Tulip Group raising the bar with Centara Grand Residence
It is the dawn of a new era for the Pattaya property market with the development of Centara Grand Residence at Na Jomtien, a high-rise oceanfront development and a unique mixed use residential and hotel project that will be managed by Centara Hotels & Resorts.
For the first time in Pattaya investors will have the opportunity to own luxurious condominiums enriched with five-star hotel facilities and services. This is expected to attract a new group of high-end buyers who are seeking an exclusive high-rise beach front residence within easy reach of Bangkok.
Tulip Group CEO, Kobi Elbaz: “Our goal is to give the buyer the feel that they are living in a resort.”
The owner of the project is the Tulip Group, the name behind some of Pattaya’s leading projects such as the majestic Waterfront on the edge of the resort city, Centara Grand Pattaya, the Centara Avenue Residence & Suites, The Cliff, Amari Residences and several other projects, all in prime locations.
Tulip Group CEO, Kobi Elbaz, says Pattaya is primed for this new trend in luxury.
“Our goal is to give the buyer the feel that they are living in a resort”, he says.
Centara Grand Jomtien will cover 20 rai which is equivalent to 32,000 square meters of prime land with 150 meters beach frontage.
“Only 27.5% of the land is being used for the construction,” Kobi adds. “When you combine the beach frontage with the pool, gardens, water features and facilities, there will be 20,000 square meters of landscaping and public areas for the buyers to enjoy. This is green luxury on a grand scale.”
An artist’s render shows the luxury Centara Grand Residence project in Na Jomtien.
Due for completion within three years, the project will feature 283 residential units ranging from a seven bedroom 500 square metre penthouse to duplexes with private pools, along with studios, one, two and three bedroom units. These will be spread through two towers, one of 46 floors the other of 39, each with a 20th floor sky garden, swimming pool and chill out area.
The third tower will be the 200 room Centara Grand hotel. All residential units and hotel rooms face both the ocean and the sunset.
There’s no doubt the Jomtien sunset is magical. It might only bounce on the horizon for a few precious moments but it regularly casts a golden carpet across the water to the shoreline before it disappears and dusk descends.
Long enough to sip an ice cold drink and enjoy a cool breeze.
Taking shape on the Na Jomtien site of the project is proof of the developer’s commitment to high end luxury with no expense spared. The 200 million Baht showroom is both the largest and the most expensive ever built in Thailand.
“It was necessary to spend this amount to get investors to embrace the lifestyle and show the stature of the company,” says Jason Payne, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Tulip Group. “Everything has been thought out from the arrival to entering the suites. It’s a lifestyle rather than just a building”.
The head of CB Richard Ellis agrees.
“A showroom on this scale is very important,” says Aliwassa Pathnadabutr, Managing Director of CBRE (Thailand). “It projects confidence to the buyer and is a statement of the developer’s commitment to the project to make an investment on this scale.”
CBRE has sole agency for the new project and believes it’s the most exciting high-end development ever seen in Pattaya.
“There is growing interest for high end property in Pattaya,” says Aliwassa. “During the economic crisis developers in Pattaya weren’t confident that they could sell large units so they played safe by building smaller units. This is why 70% of existing property supply is midrange. This property is breaking new ground and will attract the high end buyer.”
According to CBRE there is a limited supply of beach-front land in North and even Central and South Pattaya which is why developers are looking at Jomtien to find quality beach front land.
“What attracted us to being sole agent is that this will be the first true luxury property in Pattaya, not just in terms of price per square meter but also in terms of product, unit size, the quality of the construction and the services provided.”
“There are numerous features that I like about the project,” Aliwassa said. “The most significant has to be wide beach frontage. The high-end market demands something exclusive, privacy and a quiet beach. I am also impressed by the outstanding architecture and design, spacious units with a variety of options to choose from. Branding with Centara Grand Hotels & Resorts adds value because of the hotel-style service and management which is not available in a ‘non-branded’ property.”
“It’s exciting for us at CBRE Thailand to work with people like Tulip,” she adds, “as they are keen to develop a high-end property and are not prepared to compromise on quality which is something I don’t see with other developers.”
Centara Hotels & Resorts is a well known name on the Pattaya scene already with its immensely popular Centara Mirage Resort.
Having another Grand resort in the destination is one step in a significant expansion plan for the region.
“If you look at Pattaya it’s been an incredibly successful resort destination for many years and it continues to keep re-inventing itself and being very relevant for today’s market,” says Chris Bailey, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Centara. “Obviously with so much development going on for our organization we are still very enthusiastic and excited about the future for Pattaya.”
The project will offer 283 luxury residential units on 20,000 square meters of landscaping and public areas, including beach frontage with the pool, gardens, water features and facilities.
In terms of what’s planned for the new Centara Grand, Chris Bailey believes the destination has truly come of age.
“You’ve got now a nice cross-section of products from your value to upscale and I think before, Jomtien didn’t really have the luxury side of the market and wasn’t really catering to that,” he says. “The new Centara Grand will certainly be able to deliver that to the more upscale customer looking for a beachfront experience. Tulip’s understanding of what they need to build in that market and their faith in us as an operator is a combination of great ingredients that seem to work very well together.”
The Pattaya landscape today is seeing a growth in the Thai market.
CBRE believes there is a growing demand from Thais who are looking for a second holiday home in a location close to Bangkok.
“During the recent flooding Pattaya was the popular choice,” Aliwassa says. “It was full of Bangkokian evacuees. Another attraction is that Pattaya can offer high rise condominiums while building ordinances in Hua Hin prohibit any more being built, plus the recently improved roads make access from Bangkok and the International Airport both quicker and more convenient.”
Aliwassa says property in Pattaya is still good value for money. 50% of the agency’s clients are Thai. Second is the Russian market followed by Hong Kong based Expats and Australians. Since the economic crisis she says the market profile has changed and buyers are less speculative than before. In the past, 50% would buy and sell for a quick gain while today’s buyers are more long-term investors and end users.
“I am expecting the price for this project will be THB 120,000 per square metre which I admit is higher than average for Pattaya but with the current price of land and construction costs its fair,” she says. “Of course the first 20-30% of buyers will get a better deal from the developer just to jump start the sales.”
“For us it’s important to know what the key selling points are and what differentiates this project from the others. There are still skeptics who say it’s hard to sell large units, but our feedback is that this is what our customers want. It’s a chance to open Pattaya to a new higher spending market.”
Every market rises to its own level and it seems as if the Pattaya scene is heading to new heights as the skyline rapidly expands. With its vision focused on luxury developments, the Tulip Group says it has even more to offer Pattaya on the horizon.
