Oval Kuala Lumpur

It is an expatriate rental market first. Much of the stock is owned by investors who rent it out, and the tenants have long been mainly foreign: executives in oil and gas, banking and finance, retail and hospitality, plus diplomats and other professionals. That makes the district sensitive to corporate hiring. Rents fell and tenants left early when expatriate postings were cut in the oil slump, and they have been reported firmer again recently.

Day to day, life here is urban. KLCC Park, 20 hectares of landscaped grounds opened in 1998, has a 1.3 km jogging track and is the district's garden. Suria KLCC, the Mandarin Oriental and the nightspots along Jalan P. Ramlee and Jalan Pinang are the local high street. The KLCC LRT station, Ampang Park and Persiaran KLCC stations put the Kelana Jaya and Putrajaya lines within reach, and the monorail runs from Bukit Nanas.

Driving is the weak point: City Hall is rebuilding 3.2 km of Jalan Ampang to cut weaving and delays at junctions, so expect roadworks. Supply is the other thing to watch. New towers keep launching while the city's high-rise market stays oversupplied, so older condominiums compete with new serviced residences for the same tenants.