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Thread: Singapore could see another en-bloc sale cross $1b mark if posh Spring Grove succeeds

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    Default Singapore could see another en-bloc sale cross $1b mark if posh Spring Grove succeeds

    Singapore could see another en-bloc sale cross $1b mark if posh Spring Grove succeeds

    Sep 22, 2017

    Home owners eye price tag of at least $1b in view of prime location, collective-sale fever

    Annabeth Leow


    Spring Grove condominium, in upmarket Grange Road, is going back on the market just three years after a failed collective sale bid.

    Owners in the 325-unit estate believe they can get at least $1 billion "if not more", a sale committee representative said yesterday. They had asked for $1.39 billion in 2014.

    A $1 billion price works out to about $1,807 per sq ft (psf), based on a maximum gross floor area of 553,377 sq ft. This is above the $1,285 psf to $1,438 psf that units in the estate have fetched so far this year.

    Upbeat home owners cite the development's prime location and the ongoing collective-sale fever as reasons for their sunny outlook.

    Corporate adviser Adrian Loh, the chairman of the Spring Grove sale committee, said the "immense experience and knowledge" that owners gained from the failed sale bid should speed up the process this time round.

    "We don't have a price in mind, but it will be a project worth a billion dollars or more," said Mr Loh, 45, who has lived in the estate since 2010.

    The sale committee pointed to the condo's proximity to the residential areas of Chatsworth Road and Bishopsgate, as well as the Orchard Road retail belt and the central business district.

    One key issue that could crop up surrounds the estate's ownership, given that it was built on the site of a former United States diplomatic residence. The land goes back to the American government after the expiry of the 99-year lease, which has 73 years left on the clock.

    "The developer will have to pay the owners of Spring Grove as well as the US government... to top up the lease," said Mr Loh.

    Property analyst Nicholas Mak, executive director of ZACD Group, told The Straits Times: "There are quite a lot of sales en bloc going on now, but not that many are in the prime district, so that's something going for this development.

    "But properties where the asking price goes beyond $1 billion are challenging for developers... They do present some financial risk."

    The nine-person sale committee that was formed last Saturday is on the lookout for marketing agents and law firms. Knight Frank was the exclusive marketer for the development the last time round.

    Recent collective sales this year include Tampines Court, which went for $970 million, and Eunosville and Rio Casa.

    Meanwhile, former HUDC estate Pine Grove launched its third attempt this month, joining other hopefuls on the market such as Jervois Gardens and Amber Park.

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    Spring Grove eyes billion-dollar en bloc deal

    Sep 22, 2017

    Lee Meixian


    SPRING GROVE condominium along Grange Road is going back on the market, three years after its first collective-sale bid failed, a Straits Times report said. Its owners are hopeful for a bid of at least S$1 billion, after having asked for S$1.39 billion in 2014, a sale committee representative told the newspaper on Thursday.

    The price tag works out to about S$1,807 per sq ft (psf), based on a maximum gross floor area of 553,377 sq ft. It could also spell a windfall of an average of S$3 million for each of the 325 households.

    It was not clarified whether the S$1-billion consideration includes a lease top-up premium. The tricky nature of the project is such that it is built on the estate of a former United States diplomatic residence. It has a 99-year lease which started in 1991 and reverts back to the US government at the end of the tenure as freehold land.

    Therefore, selling the development will require co-operation with the US government. The developer will have to pay not only the owners of Spring Grove, but the US government as well.

    ST quoted Adrian Loh, chairman of the Spring Grove sale committee, as saying that the residents have learnt valuable lessons from its earlier failed en bloc attempt, and are optimistic about a successful deal this time round, amid the revived collective sale market.

    Spring Grove currently comprises three blocks of 20-storey apartments with 325 units, plus a conserved Victorian-styled Spring Grove House - previously an ambassadorial residence and home to several renowned businessmen in Singapore, now integrated within the development as a clubhouse.

    The sprawling 263,513 sq ft site can be developed into a maximum gross floor area of 553,377 sq ft. The site is also located close to the residential areas of Chatsworth Road and Bishopsgate, as well as the Orchard Road retail belt and the Central Business District.

    Spring Grove's sales committee is reportedly looking for a marketing agent and a law firm now. Other recent en bloc aspirants include Braddell View, the largest of Singapore's 18 HUDC estates, and Pine Grove, which is looking at an indicative reserve price of S$1.65 billion that would trump the record of S$1.34 billion set in 2007 by Farrer Court, another former HUDC estate.

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