http://www.straitstimes.com/archive/...-bids-20141001
Tender for Sembawang EC site draws just two bids
Published on Oct 1, 2014 1:28 AM
By Jacqueline Woo
THE tender for an executive condominium (EC) site in Sembawang limped to a close yesterday with just two bids - a stark sign of the cooling property market, said analysts.
Qingjian Realty (Residential) lodged the higher bid at $229.38 million or $353 per sq ft (psf) per plot ratio (ppr).
That easily topped the joint offer of $208.5 million or $320.88 psf ppr from City Developments unit Verwood Holdings and TID Residential.
The 2.8ha site at the junction of Sembawang Road and Canberra Link could yield an estimated 605 homes.
Mr Ong Teck Hui, national director of research and consultancy at Jones Lang LaSalle, noted that the poor interest in the 99-year leasehold plot suggests "caution on the part of most developers (who are) abstaining from bidding".
The steady supply of new EC projects to be launched in the northern part of Singapore from next year could have held developers back from participating, said Mr Nicholas Mak, executive director of research and consultancy at SLP International.
R'ST Research director Ong Kah Seng noted that the top bid was "fairly high", given the sluggish movement in land bids after the range of cooling measures.
Qingjian is positioned to price the units at below $1 million, added Mr Eugene Lim, key executive officer of ERA Realty.
Qingjian general manager Li Jun said in a statement yesterday that the site is well-situated near the upcoming Canberra MRT station, which is expected to start operating in 2019.
Citing "overwhelming response" to its other EC launches, such as Bellewoods at Woodlands, Mr Li added that the company remains "confident of the continual demand of the EC market".
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