Phnom Penh property expert David Murphy, of Independent Property Services, looks at residential prospects in two suburbs of our the popular Riverside area.

The suburbs of Daun Penh and Tonle Bassac are located on the banks of the Tonle Bassac River, and are loosely bounded bythe Japanese Friendship Bridge (Road 70) to the North, Monivong Boulevard to the west and extending down to the Monivong Bridge to the south. It’s the area that best defines Phnom Penh’s nightlife, with its plethora of Riverside restaurants and the nightlife scene at the heart of Daun Penh on Street 51.

Like most of Phnom Penh, these areas are undergoing some rapid development. New construction is seen on most streets and green shade-cloth draped buildings dot the skyline. Much of this development is for commercial purposes, but you can also notice some new residential apartment construction, as well as a number of renovations of older-style shopfront housing to more comfortably meet modern tastes.

The suburb of Daun Penh has a contrast in residential style housing, with a clear delineation of the form of housing available. To the east, from the riverside to Norodom Boulevard, the housing is dominated by shophouse style accommodation. From Norodom Boulevard west to Monivong Boulevard, there is much more of a mix of housing styles, with many more villas in this area to cater for larger families or those wanting more open space.

By contrast, the Tonle Bassac area contains a number of small alleys and roads that branch off the larger boulevards, creating a suburb that has quiet leafy streets with mixed villa and shopfront housing in among the hustle and bustle of inner city Phnom Penh.

In recent times, there has been some considerable development of the western shore of the Bassac River, giving rise to the Sofitel Hotel, Diamond Island developments, some gated communities developments including Elite Town and the ever expanding Bassac Garden City and the Naga World complex.

The riverside area has seen some development such as the KyNy Apartment complex and Seasons Residence and a variety of refurbished shopfront apartments, some of which offer fantastic river views.

Residential housing options for these areas consist mainly of shopfront apartments in the high-density areas near the riverside and villas in the area away from riverbank, or in the gated communities of southern part of Tonle Bassac.

Shopfront apartments in this area are commonly priced between $350 and $700 per calendar month, and are mostly one to two bedroom properties with a business of some sort on the ground floor.

Villas in these areas are in the higher price range for Phnom Penh, and can range from $2,500 to $4,000 pcm depending on their size and condition.

There are a number of apartment options in the riverside area including dKSanctuary, Green Mansion 1, 2 and 3, the fantastic BassacTower, the high-end Samdech Pan, the stylish Syphon and the riverside KyNy complex.

Two-bedroom apartments in these complexes are priced at about $900 to $1500, but can go as high as $3000 for the high-end options.

The riverside area remains the heart of Phnom Penh. It is densely populated and is pulsing with constant activity.

Daytime hours see the area busy with workers and shop owners plying their trade, and with the coming of dusk it heralds a change in the atmosphere, with restaurants and bars opening and the streets filled with locals, expatriates and tourists revelling in the diversity of entertainment options for them to enjoy.

Saturday night traffic jams can sometimes mean it’s even faster to go by foot in peak hour than in a tuk-tuk.

The Riverside suburbs are great for those people where space is an afterthought and who instead want a convenient location coupled with the desire to experience the heartbeat of the city that only these areas can provide.

David Murphy is Managing Director of Independent Property Services. He can be contacted on 077 959 861; [email protected]; or check out their website at www.independentpropertyservices.com.