Ten Mile Junction site up for sale

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Published January 6, 2010

Ten Mile Junction site up for sale

By EMILYN YAP


(SINGAPORE) The government has kick-started land sales for the year by putting up a residential site at the junction of Choa Chu Kang Road and Woodlands Road for tender - the first on the H1 2010 confirmed list to be launched for sale.

The 99-year-leasehold plot comes with the existing Ten Mile Junction development. Some market watchers are expecting higher bids ranging from $135-$150 million for the site this time, well above those received in 2008 when the government tried to sell it.

'Market sentiments have picked up and there is actually quite a dearth of mass-market sites,' says Colliers International research and advisory director Tay Huey Ying. 'We should be able to see more respectable bids being put in.'

According to the Urban Redevelopment Authority yesterday, the site spans 1.56 ha and the three-storey Ten Mile Junction sits on it. Commercial space with a gross floor area (GFA) of around 121,191 sq ft takes up the first two levels, while an LRT station occupies the third level.

The winning developer would be able to build a residential development with a maximum permissible GFA of 254,394 sq ft on top of Ten Mile Junction. The latter already has loading provision for the residential project, which could have around 200 apartments.

On the whole, the land sale involves only the existing commercial component and the future residential development. Supermarket chain Sheng Siong is the master tenant of the commercial space.

Property consultants cite the land parcel's proximity to Bukit Panjang Plaza, the upcoming Bukit Panjang MRT Station and other amenities as attractive features.

CB Richard Ellis Research executive director Li Hiaw Ho expects bids for the site to range from $135-$150 million, comprising $60-$65 million for the residential component and $75-$85 million for the commercial podium. Developers could sell the homes at around $650-$700 per square foot (psf).

'The site is likely to attract HDB upgraders and people who work in Bukit Panjang, Choa Chu Kang and Woodlands,' he says. At nearby Maysprings, apartments recently went for $509-$672 psf.

Ngee Ann Polytechnic real estate lecturer Nicholas Mak believes that the site will attract five to eight bids, with the highest coming in at $140-$147 million.

He also draws up an interesting scenario - that Sheng Siong could team up with a developer to bid for the site. As part-owner, the supermarket chain would be able to 'secure its interest' and keep rents down, he suggests.

But developing this site is not without challenges. As DTZ South-east Asia research head Chua Chor Hoon highlights: 'It is more challenging to build over the existing podium than over a vacant piece of land.'

The tender will close on Feb 23. Estimated bids for this tender far exceed those which the government received some years ago when it tried to sell the site. When tender closed in April 2008, just two developers submitted bids and the highest one was $61 million - too low to be accepted.

The government will be launching more sites on the confirmed list soon. HDB will invite interested parties to tender for two executive condominium sites at Buangkok Drive and Yishun Ave 11 on Jan 15.

http://www.straitstimes.com/Money/St...ry_474036.html

Jan 6, 2010

Site above Ten Mile Junction up for sale

It is the first residential plot on confirmed list to be launched this year

By Joyce Teo, Property Correspondent


THE Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) yesterday launched the sale tender of a site slated for a combined residential and commercial development at the junction of Choa Chu Kang Road and Woodlands Road.

The 1.56ha integrated site, which has an existing commercial block, will be co-located with the Ten Mile Junction LRT station on the third storey of the podium block, the URA said.

It will also be near the future Bukit Panjang MRT station, part of the future Downtown Line 2 and due for completion by 2015.

The successful bidder will have clearance to build a block of approximately 14 storeys, comprising flats or serviced apartments. The existing two-storey commercial block has a maximum gross floor area of 11,259 sq m and is currently let out to Sheng Siong Supermarket. Its tenancy expires in November and it has no renewal option.

The plot is the first residential parcel on the confirmed list of sale sites to be unveiled for the first half of the year.

In September last year, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan announced the Government's intention to reinstate the confirmed list following its suspension in October 2008 to calm the market.

Sites on the confirmed list are released for tender according to scheduled dates, without the need for developers to indicate prior interest.

CBRE Research expects bids to range from $135 million to $150 million - reflecting $60 million to $65 million for the residential component, and $75 million to $85 million for the commercial podium.

Ngee Ann Polytechnic lecturer Nicholas Mak believes the plot will attract interest, with between five and eight parties bidding. He said the LRT station and the commercial component could help drive bids to between $140 million and $147 million, or $373 per sq ft (psf) to $391 psf of potential gross floor area.

DTZ head of South-east Asia research Chua Chor Hoon, however, expects to see fewer than five bids because developers will have to build over the existing podium rather than over a vacant piece of land.

The site was first made available for sale under the reserve list back in 2002, but developers showed no interest and it was not freed for sale.

It was next put up for sale under the confirmed list in late December 2007 at a time when the market started to weaken.

Only two bids were submitted by the time the tender closed in April 2008, and both were opportunistic with the higher bid at $61 million and the lower bid at just $45.68 million.

The higher bid worked out to $162.40 psf of potential gross floor area. The Government rejected it on the grounds that the price was not high enough.

Property experts had expected to see bids of at least $200 psf to $250 psf at that time.

CBRE Research executive director Li Hiaw Ho believes the project is likely to attract HDB upgraders and those who work in Bukit Panjang, Choa Chu Kang and Woodlands.

If the site is awarded, the potential selling price for newly developed residential units will be around $650 psf to $700 psf, he said.

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