Time Square 9 and 11 Break Ground in BKK1 and BKK3

Megakim World Corp has broken ground on two condominium towers in central Phnom Penh, one in BKK1 and one in BKK3, both carried on My First Corner's off-plan desk. Time Square 9, a low-density tower in BKK1, and Time Square 11, a 39-floor, 390-unit tower in BKK3, move from pre-sale into construction in the same window. The two sit about five minutes apart by car and share a developer. They do not share an investment case.

That distinction is the whole point. Same builder, same brand, two adjacent districts, and two different answers to the question every central Phnom Penh buyer eventually faces.

Time Square 9: the BKK1 scarcity case

BKK1 is Phnom Penh's benchmark address, and its defining feature is not price. It is the walk. Groceries, clinics, embassies, schools, offices, and dining sit within a walkable radius of most residential buildings, which is why diplomats, executives, and regional managers on housing budgets select the district and tend to stay. Leases run long, turnover is low, and rents are collected in US dollars, which insulates the owner from the currency volatility common across the region.

What BKK1 does not produce is new supply at volume. Land is scarce and the street grid is fixed. Time Square 9 is positioned at the upper end of that market: a reduced unit count, full-floor layouts running from roughly 60 to 130 square metres, hard title, and a design language drawn from 1920s Art Deco. Entry sits near $88,000 for a one-bedroom and runs past $190,000 at the larger end. The case here is capital preservation and defensive positioning inside a district that holds value because it cannot easily expand. New BKK1 supply is the rare event. This is one of them.

Time Square 11: the BKK3 entry case

BKK3 sits between BKK1 and the Russian Market area, roughly two to five minutes from each. It carries much of BKK1's central access at a materially lower entry point, which is the reason rental demand spills into it from professionals working a few streets over. Gross yields across BKK3 were tracking in the 7 to 8 percent range through early 2026.

Time Square 11, also known as Time Castle XI, is the accessible end of this groundbreaking. The tower runs 39 floors and roughly 390 units on Street 113, with compact layouts from 38 to 75 square metres, 3.2-metre ceilings, and a rooftop amenity floor. Entry opens in the mid-to-high $40,000s. Ownership is strata title, which allows foreign buyers to hold units above the ground floor, and the developer is offering a 35-month payment plan at zero interest during construction. Completion is targeted for 2029. The case here is rental demand and yield, not the slow capital retention that defines BKK1.

What the Time Square groundbreaking signals

A groundbreaking is a confirmation, not a starting gun. The thesis behind both towers, BKK1 scarcity and BKK3 spillover, was in place well before the shovel. What the milestone actually changes is execution risk: a project under construction carries a different profile than a project that exists only on a price sheet, and the construction timeline is now anchored rather than projected.

The more useful read is structural. These are not two versions of the same opportunity at two price points. Time Square 9 is built for an owner who wants an asset that behaves like a long-dated holding with a tenant attached. Time Square 11 is built for an owner who wants cash flow and is comfortable treating the unit as a working position. Both are dollar-denominated. Both sit minutes from the same commercial spine. They simply reward different intentions.

The decision here was never between two buildings. It was between two kinds of ownership.

Investors who settle whether they are buying for capital preservation or for rental income tend to choose the unit quickly once that question is closed. The work that changes the outcome happens before the floor plans, not after them.

At My First Corner, this is the comparison we run with clients before either project enters a shortlist. The conversation is available when it is useful.