singapore property weekly issue 149

8/21/2019 Singapore Property Weekly Issue 149

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Issue 149Copyright 2011-2014 www.Propwise.sg. All Rights Reserved.
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CONTENTS

p2 How New Property Launches are Changing

in the Face of a Slowing Market

p7 Singapore Property News This Week

p12 Resale Property Transactions

(March 12 March 18)

Welcome to the 149th edition of the

Singapore Property Weekly.

Hope you like it!

Mr. Propwise

FROM THE

EDITOR
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 149

Page | 2Back to Contents

By Property Soul (guest contributor)

With property developers rushing to launch

new projects, the once quiet market is buzzing

again. I spent a few Saturdays visiting the

sales galleries of some property newlaunches, including the Jewel@Buangkok,

Sant Ritz, Bartley Ridge, the Panorama, etc. I

also went to see some mixed developments

like the VENUE Residences, Midtown

Residences and Nine Residences.

Figure 1: One of the new launches visited

How New Property Launches are Changing in the Face of a Slowing Market


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When sellers outnumber buyers

The URA recently released the sales figures

of new condos. Developers managed to sell a

total of 724 units in February. It is 28 per centhigher than January but is still some 55

percent lower than last years monthly

average.

With all the cooling measures, it is very

challenging to find buyers who can fit the

following criteria:

1. People who are keen to buy in this market.

2. People who are buying for the first time, or

dontmind paying the additional stamp duties.

3. People who have the financial muscle (and

patience) to go through the TDSR test.

Although developers claim that the project is

60 or 80 percent sold, no one can tell how

many of those buyers can successfully pass

the TDSR test and get financing from the

banks.

I am impressed by the rate developers arebuilding new projects. Even at the same

location, there is more than one project

launching at the same time. Some condos

nearby have just obtained TOP. And there are

a few more construction sites building in high

gear just across the street.Apart from projects within the first two weeks

of a new launch, the sales galleries are very

quiet, even on Saturday afternoons. There

are obviously more agents than buyers.

Sometimes I find myself as one of the one or

two buyers there. In other words, there are

plenty of launches, lots of unsold units and

many property agents, but few buyers.


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How things are changing in sales galleries

Like many others, I have no urgency to

plunge into the market right now. I am just

doing routine research to see what is on offer.But the scene is completely different from

what I have witnessed one or two years ago

in the following ways:

1. Length of setup

In the past, sales offices at actual sites are

quickly torn down to start building after most

units are sold. Now they can still be found at

the same place waiting for potential buyers

after six to nine months.

2. No more crowds

There is no more queue of eager buyers

waiting to submit a blank cheque. Gone are

the days when it is a common sight to see

countless pair of shoes lying in front of the

showflats. The half-empty carpark is now

filled with the cars of the sales

representatives instead.

3. Inside the sales galleriesDevelopers have become more sensitive

amid slower sales and intensified competition.

More sales offices are prohibiting visitors from

taking photos. One new launch even decided

not to distribute sales brochures until buyers

book a unit. They have someone from thedeveloper stationed there to ensure the

compliance of their policy.

4. In the showflats

Marble floorings are replaced with more

economical homogenous tiles. Functionalwardrobes are being substituted with simple

two-door wardrobes. Bathrooms that used to

feature branded accessories become no-frills

toilets with the absence of bathtubs.


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The explanations are 'easy maintenance by

the new generation of buyers.'

The project site is maximized to build more

units. A 650 sq ft flat can fit in two bedrooms.

A three-bedroom unit is now barely 900 sq ft.

They say this is the trend of new condos.

Some new sales tactics

There is no more sales pitch of 'if you don't

buy now prices will climb soon.' The promises

of quick profits and optimistic rental return are

also gone. Instead, buyers are told that

property is a long-term investment and it is

always profitable if they can hold it for more

than five years.

Now agents are adopting a problem-solutionapproach:

1. Given I already own a private property, I

was asked to refinance it in order to have

more cash on hand.

2. To avoid the 7 percent additional buyer

stamp duty, one agent asked me to sell my

shares to my husband to decouple our joint-

tenant property.

3. Another agent suggested to sell my

existing property before (or six months after)

the TOP of the new project in order to claim

the refund of the additional stamp duty.

Property agents as stalkers?

When I was about to leave a sales gallery for

another one only a stone's throw away, the

property agent volunteered to accompany me

for the short trip. When I told her that I could

find my way, she insisted that it was theircompany policy to do so.

She followed me to go inside her competitor's

sales office.


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Just when I was about to do the registration,

she pre-empted me by hurriedly entering her

own particulars. Then I heard her saying

aloud,

"She is my client. I am the exclusive agent

representing her. This is a co-broke case."

I was taken aback by this new arrangement

but was unsure whether I should clarify it

under these circumstances. It is a similar

situation when a guy follows a girl everywhere

to mislead everyone into believing that he is

her boyfriend. But the girl finds it hard to

clarify for fear of embarrassing him, herself,

and the others too.

The property agent continued to follow methroughout the visit until we left her

competitor's sales office. She asked me

which new launch I was planning to go next. I

said I just wanted to go home!

By guest contributor Property Soul, a

successful property investor and enthusiastwho shares her experiences and knowledge

onher blog.

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY I 149
http://propertysoul.com/http://www.moneymatters.sg/http://propertysoul.com/http://propertysoul.com/http://propertysoul.com/


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Singapore Property This Week


ResidentialR e c o r d p r o p o r t i o n m a d e b y s u b - 8 0 0 s q f t

u n i t s

47.6 percent of non-landed private homes

sold in 2013 were reported to be small units

of up to 800 sq ft a record for the unit type,

compared with 43.4 percent in 2012 and over

40 percent in 2011. CBRE Research

associate director Desmond Sim commented

that this shows a function of supply where

developers reduced unit sizes to make the

absolute price quantum affordable to buyers

affected by tighter loan limits. This increase

was not due to shoebox apartments (below

500 sq ft) but due to 500-800 sq ft units. In

fact, the proportion of 500-800 sq ft units

went up to 34.4 percent in 2013, compared

with 29.7 percent in 2012 and 25.9 percent in

2011; while the proportion of shoebox units

went down from 13.8 percent in 2012 to 13.2

percent in 2013.

(Source: Business Times)

N e w BT O f la t s st i l l in d e ma n d

In HDBs second Build-To-Order (BTO)

launch in 2014, another 3,497 flats in the non-

mature towns of Sembawang, Sengkang and

Yishun will be released, making the total

number of flats for sale reach 6,636 for thisyear. These newly launched flats are of two-

room, five-room, three-generation (3Gen)

types for the needs of first-timers, second-

timers, multi-generation families and singles.

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY I 149


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Analysts said that healthy interest in BTO

flats is still expected, in spite of decreasing

prices and slowing sales in the resale market.

(Source: Business Times)Go ver nm en t releas es t h ree 99-y ear

le ase h o ld si t e s

The government has released three 99-year

leasehold sites which will yield 1,300 housing

units. The first two sites are executivecondominium (EC) sites as Yishun Street 51

up for tender from the confirmed list of the

Government Land Sales (GLS) programme,

yielding 1,010 units. The gross floor area

(GFA) of Parcel A is 50,302 sq m, and of

Parcel B is 51,139 sq m. Their closing date isMay 22. The third site is the condominium site

at Margaret Drive with a permissible gross

floor area of 22,195 sq m, yielding 275 units.

It will be put on sale upon the lodging of an

acceptable offer.


F i x ed -r a te l o a n s r i s e a m o n g h o m e b u y e r s

DBS Bank said that one in two home buyers

took up fixed-rate loans, compared with 30

percent in early 2014 due to rising interest

rates. The key three-month Sibor (Singapore

interbank offered rate) increased to 0.40568per cent, up 0.9 percent from the previous

week, and up 9.3 percent from about a year

ago. This could make buyers aware of the

quickly changing rates in reaction to market

events, and choose an attractive set of rates

in a mostly low-interest environment. DBSBank expected the interest rates to continue

going up.




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U n i t s a t t h e Dr a y c o t t c o n d o u p f o r s a l e

38 units at the Draycott condominium (30

units in the tower block facing Goodwood Hill)

have been put on sale by expression of

interest by the investment holding company of

the family that developed the condo. The

estimated absolute price is $198 million, or

$1,900 psf for the 104,429 sq ft of the total

strata area, which comprises 31 percent by

share value and strata area of the whole

development that has a total of 133 units. The

site is along Draycott Park, next to Ardmore

Park.


Ta m p i n e s c o n d o l a u n c h e d o n M a r c h 2 9

597-unit condominium The Santorini at

Tampines Avenue 10, developed by MCC

Land a unit of Hong Kong and Shanghai-

listed Metallurgy Corporation of China, has

been launched on March 29. The

development is surrounded by Bedok

Reservoir and Tampines Quarry, and is

Mediterranean-inspired. The expected

average price is from $1,100 to $1,200 psf,consistent with consultantsprice forecasts of

above $1,100 psf as the break-even price for

the project is from $940 to $1,050 psf.


M o r e p r o p e r t ie s u p f o r a u c t i o n , f ew s o l d

As sellers have difficulty moving sales in the

secondary market, they turn to the auction

market, causing the number of properties put

up for sale via auction to increase. However,

cautious buyers did not quickly make

transactions. Colliers International said that

132 properties were put up for sale via

auction in Q1 2014, compared with 120 in Q4

2013.



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Only six properties were sold in Q1, making

$17.87 million and which was a 76.5 percent

drop from 2013 with the sale of four high-

value properties.


Q 1 i n v es t m en t s al es s t ay ed q u i et i n Q 1

2014

Figures from CBRE and Savills showed that

investment sales of Singapore property were

stagnant for Q1 2014. Residential property

sales under the Government Land Sales

(GLS) Programme accounted for 49 percent

of the $3.8 billion of investment sales volume.

The final figure of the sale volume is expected

to be more than the $3.9 billion of Q4 2013,

although both figures were the lowest sincethe $3.3 billion tally of Q4 2009. Savills said

that the situation could be caused by weak

investment during the Chinese New Year

festivities, the Total Debt Servicing Ratio, and

the price gap between buyers and sellers.


Commercial

R e t a i l r e n t s r e ma in slu g g ish in Q 1

DTZ Research said that retail rents remained

sluggish in Q1, 2014. Transactions were

reported to take longer, retailers were

unaffected by rent increases, and landlordsasking prices were unshaken. An

approximately 2.4 million sq ft of net lettable

retail space completed in 2014, however, was

thought to be able to change the situation

since it accounts for 45 percent of the total

5.4 million sq ft retail space released until

2018. 56 percent of this 2.4 million sq ft is in

suburban areas, 24 percent in city fringes,

and 20 percent in Orchard/Scotts Road.




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3 9 9 Eu n o s in d u st r ia l u n it s t o b e r e lo ca t e d

Under the Industrial Redevelopment

Programme (IRP), the 14th batch of 399 units

across 26 blocks in the Eunos Industrial

Estate will be relocated by HDB for future

redevelopment. The tenants will be given

replacement units in the Industrial Complex in

Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 3, which will be

completed in the middle of 2018. The

remaining units will also be relocated in other

IRP batches. The IRP was launched in 1997

with 13 IRP batches until now and has

relocated 3,000 industrial units.


2 J T C i n d u s t r i al s i t e s f o r b i d s

Two ready-to-build industrial sites Plot 49 and

Plot 51 at Tuas South Street 9 under the

Industrial Government Land Sales (IGLS)

programme have been launched by JTC for

bidding. Each site is 8,369 sq ft in size and

the gross plot ratio is one. The tenure for both

sites is 21 years two months.


D et ac h ed s h o p h o u s e b l o c k a t K a m p o n g

G l am u p f o r s a l e

The freehold, detached shophouse block at

Kampong Glam and three adjoining plots of

prime good class bungalow land were up for

sale by expression of interest. The shophouse

block in particular has three shophouse units

of part one-storey and two-storey shophouses

at 32, 34 and 34A Sultan Gate. The current

tenant is in the food and beverage industry,

and their lease ends in September 2015. The

indicative price is around $28 million for aland area of about 7,401 sq ft. The site is

flanked by a public car park and a side lane.




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Non-Landed Residential Resale Property Transactions for the Week of Mar 12 Mar 18

Postal

DistrictProject Name

Area

(sqft)

Transacted

Price ($)

Price

($ psf)Tenure

1 MARINA BAY RESIDENCES 1,066 2,250,000 2,111 99

1 RIVERWALK APARTMENT 818 1,250,000 1,528 99

3 ASCENTIA SKY 947 1,590,000 1,679 99

3 QUEENS 1,184 1,445,000 1,220 99

5 DOVER PARKVIEW 1,249 1,500,000 1,201 99

8 CITY SQUARE RESIDENCES 1,195 1 ,750,000 1,465 FH

9 HELIOS RESIDENCES 1,668 4,900,000 2,937 FH

9 VIDA 506 1,155,000 2,283 FH

9 THE LIGHT @ CAIRNHILL 2,443 4,950,000 2,026 FH

9 ESTILO 549 970,000 1,767 FH9 LEONIE SUITES 926 1,610,000 1,739 99

9 CAIRNHILL PLAZA 3,305 5,450,000 1,649 FH

9 EURO-ASIA COURT 1,066 1,580,000 1,483 FH

9 ASPEN HEIGHTS 1,561 2,230,000 1,429 999

10 THE TRESOR 1,012 1,900,000 1,878 999

10 GALLOP GABLES 3,175 5,400,000 1,701 FH

10 CORONATION GROVE 1,249 1,980,000 1,586 999

10 THE MERASAGA 1,399 2,200,000 1,572 99

10 THE TESSARINA 1,313 1,980,000 1,508 FH10 VERDURE 1,733 2,600,000 1,500 FH

10 TANGLIN REGENCY 1,044 1,430,000 1,370 99

11 NEWTON ONE 1,916 3,368,888 1,758 FH

11 THE LINCOLN MODERN 1,378 1,928,888 1,400 FH

12 D'LOTUS 1,066 1,290,000 1,211 FH

Postal


Area

(sqft)

Transacted

Price ($)

Price

($ psf)Tenure

12 KEMAMAN POINT 1,292 1,300,000 1,006 FH

14 DAKOTA RESIDENCES 1,023 1,430,000 1,398 99

14 STARVILLE 581 740,000 1,273 FH

14 STARVILLE 1,216 1,095,000 900 FH

15 ONE FORT 1,227 1,818,000 1,482 FH

15 COSTA RHU 2,239 3,300,000 1,474 99

15 EAST ELEGANCE 441 600,000 1,360 FH

15 THE ESTA 1,593 2,100,000 1,318 FH

16 COSTA DEL SOL 1,313 1,670,000 1,272 99

16 WATERFRONT KEY 1,173 1,408,000 1,200 9916 CASA MERAH 1,227 1,470,000 1,198 99

16 BAYWATER 1,292 1,430,000 1,107 99

16 THE BAYSHORE 980 1,010,000 1,031 99

16 PALMWOODS 1,023 970,000 949 99

17 FERRARIA PARK CONDOMINIUM 915 980,000 1,071 FH

17 FERRARIA PARK CONDOMINIUM 936 895,000 956 FH

17 EDELWEISS PARK CONDOMINIUM 2,691 2,220,000 825 FH

18 SAVANNAH CONDOPARK 1,023 955,000 934 99

18 THE TROPICA 1,238 1,150,000 929 9918 MELVILLE PARK 1,475 1,070,000 726 99

19 KOVAN MELODY 1,410 1,650,000 1,170 99

19 SUNGLADE 1,109 1,250,000 1,127 99

19 RIO VISTA 1,238 1,060,000 856 99

19 RIVERVALE CREST 1,141 930,000 815 9 9



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NOTE: This data only covers non-landed residential resale propertytransactions with caveats lodged with the Singapore Land Authority.Typically, caveats are lodged at least 2-3 weeks after a purchasersigns an OTP, hence the lagged nature of the data.

Postal


Area

(sqft)

Transacted

Price ($)

Price

($ psf)Tenure

20 BISHAN POINT 1,270 1,300,000 1,023 99

20 BISHAN PARK CONDOMINIUM 1,324 1,215,000 918 99

21 THE CASCADIA 1,184 2,012,800 1,700 FH

21 THE CASCADIA 1,184 1,980,000 1,672 FH

21 THE HILLSIDE 1,356 1,628,000 1,200 FH

23 HILLVISTA 1,206 1,618,000 1,342 FH

23 THE LINEAR 1,378 1,280,000 929 999

26 BULLION PARK 807 838,000 1,038 FH

27 ORCHID PARK CONDOMINIUM 1,249 975,000 781 99

28 SUNRISE GARDENS 2,034 1,500,000 737 99
http://propertymarketinsights.com/

singapore property weekly issue 149

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