meta":{"origin":26282,"position":3},"title":"VNREA chairman confirmed to attend Vietnam Property Awards 2016 gala","date":"June 10, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\r Mr Nguyen Tran Nam will give the keynote speech at the exclusive ceremony Vietnam\u2019s former Deputy Minister of Construction, Mr Nguyen Tran Nam, and chairman of Vietnam Real Estate Association (VNREA), the country\u2019s largest industry organisation, is confirmed as the Guest of Honour and keynote speaker at the Vietnam\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Property News"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33717,"url":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/property-news\/nominations-sought-for-third-annual-vietnam-property-awards-2017\/","url_meta":{"origin":26282,"position":4},"title":"Nominations sought for third annual Vietnam Property Awards 2017","date":"November 10, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\r The hunt is on for the finest properties in one of Southeast Asia\u2019s most dynamic real estate markets (L-R) Nam Nguyen, managing partner, BDO Vietnam; Thien Duong, chairman of the judges; Terry Blackburn, founder and managing director, Asia Property Awards; Duong Thanh, associate sales manager, Kohler Vietnam (title sponsor);\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Property News"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1869,"url":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/property-news\/capitaland-bolsters-its-foothold-in-the-vietnamese-market\/","url_meta":{"origin":26282,"position":5},"title":"CapitaLand bolsters its foothold in the Vietnamese market","date":"January 18, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"\r The company now owns 90 percent of a Ho Chi Minh City-based project The Vista | Courtesy of CapitaLand (Vietnam) Singapore\u2019s CapitaLand, through CapitaLand (Vietnam) Holdings, has beefed up its interest in its CapitaLand Vista joint venture by acquiring an additional 10 percent stake from joint venture partner Thien\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Property News"","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/vistamain.jpg?fit=740%2C511&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26282"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26282"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26282\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26282"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26282"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26282"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nChen made his first significant mark in Vietnam real estate in 1996 as project manager for Hanoi\u2019s Westlake Hotel before returning in 2013 to take up the mantle of country CEO for CapitaLand.
\nReflecting on how the property industry has changed in the two decades since he first visited, he says: \u201cAt that point in time the business environment in Vietnam was pretty tough, there were a lot of teething problems, but nowadays the rules and regulations are more transparent, it\u2019s easier to operate and far easier to find knowledgeable staff.\u201d
\nPlans are already underway for CapitaLand Vietnam \u2013 best known for developing high-end condo projects in Ho Chi Minh City, such as the upcoming Vista Verde and The Krista \u2013 to introduce office and retail properties to its portfolio. With the country touted as one of the region\u2019s most exciting markets, this would appear to be a no-brainer for such a successful property developer. Citing the crash that stunted the market in Vietnam for the best part of the last 10 years, Chen, however, signs off with words of caution.
\n\u201cPeople, capital and frugal investment are what make good real estate developments,\u201d he says. \u201cWe saw in the last few cycles that some developers came out and went bust because they didn\u2019t invest carefully. Don\u2019t overstretch and watch your cash flow.
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\nSource : property-report.com
\nRead more…Chen Lian Pang: \u2018stretch your dollar and buy in a good location\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"