http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/arch...te-farrer-road
Published July 19, 2012
URA to launch tender for reserve list site at Farrer Road
Strong competition expected due to site location, relatively low price quantum
By Mindy Tan
[SINGAPORE] A 99-year leasehold private housing site at Farrer Road, near Botanic Garden MRT Station, has been triggered for release from the government's reserve list at $28.888 million, or $699 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr).
According to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), the 0.27-hectare site can be developed into about 41,323 sq ft of gross floor area, which is sufficient for about 40 new homes.
Said Lee Sze Teck, senior manager of research and consultancy at DWG: "The lower trigger price is probably influenced by lacklustre sales at some centrally located projects recently, renewed concerns in Europe and the prospect of more sites being released in the second half of the year.
"Furthermore, there remains unsold units in the nearby projects. With more buyers looking to buy from older project launches, the developer who triggered the site for sale knows that they have to be competitive in their pricing to win over buyers in this current market."
That said, the relatively lower quantum will allow smaller developers to enter the market, noted Mr Lee, who estimated that there could be up to 10 bidders for the site, with an estimated top bid in the range of $950-$1,000 psf ppr.
Png Poh Soon, head of consultancy and research at Knight Frank, expects the winning bid to be in the range of $990 to $1,000 psf ppr, with units expected to sell in the range of $1,800 to $1,900 psf.
"We expect strong competition with about 10 to 15 bidders for the site due to the premium location and low land price quantum of around $40 million," said Mr Png.
"This site presents a rare acquisition opportunity for developers, given its prime location within District 10 that is in close proximity to Botanic Gardens MRT station. There are also many good schools in the vicinity, such as Nanyang Primary School, St Margaret's Secondary School, Hwa Chong Institution, National Junior College and Nanyang Girls' High School," he added.
The land parcel was made available for sale through the Reserve List system on April 30. URA received an application from a developer for the site, who has committed to bid at a price of not less than $28.888 million. As the minimum price committed is acceptable to the government, the site will be released for sale by public tender.
URA will launch the public tender for the site in about two weeks. The launch date will be announced later. The tender period for the land parcel will be about five weeks.
At a URA tender that closed last month, a 99-year private housing site at Farrer Drive near Farrer Road MRT Station drew six bids. The top bid of $1,048.52 psf ppr from a unit of mainboard-listed Singapore Land marked a new high for 99-year private housing land offered at a state tender in recent years.
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