URA launches Dairy Farm, Tengah, Bayshore sites for close to 2,000 homes
All three land parcels are on a 99-year lease
Jun 13, 2024
THE Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) on Thursday (Jun 13) released three residential sites for tender under the first half of the 2024 government land sales (GLS) programme.
The three sites are located at Dairy Farm Walk, Tengah Garden Avenue and Bayshore Road.
All three land parcels are on a 99-year lease and can yield a total supply of 1,915 residential units.
The land plots at Dairy Farm Walk and Tengah Garden Avenue are on the confirmed list, while the Bayshore Road site sits on the reserve list.
Confirmed list sites are launched according to schedule regardless of demand; sites on the reserve list, on the other hand, are put up for tender only when a developer makes an offer acceptable to the government.
Both the Dairy Farm Walk and Bayshore Road plots are zoned for residential use, while the parcel at Tengah Garden Avenue is zoned residential with commercial zoning for the first storey.
Huttons Asia’s senior director of data analytics, Lee Sze Teck, believes that land bids will be lower than for previously sold sites in the vicinity. This comes as the government increases land supply and developers face “challenging” conditions, including high construction costs, interest rates and the harmonisation of gross floor area (GFA), he said.
Under the new standardised definition of harmonised GFA, all strata areas will have to be included as GFA, which is controlled by a site’s Master Plan plot ratio.
The 21,881.8 square metre (sq m) plot at Dairy Farm Walk could yield 540 units. It has a maximum gross floor area of 45,952 sq m. The maximum building height is four to six storeys in the low-rise zone and 75 to 85 m in the medium-rise zone.
Market watchers also noted that the Dairy Farm Walk site is developing into a private residential enclave, with recent new condominiums such as The Botany at Dairy Farm and Dairy Farm Residences launching in the area.
ERA Singapore chief executive Marcus Chu said that the site is “well-positioned to draw significant interest from a ready pool” of Housing and Development Board (HDB) residents in the Bukit Panjang and Choa Chu Kang estates who wish to upgrade their homes.
He noted that the only project within the same area is The Botany at Dairy Farm, and added: “This presents a favourable opportunity for developers, since potential buyers who missed out on the earlier projects might turn their attention to the new GLS development.”
Chu, however, does not expect to see as many bids for this round due to developers turning more conservative and other attractive sites available for tender currently.
Huttons’ Lee said that he anticipates the Dairy Farm Walk site to potentially receive around three bids, with a top bid at between S$800 and S$850 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr).
On the other hand, PropNex’s head of research and content Wong Siew Ying said that the plot launch at Dairy Farm Walk “is not as exciting”, given that some private residential projects have already been launched in the area. “In bidding for the site, developers would consider the unsold supply at recent launches nearby,” she added.
Citing URA Realis caveat data, Wong said that The Botany at Dairy Farm, which was put on the market last March, has sold 90 per cent of its 386 units at an average unit price of more than S$2,050 psf. She added that she foresees the latest site tender to draw one or two bids, with a top bid of S$880 to S$950 psf ppr.
Similarly, OrangeTee & Tie chief executive Justin Quek expects two or three bidders, with a highest bid price of between S$900 and S$1,000 psf ppr.
The project completion period for the Dairy Farm Walk site stands at 60 months.
The land parcel at Tengah Garden Avenue spans 25,456 sq m and has a maximum GFA of 76,368 sq m. This plot is estimated by the URA to potentially yield 860 residential units, and it has a maximum building height of 60 m.
While Lee noted that demand for integrated mixed-use sites such as Tengah Garden Avenue is usually good, he estimates that the site will not draw more than three bidders, and the top bid may range between S$800 and S$850 psf ppr.
Meanwhile, both ERA’s Chu and PropNex’s Wong expect developers to be keen on the site, given rising property values in the region amid an improved transportation network.
Wong said that she foresees the site to attract two or three bids, coming in at between S$900 and S$980 psf ppr.
However, ERA’s Chu cautioned that despite the “alluring prospects”, the Tengah area remains a relatively unfamiliar locale for homebuyers. “Developers would need to balance demand drivers and supply influx from the surrounding new developments against gaining a first-mover advantage,” he added.
OrangeTee & Tie’s Quek said that he is expecting two to four bids for the plot, with the highest bid price ranging from S$850 to S$950 psf ppr.
The site’s project completion period stands at 66 months, subject to the first submission for regulatory approval on or before Dec 31, 2025.
The 10,493.9 sq m site at Bayshore Road can potentially yield 515 units. It has a GFA of 44,075 sq m and a maximum building height of 101 to 105 m. Its project completion period also stands at 60 months.
Chu noted that the Bayshore Road site will be the first private development in the new estate, in line with the first two Build-To-Order projects to be launched in October.
Furthermore, the site is in close proximity to the Bayshore MRT station and directly accessible to Marina Bay, the Central Business District and Orchard Road. “It will draw buyers living in the east, including HDB upgraders or those living in nearby landed homes rightsizing to a condominium unit without relocating too far away,” he pointed out.
Chu expects developers to trigger this site for sale due to the high demand for homes in the area. He noted that the last GLS site awarded in the area was in January 2016 and was hotly contested by eight bidders. It was eventually awarded at S$858 psf ppr.
Similarly, Huttons’ Lee also added that the site could see a top bid of between S$900 and S$950 psf ppr.
PropNex’s Wong, however, said that she does not expect the site to be triggered for sale so soon, amid upcoming launches and “ample supply” of housing units offered in the H1 2024 GLS programme. She noted that the site could be moved to the confirmed list in the second half of the year if developers do not apply for it.
URA said that the latest tender launch is the “highest supply” on the confirmed list in a single GLS programme since the H2 2013 GLS programme. To cater to demand, the government has increased the confirmed list supply of private housing in the GLS programme to 5,450 units in H1 2024, from 4,090 units in H1 2023 and 5,160 units in H2 2023.
The tenders for the Dairy Farm Walk and Tengah Garden Avenue sites will close at 12 pm on Jan 14, 2025.
https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/pro...ose-2000-homes
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