Yatila Wijemanne, Founder and Chairman of Juniper Group, a boutique real estate developer, property intelligence service and end-to-end property investment solutions provider, shares insights into emerging property boom pockets in Sri Lanka that provide exciting returns hedged against inflation.
Formerly known as CBH Lands, Juniper Group specialises in bespoke investment services in real estate and property across the country, especially within the Kurunegala District of the Wayamba Province of Sri Lanka. Following extensive market research, its land selection process is rigorous, with the planning, preparation and development completed by companies within the Juniper Group. On completion of a project, it undertakes the process of sales and marketing of the property, so unlike other real estate companies, Juniper Group controls the entire process, from the selection to purchasing, investment, planning, development, marketing, and sales, thereby enabling it to perfect its approach to offering highly personalised services and solutions to its customers, on top of attractive and sustainable ROIs.
Our sustainability focus has three components – environment, social impact, and governance. I come from a legal background, so i know the importance of clearing our deed copies in a country where deeds are not digitized- Yatila Wijemanne Founder and Chairman of Juniper Group
Can you take us through the company’s evolution of growth? What was the thinking behind the rebranding from CBH lands to Juniper Group?
We started CBH Lands in 2014 with a primary focus on real estate subdivisions in Kurunegala that provide the highest ROIs for real estate investments even now. As we scaled the business to become the largest real estate firm in the area, we realised we had the resources to venture beyond property and expand beyond certain districts and land subdivisions. So we branded CBH Lands as Juniper Group and consolidated our real estate ventures under a single umbrella for greater strategic focus and growth.
The past couple of years have presented unprecedented challenges for everyone. What was Juniper’s experience?
Uncertainty gripped the real estate industry during the initial stages of the Covid 19 pandemic. However, as the country emerged from the lockdowns and with the monetary authority lowering interest rates to stimulate the economy, real estate experienced a phenomenal resurgence which translated into exciting prospects for us as well, helping us record unprecedented sales growth during this period.
When the currency crisis blew up in March 2022 and rocketed interest rates, we braced for a hit expecting investors to park their funds in fixed deposits to benefit from a more than three-fold rise in interest rates rather than invest in property. As a company, we opted to take a contrarian view early on. We decided to up our investments in property because it is the best hedge against runaway inflation that rendered holding funds insensible.
This decision proved fortuitous because it turned out that investors realized the value of investing in property as a hedge against currency devaluation and started to lock in their savings in real estate, giving us a tremendous opportunity to grow our sales to record highs. Juniper Holdings has delivered excellent ROIs to investors, especially with property prices appreciating over 40% in Kurunegala within a year. However, the escalation of operational costs requires us to work harder than before to ensure the company remains viable despite the growth in sales.
Can you give us an overview of the real estate market and the factors influencing its future?
What is happening in the land market is that, in areas like Colombo, prices have mostly saturated at the moment. They are growing around 10-12% a year, however, there are growth pockets that I categorize as real estate boom pockets. These are not artificial boom pockets, but in which cities are carrying a legacy to it. And when infrastructure improves, real estate prices in these cities escalate in tandem – we see that happening in Kurunegala.
There are emerging boom pockets within the district of Kurunegala, which is a vast area. It is the third most populous district. People are already migrating from Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Matale and Kegalle. Hospitals and academic institutions are coming up. Also, people are escaping flood and drought-prone areas and settling in Kurunegala. So, there are opportunities beyond the expressway hubs.
Kurunegala is emerging as a hot spot for real estate because it will have five entryexit hubs to the major highways, whereas places like Galle and Kalutara have only one. We see a huge migration of industries and services into Kurunegala to access these highways. In January 2022, property prices shot up when the KurunegalaMirigama highway route opened for traffic, making it possible to drive 40km in only 20 minutes. Similarly, when the Central Expressway gets completed, that will send property prices further up.
One of the other reasons we are successful is that we focus on sustainable real estate investing, where we utilize the local resources from the area. While we develop our projects, the neighbours too develop, they get job opportunities, and all the subcontracting goes to the people within those communities.
Kurunegala is an underestimated city. It was never marked as a tourist destination but rather a pit stop for all the other destinations, but in the future, we believe that it will be a logistics hub because it would connect the Northern Expressway and two other connecting highways.
What makes Juniper successful?
Our resilience, sustainability, and ability to empower our people and communities – are the three key factors behind our success.
We started our first project in 2015. Within three years, the country experienced three economic crises, each more severe and unprecedented than the one before – from the 2019 Easter bombings to Covid-19 and the unfolding currency crisis.
Our sustainability focus has three components – environment, social impact, and governance. I come from a legal background, so I know the importance of clearing our deed copies in a country where deeds are not digitized. We have successfully completed several large projects and never had any legal issues because we work with a good panel of lawyers and banking partners.
We also never develop land parcels beyond 10 acres. We work on smaller plots of land but across a large number of projects. So the time spent on these projects is more, but it is more productive. Our business model is long-term, and our operational methods mitigate the risks that come with it.
Tell us about your real estate propositions and solutions. How are you unlocking opportunities for investors in the current environment?
It is mainly our research. We have a dedicated research unit to study the market to unlock opportunities for our clients in research-based decision-making. So I can confidently assert that the areas Juniper Group operates in are the areas that provide the highest property ROIs.
We also get requests to do projects outside these areas, but those are for aesthetic value right now we don’t foresee any cities that will have such a massive infrastructure development for the next eight years encompassing all those key criteria: growth in population migration, education, logistics and health services.
We considered villas and coastal projects in our investment bracket, but this is not the right time for those investments. Right now, we are focused on securing long-term value for investors in property. We aim to be the solution provider for that and assure them with proper data that their properties will appreciate and by how much, within a certain period.