http://www.straitstimes.com/archive/...s-ceo-20130907

Popular sells two homes to its CEO

Company says cooling measures make it harder to sell large units

Published on Sep 07, 2013

By Mok Fei Fei


BOOK retailer and developer Popular Holdings has approved the sale of two of its own upmarket homes to its chief executive, Mr Chou Cheng Ngok.

Mr Chou got the same hefty discount to the listed price as any prospective buyer who was purchasing two units, it said.

The sale was judged to be in the interests of the company as recently introduced stricter financing rules have made it tougher to sell such larger units.

In an announcement, Popular said: "The implementation of the various measures implemented to cool the Singapore property market, including the introduction of the total debt service ratio framework for property loans in June 2013, has adversely affected prospects for the sale of larger property units."

As such, the board of directors felt the proposed sale is in the best interest of the company

The two units at 18 Shelford, a 19-unit freehold project in Bukit Timah, were sold to Mr Chou for a combined $8.81 million, some 16 per cent lower than the combined list price of $10.5 million.

Popular said all prospective buyers of residential units in 18 Shelford are offered a 5 per cent discount and a 5 per cent additional buyer's stamp duty rebate on the list price.

An additional 3.5 per cent discount on the list price is also offered to buyers of two units and a commission rebate of up to 3 per cent is offered to all direct buyers not represented by a property agent.

Popular said the aggregate value of the proposed sale represents 3.98 per cent of the audited net tangible assets of the company and its subsidiaries as at April 30 of some $221.3 million.

Popular also said that no other interested person transaction was entered into with Mr Chou during the financial year. Shares of Popular closed at 28 cents, up by half a cent yesterday.

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