United House is being offered for S$166 million

On November 14, the bid for the building near Orchard Road will end.

Oct. 2, 2024

CONDOsingapore.com

Situated directly behind the Concorde Hotel and Shopping Centre, which is also up for sale, United House has been put up for sale through a tender for S$166 million.

The land rate, assuming the building is redeveloped for commercial use, is S$3,025 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr). The land rate, if redeveloped for hotel use, would be S$3,318 per square foot.

Approximately 1,192.7 square meters make up the freehold Orchard Road site. The site is zoned for commercial use with a plot ratio of 4.9 under the 2019 Master Plan of the Urban Redevelopment Authority.

A 10-story commercial building with a gross floor area of up to 62,900 square feet (sq ft) could be built on the site, according to marketing agent Swee Shou Fern, head of investment advisory at Edmund Tie.

A planning application for the site's conversion from commercial to hotel use has been filed by the owners.

Swee stated that the property is perfect for conversion into a hotel due to its prominent location on Orchard Road, which is a popular tourist destination.

Under the Strategic Development Incentive (SDI) program, investors may also think about redeveloping United House and its neighbours jointly in order to obtain a bonus plot ratio, provided that planning is approved.

Currently for sale is the Concorde Hotel and Shopping Centre, which has a guide price of S$820 million, or S$1,801 per square foot per person. The majority stake in the mixed-use development is held by Hotel Properties Limited (HPL), owned by Ong Beng Seng. The deadline for the Concorde tender is October 16.

"The buyer is free to think about strata subdivision for the new development because United House is outside of the areas where new strata subdivision of commercial space is restricted," Swee continued.

Two strata-titled office floors in the Tong Building were sold to The Hour Glass in September for S$68.5 million, or S$4,988 per square foot. Parkway Hospitals Singapore purchased Level 6 of the building for S$31.33 million, or S$4,562 per square foot.

After making three previous attempts, United House has finally obtained the 80% owner consent required to begin a collective sale.

UOL first listed United House for sale in 1989. In 1990, Hong Kong-based First Pacific Land, which was connected to Indonesian businessman Liem Sioe Liong, purchased the property for S$30.6 million, or S$900 per square foot.

The property was listed for sale by First Pacific barely a year later. Then, according to media reports, Jones Lang Wootton, a marketing consultant, was told to sell the five-story property either floor-by-floor or en bloc.

A 570 square foot flat at United House sold for S$983,888, or S$1,725 per square foot, in October 2023. For S$1.39 million, or S$2,690 per square foot, a 517 square foot apartment sold in September 2022.

In August, HPL received approval under the SDI scheme to transform HPL House, Voco Orchard Singapore, and The Forum mall into a mixed-use project that includes residential, commercial, retail, and hotel space.

On November 14, the United House tender will close at 3 p.m.