The Cambodia Constructors Association (CCA) held their annual expo last week at Diamond Island Convention and Exhibition Center, showcasing 200 products from more than 150 companies.

Chiv Sivpheng, the personal assistant for CCA president Pung Kheav Se, said the products displayed at the fair included construction equipment, construction machinery, construction material and mechanical equipment, electrical fires, solar security cameras and much more.

According to data from the Ministry of Land Management Urban Planning and Construction, investment in construction rose from $2.5 billion in 2014 to approximately $3.33 billion in 2015.

The momentum has continued into 2016. In the first seven months of the year, investment in the real estate and construction sectors was reported to total a whopping $7.1 billion, representing a 719 per cent increase in the same period last year.

This might be welcome news to some real estate companies throughout the country, yet Furi Real Estate CEO Ly Senleap mentioned some real estate companies were concerned about Cambodia’s stability.

“The local and international investors are worried about the market’s fluctuation, especially during the election period,” he said.

According to Senleap, he still has a positive mindset when it comes to the future of Cambodia’s real estate market.

“I believe Cambodia has potential in the real estate industry,” he said.

“We professionally take chances to make locals familiar with international standard properties and infrastructure. We have bought good properties while other people are worried about the next election,” he added.

While the rapid growth of Cambodia’s construction industry in recent years has been a boon for government coffers, people living in the thick of the construction developments are not entirely pleased.

Et Sopheak, manager at Base Villa bar and restaurant on the corner of Street 222 and Street 55, complained of the inconvenience of having construction next door.

“The construction nearby is covered by the green net but pieces of stones and bricks are still falling in the area inside my restaurant,” he said.

Along Tonle Bassac, high-rise buildings under construction are leading to safety concerns among residents.

Sovann, 73, has been living on Street 321 at Tonle Bassac for the past 26 years. Pointing to the 16-storey construction site opposite her home, she told Post Property that the building had been in the works for the past three years.

“My home is opposite to [the construction] and it is really noisy and disturbing my grandson who is still a baby. Sometimes they work until late at night and that disturbs our sleep,” she said.

“It gets on our nerves, and one of my neighbour’s children was recently injured by the falling stone,” she said, adding that the older ladies who live next door to the construction were leaving because of continuously falling bricks.