Frasers Centrepoint previewing Caspian soon

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Published February 4, 2009

Frasers Centrepoint previewing Caspian soon

Average price of low to mid-$600 psf and interest absorption expected

By KALPANA RASHIWALA


DEVELOPERS of at least two residential projects will be testing the market with previews soon, offering interest absorption schemes that mimic the old Deferred Payment Scheme (DPS).

First off the mark will be Frasers Centrepoint, which will begin to preview later this week its Caspian condo, a 99-year-leasehold project next to Lakeside MRT Station. The price is expected to be in the 'low to mid-$600 per square foot range' on average, to appeal to HDB upgraders.

Over at the corner of Alexandra Road and Commonwealth Avenue, Yi Kai Development and Fission Group are also expected to begin previews soon for Alexis @ Alexandra, a 293-unit freehold project comprising mostly smallish units of one and two bedders. The average pricing is tipped at above $1,000 psf. One-bedroom apartments will be priced at below $500,000. The development is near Queenstown MRT Station.

Developers of both projects have tied up with United Overseas Bank (UOB) to offer an interest absorption scheme (IAS), which, like the now-scrapped DPS, eases cash flow for buyers, as they do not make any payments beyond an initial downpayment until the project receives the Temporary Occupation Permit (TOP). This is expected to be around 2012 for both projects.

IAS buyers will have to sign up immediately for mortgages with UOB and make a 20 per cent downpayment using cash and CPF savings. UOB will pay progress billings during the projects' construction to the respective developers.

Buyers will not service the principal amount of the loan while the projects are being built, as UOB will defer collection on the principal during this period.

Collection of the interest will not be deferred; however, this will be serviced or absorbed by the developer on behalf of its buyers.

After the project receives TOP, the buyer will have to start servicing both principal and interest.

Property agents say typically, those who buy on IAS pay about 3 per cent more on the purchase price of the property than buyers who make normal progress payments.

This price differential is similar to the 3-5 per cent premium that DPS buyers used to pay compared with purchasers who opted for the normal progress payment scheme.

However, market watchers say the good thing about IAS is that buyers have to secure a housing loan at the outset from the bank, and this entails a mandatory credit-assessment of the buyer. This would weed out poor-quality borrowers dabbling in properties beyond their means, something DPS has been criticised for.

Frasers Centrepoint's Caspian, near Jurong Lake, will have a total of 712 units housed in 11 blocks, all 17 storeys high. Units range from studios to four bedders with study rooms.

The development is next to the group's Lakeholmz condo.

Market watchers note that the low to mid-$600 psf average price said to be targeted by Frasers Centrepoint is lower than the average of about $750 psf at which units in The Lakeshore, a completed development nearby, have been selling at in recent months.

'However, Caspian is a new launch with over 700 units and they have to price it more affordably if they want to attract HDB upgraders and investors in today's recessionary climate,' an analyst said.

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Published February 5, 2009

First phase of Caspian going for $580 psf average


(SINGAPORE) Frasers Centrepoint is pricing the first phase of its 99-year leasehold Caspian condo next to Lakeside MRT Station in Jurong at an average of $580 per square foot after discount for buyers who opt for normal progress payments.

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Priced to sell: Analysts reckon that Frasers Centrepoint may barely be making money, based on the first-phase pricing. The project will have 712 units and is coming up on a site that was bought for $248 psf per plot ratio

Those who choose the developer's interest absorption scheme will pay 3 per cent more, or an average price of about $598 psf.

The pricing for the 250 units, which are spread across the project, is considered competitive and reflects Frasers Centrepoint's strategy of pricing to sell in the current recession.

Next to Caspian, units at Lakeholmz, which was completed four years ago and also developed by Frasers Centrepoint, are selling at about $600 psf on average in the resale market.

Further away, units at The Lakeshore are fetching about $750 psf on average and developer Far East Organization is understood to have held back some choice units facing Jurong Lake, presumably for sale later to ride on the government's plans for the district.

Frasers Centrepoint is optimistic of good take-up for Caspian. 'We've received strong interest from prospective owner-occupiers and even investors, who are now more keen to invest in brick-and-mortar property than risky financial instruments, especially if the property has a great potential upside to it,' said Frasers Centrepoint Homes chief operating officer Cheang Kok Kheong yesterday.

'Potential buyers will see Caspian's price range as attractive and offering value for money.'

The project will have 712 units in total and is coming up on a site that Frasers Centrepoint bought in late 2007 for $248 psf per plot ratio. Analysts reckon that Frasers Centrepoint may barely be making money, based on the first-phase pricing.

BT understands that the project's private preview is slated for tomorrow, to be followed by the public preview over the weekend.

'The idea is probably to raise prices for the later phases to turn in a profit for the overall project,' a market watcher said.

For the first phase, prices of typical two-bedroom to four-bedroom (with study) units range from $540 psf to $640 psf. The average price for a studio unit is about $350,000.