Workshop on Institutional Analysis of Asia-Pacific Real Estate Markets



Time:           21 - 22 January 2002
Venue:  Department of Real Estate, National University of Singapore,
Singapore



The Department of Real Estate at National University of Singapore is
organizing a workshop on Institutional Analysis of Asia-Pacific Real Estate
Markets, in conjunction with the Urban Studies Research Programme, National
University of Singapore. The workshop will be held during 21 - 22 January
2002, on the campus of National University of Singapore.


Background

Rapid industrialization and consequent urbanization since the 1960s have
transformed Southeast and East Asia from a predominantly agrarian society to
a region increasingly dominated by urban cultures. Rural-to-urban
transformation maintains its momentum in the countries of the region.
Urbanization levels will undoubtedly continue to rise, and the city's
prominence will continue to grow. The formation and reformation of cities
become an important research focus. In view of real estate markets being
essential defining parameters for urban development and its patterns,
understanding of the workings of Asian urban real estate markets is crucial
to the comprehension of urban dynamics and urban futures of Asian cities.

Market systems are not absolutely free and efficient, and real estate
markets are infamously imperfect and inefficient. Information is often
insufficient and asymmetrical. Heterogeneity, indivisibility and illiquidity
of the goods traded in the market lead to oligopolies of the real estate
market. When a real estate market with inherent inefficiencies exists in a
wider environment, urban development is, therefore, greatly complicated by
the institutional framework which structures the market as a mechanism of
both provision and denial.

Institutions are defined as "the rules of the game" in a society.
Organizations, whether they are political, economic or social, behave and
perform within a framework defined by institutions, which are regarded as a
matrix of formal and informal rules. The formal rules include laws and
regulations, whereas the informal rules are composed of norms, conventions,
traditions and customs. Institutions are considered essential for efficiency
of production and thus economic growth as they define a set of incentives
and constraints for organizations and individuals.

Many essential social and economic activities of the Third World developing
cities take place outside the formal institutions and control of the state,
and Southeast and East Asia is a highly heterogeneous and diverse region in
its economic and social structures. The Asian financial crisis in 1997 is
reckoned as the most important event in the region since the end of the
Second World War (Robison, Beeson, Jayasuriya and Kim, 2000). The event
leads to the question whether it is a crisis of East Asian capitalism, often
referred as "crony capitalism" and rent-seeking, or a general crisis of
capitalism. What is ascertained is that the indigenousness has been
complicated by the globalization process along with the integration of the
region with the world. Indigenous institutions are increasingly entangled
with the external forces of globalization. It is therefore imperative to
understand how economic and political factors are integrated and organized
for the dynamics of Asian real estate markets.

Objectives

The workshop intends to understand the characteristics of institutions,
formal and informal, which govern the real estate markets of Asia-Pacific
countries; and to probe implications of these institutions for the dynamics
of urban development and redevelopment.

Themes

1. Actors/agents and their interactions in the process of urban development
and
      redevelopment
        What actors/agents are involved in land and property development?
        How do actors make deals under different circumstances?
        The roles of financial institutions and real estate investors

2. Assignment of property rights over land and property
        How are the property rights over land assigned?
        How does the state (planning) attenuate the property rights?
        How is land development effected by the regime of property rights?

3. Informal institutions in urban development
What informal institutions exist and their roles in urban development and
redevelopment?
        How do informal institutions structure the land and property
markets?

4. Land market as a mechanism of provision and denial
        Urban land market management and land delivery to low-income
households
        Illegal and semi-legal land delivery systems

Keynote Speakers

Professor Patsy Healey, Director, Centre for European Urban Environments,
School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape, University of Newcastle, UK

Professor Austin Jaffe, Director, Institute for Real Estate Studies, The
Pennsylvania State University, USA (tentative)

Schedule

Deadline for abstract submission:       30 October 2001
Notification of acceptance:             10 November 2001
Deadline for paper submission:  10 January 2002
Workshop dates:                 21-22 January 2002

Who should attend
Researchers and professionals in urban studies, urban planning, urban
management and real estate investment and development.

Registration Fee

For those who would like to attend the workshop, registration fee of S$80
(inclusive of 3% Goods and Services Tax) or S$50 for students is applicable.
The registration fee covers the workshop papers and meals (lunches and
tea-breaks only) for the 2-day event. Applicants will be responsible for
their own travel and accommodation arrangements. Interested applicants
should send in their cheques or bank drafts of $80 (or S$50) in Singapore
Dollars, made payable to the "National University of Singapore" together
with a completed registration form to the Department of Real Estate. Please
state your name and "workshop on Asia-Pacific markets" on the reverse side
of the cheques or bank drafts.

Registration forms and payment reach the secretariat before 31 December
2001.

Ms Christine GR
Department of Real Estate
School of Design and Environment
National University of Singapore
4 Architecture Drive
Singapore 117566
Tel     : (65) 874-1341
Fax    : (65) 774-8684
Email : [log in to unmask]

Enquiries and Further Information

Enquiries could be sent to Dr Jieming Zhu in e-mail: [log in to unmask] and
Dr Alpana Sivam [log in to unmask] or at the above address.


REGISTRATION FORM

INSTITUTIONAL ANALYSIS OF ASIA-PACIFIC REAL ESTATE MARKETS
21 - 22 January 2002

Title (Prof./Dr./Mr./Mrs./Ms.): ________________
Sex: _______________
Surname: ___________________
First name: _____________________
Institutional Affiliation: ______________________________
________________________________________________
Mailing Address: _________________________________
_______________________________________________
Fax: ___________________________________________
Telephone: ______________________________________
Email: __________________________________________

Please tick as appropriate:
(    ) I would like to attend the workshop only.
(    ) I would like to present a Paper.
Title of paper: ____________________________________

(    )  I enclose a registration fee of ___________________

Registration Fee of S$80 (inclusive of 3% Goods and Services Tax) or S$50
for students by cheque or bank draft should be made payable to National
University of Singapore in Singapore Dollars. On the reverse side of the
cheque or bank draft, please indicate your name, and write "workshop on
Asia-Pacific markets". Please send in this form together with your payment
to:

Ms Christine GR
Department of Real Estate
School of Design and Environment
National University of Singapore
4 Architecture Drive
Singapore 117566