A study into land supply and demand for property development in Colombo

This paper investigates the land market in Sri Lanka's main location in terms of economic activities - the Colombo Metropolitan Region (CMR). First, the paper addresses general issues relating to land market and factors affecting its demand and supply through a literature review. Subsequently, through a survey of land supply sources and secondary data, the study explores trends in land supply and land prices over a thirty year period, identifying specific reasons for the trends. In terms of land supply, the study's findings include the fact that a substantial amount of land in Colombo is not readily usable for development activities due to various reasons. The study also reveals a move from residential activities to commercial activities in the heart of Colombo and a considerable increase in land prices in the post Tsunami era. The suggestions include allowing this commercial sector to move towards the city centre to accommodate the high demand for commercial activities after the liberal economic policy introduced to the country in 1977.