Orchard Towers' potential en bloc sale may come with S$1.6 billion price tag

If deal goes through, it could be Singapore's most expensive collective sale

Feb 04, 2022

THE collective sale committee (CSC) of Orchard Towers has recommended setting the reserve price at S$1.6 billion, and its unit owners will conduct an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on Feb 18, The Business Times understands.

At the meeting, scheduled for 2pm, the owners will vote on whether to approve the proposed reserve price as well as the method of apportionment of sale proceeds in the potential collective sale, among other things.

At least 80 per cent of the owners will have to consent before the marketing agent can launch an en bloc tender.

ERA head of research and consultancy Nicholas Mak had said earlier that it can sometimes be challenging for a mixed-use development to meet the 80 per cent consent threshold, as there is a higher probability that owners of different types of space may disagree on the apportionment method.

BT reported in August 2021 that the CSC had selected Edmund Tie as the marketing consultant and Legal Solutions as its law firm. The committee was formed following an EGM in April 2021.

Completed in the early 1970s, Orchard Towers has a plot ratio of 4.9 and a site area of about 6,130 square metres.

The freehold development spans 2 buildings, with retail and office space in the front tower along Orchard Road, and some commercial units and 58 private residential units in the rear 25-storey tower along Claymore Road. There are 361 car park lots.

If a deal goes through, Orchard Towers could become Singapore's most expensive collective sale, eclipsing the S$1.34 billion that the former Farrer Court fetched during the 2007 collective-sale boom.

Another en bloc candidate, International Plaza in Tanjong Pagar, had commanded an even higher reserve price of S$2.7 billion. However, its marketing agent, also Edmund Tie, has not disclosed the outcome of the tender, which closed on Nov 30, 2021.

Following the Dec 16 cooling measures, property analysts are expecting the collective sale market to lose momentum as developers turn more cautious. Overpriced sites in particular are unlikely to find buyers amid heightened risks.

This January, freehold condominium Gloria Mansion in Pasir Panjang was sold en bloc for S$70.3 million.

https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/rea...lion-price-tag