Nobody has any info?
Nobody has any info?
Start 15 August 2012 and completion 31 December 2016 date.
Last edited by CondoInterested; 12-06-14 at 00:06.
Looking at the slow progress, 3 years since Q4 2012 when it was 1st launch, as of today May 2016.
Only build up to 2nd storeys.
Bravo construction recently just received TOP for The Ebony near Kembangan Mrt. The Ebony estimated took Bravo construction 6 years+ to complete. Was supposed to TOP at 2013 but drag until 2016. Additional 3 more years.
Bravo and Lerida is sister company. Looking at The Ebony, can easy estimate laurel tree development will also share similar fate.
is this project TOP? how is the workmanship?
for investors, beware hillview rental (as low as 2k for 2 bedrooms unit). as for own stay, this particular location i wouldn't say its that good. neither here nor there and there are still industrial buildings along that small road in. and further more, the delayed TOP problem.
i would say better to look for those older condo (hillview height, glendale park, hillington green) which is next to hillview MRT would be better.
have lah. next to it.
http://www.propertyguru.com.sg/listi...%7Ctl3%7C1%7C1
rental 1600$.
The three laws of Kelonguni:
Where there is kelong, there is guni.
No kelong no guni.
More kelong = more guni.
around hillview i think only natura fits the bill if you want freehold and a tiny 2 bedder. The developer is roxy pac, famous for bite sized apartments to boost affordability. Good thing is it's new. quality is decent among the mickey mouse developers (i think they're better than oxley and definitely better than fragrance properties). but the location here is not happening at all, neither here nor there. (far from both BB and HV mrt lines).
for about 800-900k you can try hillview park (2 bedder around 800sft which make the quantum lower) and it is near enough to the mrt and the new mall, or hume park I (2 bedder 900sft) if you don't mind waiting for the auxiliary MRT station in front of it to be operational (god knows when.) The downside to these two are they are the oldest condos there so you have to renovate extensively.
the rest of the 2 bedders around the area are 950 sft above, the 2000's type configuration.
Glendale park is actually quite nice. Ditto symphony heights and parc palais.
i would suggest don't go for leasehold in hillview as most of the condo there are freehold.
good luck.
oh sorry, forgot. hillbrook has an efficient layout 2 bedder. up the hill further away hillview 128 is also priced lower. happy hunting. 2 bedroom are actually quite sought after (for budget as well as living size).
of course if you can stretch go for the newer Hillvista (about 1m)
Went to a 2+1 unit viewing in hilltop grove, it is a really amazing condo. Resort feel outside. Unit well maintained. Located beside greeneries. Very spacious but with lifespan 80 yrs remains only.
With almost the same price, can get a freehold unit in Natura but with only half of the size.
Hi!
Don't like 128 , its got a very apartment like feel to it, small pool, lacking of grounds and amenities , too. For that price you can check out hillrbrooks or even hill view park , two bedder can find about that price (800k +) and both are nearer to MRT and amenities at hillv2\ cc
No lah u look for the smaller 2 bedders , currently the price not more than 900k. Wait for a good deal, in the meantime keep looking. Yes motrosa better tha n 128 but hilltop grove is better than the two in terms of environment and I suspect , build quality. Its a trade off, difficult decision.
Yes difficult decision. Both projects ask almost same price for 2+1 unit with size slightly different by 100 sf.
Hilltop Grove: full condo facilities, better environment, but only left 80 yr lifespan. Definitely difficult to sell off next time.
Montrosa: basic condo facilities but 999y.
But anyway, I think Natura and Laurel Tree are facing hard time to sub off. The units are too small as to compare with both projects above and yet they ask for similar price. Actually that day wanted to view few units in Natura but was told that only can view in the day time cause those unit power have been cut off due to empty occupied.
https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/e...5919370-4.html
In May 2012, Ms Emmeline Ho's parents bought a studio apartment at the Sycamore Tree condominium in Joo Chiat, due to be completed by end-2016, on her recommendation.
Her parents, who are in their 60s and run a drinks stall at Old Airport Road Food Centre, invested most of their life savings into the unit.
It is almost 350 sq ft and cost nearly $500,000. Since then, Ms Ho, 34, who does administrative work in a finance company, has regretted her advice to them.
The project, which was supposed to obtain its Temporary Occupation Permit (TOP) by Dec 31, 2016, has been delayed.
"I had thought that since (the developer) is a Singapore-registered company, it should be one that I can trust," said Ms Ho.
"Almost every fortnight, we will go down to check on the construction. My parents are very anxious. This is their investment. It was going to be their source of income." Her parents had been hoping to rent out the unit.
Ms Ho's parents are among a small group who bought units in new projects that faced delays in completion.
Such cases are very uncommon, property lawyers tell The Straits Times, as developers typically have to complete by a certain deadline to avoid getting into trouble with their lenders.
They say developers also want to avoid compensating home buyers liquidated damages - which are calculated daily - for delays.
Ms Ho said she heard little from Astoria Development over the cause of delay for Sycamore Tree, which has 96 residential units and 17 shop units, until June this year, when she received a letter.
In the letter seen by ST, Astoria wrote that the delay was due to changes in its construction methods and a dispute between the project's contractors over the installation of a mechanised carpark system.
On a visit last month, the project looked partially completed, with scaffolding and blue tarpaulin draped over much of the building.
Buyers at the 70-unit Laurel Tree condominium project in Hillview Terrace also face an uncertain future. Laurel Tree was also due to obtain its TOP by December 2016, but construction has yet to be completed.
Buyers said the project's developer, Lerida, has not given any explanations for the delay.
Checks by ST showed that the project's main contractor, Bravo Building Construction, is facing a winding-up application by a creditor at the High Court this month.
This means it could be dissolved, and the developer might have to look for another main contractor to take over.
Hard to get updates from developers, say buyers
Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority checks found that Astoria, Lerida and Bravo have the same company secretary and major shareholder.
Close to 40 Laurel Tree buyers have banded together to share information in a WhatsApp group.
Some buyers said Lerida had agreed to give monthly progress reports after a meeting in May, but has not done so since August.
A 40-year-old home buyer who works in sales said he has to continue renting a room for $500 a month while waiting for his 463 sq ft unit - his first property - to be completed.
He bought it in 2013 for about $600,000, and has since paid off about 60 per cent of the loan.
"I feel very frustrated and helpless," said the man who declined to be named.
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said the Controller of Housing - which administers regulations related to developers, among other property issues - has received feedback from several buyers on the Sycamore Tree and Laurel Tree projects.
A URA spokesman said it has asked the developers to update the buyers on the progress.
Laurel Tree home buyers said selling their units is not an option, as prospective buyers would want to inspect completed units. They might also incur losses if they sell now.
Real estate lawyer Subra M. Suppiah said that while the authorities might look into the issue, it is ultimately between the buyers and developers, adding that buyers are the agreeing party in the contract after all.
"If the delay continues indefinitely, affected buyers might have to turn to the court to seek legal redress," he said.
Ms Ho said she has tried to get answers from Astoria and its law firm for over two years.
But one party would refer her to the other or to the letters they sent out, Ms Ho claimed. "I felt like a ball being bounced between the parties," she added.
Astoria's latest letter to Ms Ho on Sept 21 said the TOP would be obtained by end-December.
The management of Astoria, Lerida and Bravo have not responded to queries despite multiple attempts to reach them over three weeks.
These things because of the contracts and nature of the business have little hope. All developers for every single project register a new company and this will be the liable party and if it goes into liquidation, the developers assets and main company is protected and not the buyers.
The only things going for the buyers is that the developer has sunk cost from land leased or bought and need a return so eventually it will come thru. The other is the progress payments would have stopped.
Singapore Dream ends in rude awakening for home buyers
Wed, May 01, 2019
FOR Ashok, a delivery man in his 40s, the Singapore dream - work hard to own a private property - came true in 2011.
But it ended in a rude awakening when the developer went bust before completing the project.
Ashok and his family sold their public housing flat in Woodlands and put the down payment for two units at Sycamore Tree, a freehold residential property located in East Coast.
"One was for my family, the other was an investment property for my mother,'' he told The Business Times.
But that dream came crashing down when he received a notice that the developer of the 96-residential units and 17 shops in Joo Chiat has gone belly up. The project was supposed to obtain its temporary occupation permit by Dec 29, 2016, but remains under construction.
"I am still at a loss. We have been incurring rent for the last seven years since we sold the HDB flat to buy the project. On top of that, we have been making prompt payments for the house and interest for the bank loans," said a distressed Ashok. To make matters worse, his mother has been unwell and has not been working, leaving him to bear the brunt of the rents and bank interest payments, which come up to a hefty sum of several thousands of dollars a month. He said he has to pull in more than 17 hours a day doing dual delivery jobs just to make ends meet.
"How long more can I take this before I crash too?'' he asked.
Like Ashok, some other buyers of the project are also HDB upgraders with dreams of owning a freehold property.
An elderly couple invested most of their life savings in a condo unit in the same project measuring nearly 350 sq ft and priced at almost S$500,000 in May 2012. The couple, who reportedly operate a drinks stall at Old Airport Road Food Centre, had planned to rent the unit out after it was built.
"My parents are very anxious. This is their investment. It was going to be their source of income," their daughter told the media.
Last June, the developer, Astoria Development, managed to get United Overseas Bank (UOB) to agree to further the TOP issuance date from March 31, 2018 to Dec 31, 2018 in an amended and restated facility agreement originally dated Dec 29, 2009.
UOB also agreed to further extend the repayment date from June 30, 2018 or the date of completion of the redemption of property, whichever is earlier, to Dec 31, 2018. But these were subject to the bank's receipt of the extension fee and satisfactory completion of all required documentation.
In Sept 25, 2018, the High Court ordered Astoria to be placed under judicial management, but progress proposal was hindered by the lack of access to information and financial documents by parties involved.
As of June 30, 2014, Astoria's accounts showed a loss of S$446,000, compared to a net profit of S$5.5 million in FY2013. Total liabilities stood at S$38.5 million and net assets at S$5.3 million. Cash and cash equivalents, comprising bank balances, stood at S$4.6 million versus S$1.3 million a year earlier.
Over at Laurel Tree, buyers of the 70-unit condo in Hillview Terrace are also facing an uncertain future over their property purchase which was supposed to be due for TOP by end December 2016 as well. The construction too is incomplete.
Laurel Tree's developer is Lerida. Its main contractor of the project, Bravo Building Construction, faced a winding-up application by a creditor in October 2018. Lerida repeatedly defaulted on the payments of instalments due to The Bank of East Asia. On May 12, 2017, the bank terminated the settlement agreement and demanded that Lerida surrender the mortgaged property within seven days, but to no avail. The court eventually ruled in favour of the bank following Lerida's breach of terms.
While both Astoria and Lerida are managed and operated by Jenny Pang, the companies are solely owned by Tan Hock Keng.