The upcoming opening of the MGM Cotai integrated resort is expected to boost leasing demand in Macau as more foreign gambling executives will flock to the city, the South China Morning Post reported today citing real estate specialist JLL.

The consultancy also expects a rise in rentals as a result from the upcoming launch of the hotel and casino complex. JLL experts point out that evidence of future increase in rent prices can already be spotted as rates at certain residential properties have begun rising.

For instance, the One Oasis development, located in the southern part of the Cotai Strip, has seen rentals go up 5% as some of the future MGM Cotai employees have already arrived in Macau and have taken up residence. The integrated resort will employ a number of managers from the United States, Hong Kong, and Southeast Asia.

Analysts believe that the arrival of more expatriate staff members will create leasing demand for up to 1,000 new units.

At present, rents at the One Oasis development start from HK$9,500 per month for a 640-square-foot flat and go up to HK$12,500 for a 1,200-square-foot unit, the South China Morning Post reports. According to analysts, the prices could go up further 5% next year, when the integrated resort opens doors.

However, JLL experts warn that given the fact around 1,500 new units will be added to Macau’s leasing market in 2018, rentals growth in the administrative region could face some pressure as the year progresses.

MGM Cotai will be MGM Resorts International’s first property on Macau’s Cotai Strip, known to be the Asian equivalent of the legendary Las Vegas Strip. The property was expected to open doors back in 2016, but several opening deadlines were missed due to construction delays. The latest such deadline was set for the fourth quarter of 2017, but the powerful typhoon Hato, which hit Macau in August 2017, delayed construction work on the property.

It was recently announced that the property would be opened on January 29, 2018. The resort will feature nearly 1,400 hotel rooms, over 30,000 square feet of meeting space, a dynamic theater, the first of its kind in Macau, with room for 2,000 viewers, and multiple other entertainment, food and beverage, and retail options. MGM Cotai will also feature a casino with 500 gaming tables and 2,500 slot machines.

The property took five years to be constructed. MGM China, subsidiary of Las Vegas-based casino giant MGM Resorts International, invested the amount of $3.4 billion in the development of the integrated resort.

The company currently operates another hotel and casino complex in Macau – the 600-room casino resort MGM Macau. The property opened doors a decade ago at an estimated cost of $1.25 billion. Among other facilities, it features a 100,000-square-foot casino.

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