Three S'pore residential plots up for sale in quiet market

http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sub/...77086,00.html?

Published April 30, 2008

URA releases two more GLS sites

By ARTHUR SIM


THE Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has released two more residential sites through the Government Land Sales (GLS) programme. And while interest is expected to be good, profit margins for developers will be slimmer.

A 1.08 ha site at Woodleigh Close, with a maximum permissible gross floor area of 30,167 sq m (324,714.5 sq ft), is up for sale via the GLS confirmed list. Cushman and Wakefield managing director Donald Han reckons the potential profit margin for a developer could be about 12 per cent.

This is based on a land price of $350-$380 per sq ft per plot ratio (psf ppr), factoring in construction costs and an estimated selling price based on current project launches. In the vicinity, Mr Han says Parc Mondrian and Blossoms at Woodleigh are going for $700-$850 psf. Noting that profit margins were 30-40 per cent until the effects of the US sub-prime crisis and global credit crunch took hold late last year, Mr Han said: 'In bad times, profit margins can fall into single digit figures.'

The point, however, is that profit can still be made. 'It's a matter of who can control costs better,' he said. 'Construction companies can control costs better, so for them, even a baseline profit margin of 8 per cent is feasible.'

Reflecting market volatility, Knight Frank director (research and development) Nicholas Mak believes the land price for the Woodleigh site could be $300-$370 psf. 'If the market turns bearish within the next two months, the bids will be at the lower end,' he said. He expects four to eight bidders will take part in the tender, including major developers.

URA has also released detailed sale conditions for a 2.08 ha reserve list site in Upper Thomson Road, close to Bishan Park and Lower Peirce Reservoir Park, for residential development. The site has a maximum permissible gross floor area of 43,758 sq m (471,006.7 sq ft).

Mr Han said new projects in the area are going for about $850 psf. Factoring in construction costs and a developers' profit of 10-12 per cent, he expects bids to be $380-$400 psf ppr.

Separately, the Housing and Development Board has made available a reserve list site at Sengkang East Avenue and Buangkok Drive for an executive condominium. The 17,000.8 sq m site has a permissible gross floor area of 51,002.4 sq m.


Click here for URA's news release
http://www.ura.gov.sg/pr/text/2008/pr08-48.html

http://www.straitstimes.com/Money/St...ry_232544.html

April 30, 2008

Three S'pore residential plots up for sale in quiet market

One exec condo site and two 99-year leasehold suburban sites open for bids

By Joyce Teo, Property Correspondent


BUYING interest in private homes may be relatively low now, but the Singapore Government is offering developers three new residential sites to consider buying.

Two are 99-year leasehold suburban sites, and the other is an executive condominium site.

The first - in Woodleigh Close - is seen as an attractive site by property consultants, as it is a short walk from the Potong Pasir MRT station and the yet-to-be-opened Woodleigh MRT station.

Developers can build 260 to 290 apartments on the 1.08ha site, which has a maximum gross floor area of 30,167 sq m.

Property consultants expect the site to attract bids of $300 to $370 per sq ft (psf) of gross floor area. The apartments may then sell for between $800 psf and $880 psf, they said.

CBRE Research executive director Li Hiaw Ho said the site is close to the city and amenities in the Potong Pasir HDB estate and Upper Serangoon Road.

'It is likely to be a popular location, as two freehold projects in the vicinity - Blossoms @ Woodleigh and Parc Mondrian - launched last year were fully sold,' said Mr Li.

Recent caveats lodged for the 240-unit Blossoms @ Woodleigh have hovered between $770 psf and $922 psf.

The 100-unit Parc Mondrian sold for between $650 psf and $720 psf last April.

The tender for the Woodleigh Close site will close on June 24. The site is on the confirmed list, where sites are put up for sale on specific dates.

But the second site in Upper Thomson Road, close to Bishan Park and Lower Peirce Reservoir Park, is on the reserve list.

This means that it will be put up for sale only if a developer commits to a minimum bid acceptable to the authorities.

The site is not near any MRT station, but it is in an established private estate.

A developer could build 380 to 420 apartments on the 2.08ha Upper Thomson Road site, which can have a gross floor area of 43,758 sq m.

To attract buyers, developers may want to consider developing a condo with eco-friendly features, which is in line with the surrounding serene environment, said Mr Nicholas Mak, Knight Frank's director of research and consultancy.

If triggered, this site could attract bids of $200 psf to $240 psf of gross floor area, and the apartments could sell for $650 psf to $700 psf, he said.

The third site, in Sengkang, is a 17,000 sq m executive condo site on the reserve list.

This 99-year leasehold site is the third executive condo site the HDB has made available for sale in the first half of this year.

The other two are in Jurong West and Yishun Avenue 11.

[email protected]


GOOD LOCATION

'It is likely to be a popular location as two freehold projects in the vicinity...launched last year were fully sold.'
MR LI HIAW HO, CBRE Research executive director, who adds that the Woodleigh Close site is close to the city

EXTRA FEATURES

To woo buyers, developers may want to consider a condo with eco-friendly features on the Upper Thomson Road site, said Mr Nicholas Mak, Knight Frank's director of research and consultancy.

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stori...344480/1/.html

HDB to launch executive condominium site at Sengkang

By Wong Siew Ying, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 29 April 2008 1937 hrs


SINGAPORE : The Housing and Development Board (HDB) will launch on Wednesday a land parcel at Sengkang East Avenue for executive condominium development under the Reserve List System.

HDB said the 17,000 square metre plot will have a permissible gross floor area of over 51,000 square metres.

Property consultants estimate that the 99-year lease site could fetch about 450 to 500 units, with a land price of S$110 to S$130 per square foot per plot ratio.

As developers are still fairly confident of the mass market property segment, market watchers said the land parcel will attract moderate interest from developers, with up to six bids for the site. - CNA/ms

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stori...344484/1/.html

URA releases two residential sites for sale

By Wong Siew Ying, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 29 April 2008 1945 hrs


SINGAPORE : The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has launched a residential site at Woodleigh Close for sale by public tender.

At 1.08 hectare, market watchers said about 260-290 apartment units can be built on the plot of land, which is located near to the Potong Pasir MRT station.

A new 99-year leasehold project in the location is expected to fetch prices of around S$800 psf. This will translate to a possible land price of around S$300-350 psf per plot ratio for the site.

The tender will close at noon on June 24 and selection will be based on the tendered land price only.

Separately, the URA also released the detailed sales conditions for the residential parcel at Upper Thomson Road, which is estimated to offer 380 to 420 new homes.

The site is on URA's reserve list and developers who are interested in buying it can apply for the plot to be put up for tender.

Under the reserve list system, the site will only be put up for sale if a developer's minimum bid price is acceptable to the government.

Analysts expect this site at Upper Thomson Road to fetch S$200 to S$240 psf per plot ratio, which will translate into a possible selling price of S$650 to S$700 psf. - CNA /ls