http://www.straitstimes.com/Money/St...ry_783720.html
Goodies for EC owners who help bag new sales
Published on Mar 31, 2012
By Amanda Tan
HOME owners at the Arc at Tampines will be offered goodies by the developer if they persuade people they know to buy a home there too.
In their latest marketing push, the developers of the executive condominium believe there is nothing like word of mouth recommendations.
The developers, made up of a consortium led by Hoi Hup Realty, are offering shopping vouchers to home owners who convince someone they know to buy a unit.
For every sale, the new buyer will get $2,000 worth of vouchers and the existing home owner who referred the buyer to the developers also gets the same. It is not yet clear which retail shops are involved. The offer is valid for next month.
According to a letter issued by Hoi Hup Sunway Tampines, the more successful referrals an owner makes, the more vouchers he will get.
Sources told The Straits Times that of the project's 574 units, 80 are still available. These include two- and three-bedders, with starting prices of about $610,000 and $680,000 respectively. On average, units range from $700 to $800 per sq ft (psf).
Referral schemes aside, property experts said, developers typically give out perks to home buyers at the point of sale. These could include loyalty programmes or furnishing vouchers.
Still, PropNex Realty chief executive Mohammed Ismail said referral strategies could be more effective at the tail-end of sales than third-party ones such as advertisements, which can be costly.
'They know that those who buy units there already have a positive impression of it, and they (home buyers) might be the best people to influence their loved ones to buy,' he said.
He pointed out that developers usually find the last 100 units the most difficult to move as they might not be on a high floor or have a good view.
It is the last 20 per cent or so of units sold that bring in the profits for developers, who might have to turn creative to sell them off, he said.
But it is not rare for developers 'to offer such appreciation to buyers' who refer people for the unsold stock, said R'ST Research director Ong Kah Seng.
'This token can range from slight to more attractive (offers) depending on market conditions, project performance and the developers' objectives and plans in moving the project,' he said.
Head of research and consultancy at SLP International Property Consultancy Nicholas Mak said that competition from another nearby executive condominium, the Tampines Trilliant, could have affected sales at the Arc.
It was launched after Chinese New Year this year and cost about $766 psf on average.
But this does not mean the area is saturated yet, he noted. 'Tampines still has potential. People are still looking to upgrade... it's a mature HDB town and fairly popular as a regional centre,' he said.
The developer might also be pressured to sell its unsold units before other new exec condos are launched, he said.
The Arc is among three exec condo projects in the area, along with Tampines Trilliant and The Eden.
When it was first launched, the Arc posted strong results which analysts said could be attributed to it being the first exec condo to hit the market after the income ceiling for such properties was raised to $12,000, from $10,000 previously.
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Originally Posted by hyenergix
So must be very careful. Might get blame if it turns out to be ..........
