Tag Archives: Collective Sales

Kismis Lodge sold for S$84.8m in collective sale

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Kismis Lodge, a freehold residential development located at Lorong Kismis in Upper Bukit Timah, was successfully sold to Newfort Alliance (Cairnhill) Pte Ltd for S$84.8 million.

The sale price translates to S$1,198 per square foot, or a gross sale price of about S$1.3 million each unit.

Brokered by property consultants Jones Lang LaSalle, this is the third en bloc sale deal completed this year.

“The ample living space within a landed property appeals to multi-generational families,” said Yong Choon Fah, National Director of Investments at Jones Lang LaSalle.

“Despite the few rounds of property cooling measures, the demand for landed developments are expected to be fairly strong because the target market for landed developments are mainly Singaporean families,” Ms. Yong added.

Built in the 1970s, Kismis Lodge comprises 64 units of walk-up apartments housed in two 4-storey blocks.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 25 Mar 2013

Bright Chambers put up for collective sale by tender

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A commercial building at Middle Road has been put up for collective sale by tender.

The building known as Bright Chambers has an indicative price tag of between S$45 million and S$50 million.

The 9-storey building has 8 units with a total strata area of 34,972 square feet.

Exclusive agent for the deal Jones Lang LaSalle says the site has a land area of 5,263 square feet.

The building is located next to the Bugis shopping area at the junction of Middle Road and Victoria street and is near Bugis MRT station.

The global property consultant says accessibility to the development will be “further enhanced” with the upcoming MRT Downtown Line.

Regional director of investments at Jones Lang LaSalle, Karamjit Singh, says the development is attractive – thanks to its prominent road frontages within the Central Business District.

He adds that this “would be ideal as corporate headquarters and for owners looking for naming rights of the building”.

He notes: “As the leases are up for renewal, the buyer could also consider refurbishing the building and keep it as a long-term investment property that yields a steady stream of rental income.”

Mr Singh says: “The new buyer could further subdivide the space that appeals to small start-ups or entrepreneurs looking for an office space within the CBD.”

The tender will close at 3pm on 18 April 2013.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 20 Mar 2013

Ultra Mansion sold en bloc for S$149m

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Ultra Mansion, a freehold residential development near Novena MRT station in prime District 11 has been sold through a collective sale for S$149.130 million, in a deal brokered by Cushman & Wakefield (C&W).

“The sale of Ultra Mansion following the recent round of cooling measures illustrates the attractiveness of Singapore’s residential real estate market for investment. Residential units in the Novena vicinity have always enjoyed good demand because of its favourable rental yield,” said Christina Sim, Director of Capital Markets, Cushman & Wakefield Singapore.

The 48-unit property is located at 4 Derbyshire Road and was purchased by Fantasia (Novena), a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Fantasia Holdings Group.

The site is centrally located within the Novena commercial and medical hub and is close to good amenities.

Ultra Mansion could yield about 140,000 sq ft of gross floor area (GFA) and may be developed into a 170-unit residential project comprising one- and two-bedroom SOHO apartments.

Toby Dodd, Country Manager for Cushman & Wakefield Singapore, noted: “We are delighted by this sale and the positive sentiment shown from overseas developers in the Singapore residential market despite the latest round of government cooling measures. We are currently working on other similar projects, and expect to see more deals of this nature throughout the year.”

Source : PropertyGuru – 6 Mar 2013

En bloc market to be subdued due to new cooling measures

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The outlook for the en bloc market has become bleak in the aftermath of the latest round of cooling measures, according to experts.

“I think these measures caught everyone by surprise. For en bloc developers, the first couple of months will show more subdued dealing of land parcels. If developers are not confident to sell, they will not bid aggressively,” said Ian Loh, Head of Investment at Knight Frank Singapore.

With authorities focusing on the needs of first-time home buyers with restrictions such as the additional buyer’s stamp duty (ABSD) on investment properties, interest for second and third properties instantly queues off, noted Loh.

However, he reckons developers will consider en bloc sites “if everything is priced right” as such sites are one of the only sources of freehold land.

“We will also have to see if the upcoming scheduled budget has got anything optimistic for developers, with regards to lower manpower and construction costs. This may have certain effects as well on the outlook for en bloc sales in the coming year, since we cannot project an optimistic forward-looking outlook on sales volumes,” said Loh.

Experts feel that it will be difficult to see any record en bloc selling prices this year, with larger projects being ruled out and any activity likely to be dominated by smaller sites below S$200 million each, which would continue the trend of the past two years.

So far, two en bloc properties have been launched in 2013 and this was before the measures were announced last Friday.

Kismis Lodge off Toh Tuck Road was launched at a price tag of S$90 million while Villa Des Flores in prime District 11 is up for sale again for the third time since its initial launch in June last year.

Source : PropetyGuru – 17 Jan 2013

Whitley Rd property up for collective sale

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A freehold property on Whitley Road is up for a collective sale.

According to its marketing agent DTZ, the development Villa Des Flores is located in the Chancery-Bukit Tunggal neighbourhood.

The 9,696.3 square metre site can be redeveloped into a two-storey mixed landed housing project.

The developer has the option to build detached, semi-detached and terrace housing, or a combination of all.

As a cluster landed project, DTZ said the site can accommodate 24 strata bungalows, 48 strata semi-detached or 64 strata terrace houses.

Development charges are unlikely.

DTZ added that the property is near schools like Anglo Chinese School (Barker Road), Singapore Chinese Girls’ School, St Joseph’s Institution, and Catholic Junior College.

The development is also located close to the proposed Thomson Line’s Mount Pleasant station.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 9 Jan 2013

Thomson View sale hits a roadblock

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The eye-popping S$590 million collective sale of Thomson View Condominium faces opposition from 13 of its owners who claim the block is undervalued, The Straits Times reported.

As a result, the Strata Titles Board has issued a stop order that takes effect on 14 January as three rounds of mediation for the condo have been unsuccessful.

The main issue is reportedly the sale price. Those objecting feel they should receive more from the deal, noting that the nearby Upper Thomson MRT station, part of the upcoming Thomson Line, should boost the sale price.

The majority owners of the 255-unit property will have to make an application to the High Court for further adjudication.

Meanwhile, the stop order raises concerns that the sale could lead to a drawn out legal battle. According to experts, large-size developments usually face more objections.

“With more owners, there are likely to be more opinions and more people raising concerns, even if nothing might be wrong with the sale,” said a property lawyer.

“We haven’t seen as many stop orders recently because there haven’t been as many collective sales in the past year as compared with the en-bloc boom in 2006 and 2007.”

Thomson View was acquired by Wee Hur Development and Lucrum Capital for S$712 psf ppr in September last year, making it one of the biggest collective sales in recent years. This would give homeowners gross proceeds of S$1.62 million to S$3.59 million, according to earlier reports.

Meanwhile, Lucrum Capital remains “committed to the obligations of the contract”, said Director David Batchelor, while not providing specific details on the issue.

Source : PropertyGuru – 7 Jan 2013

Guang Ming Industrial Building at Paya Lebar up for collective sale

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Guang Ming Industrial Building, located at No 65 Upper Paya Lebar Road, has been put up for collective sale.

The freehold industrial ‘white site’ has a land area of 19,789 square feet.

Its marketing agent Cushman & Wakefield says the site is expected to fetch more than S$58 million.

Among the likely interested parties for the site include small to mid-sized developers and those companies looking for a site to locate their corporate headquarters, adds Cushman and Wakefield.

Developers can build up to a gross floor area of some 70,000 sq ft, including some 20,000 sq ft of retail and commercial space.

This is based on a maximum allowable plot ratio of 3.5.

Cushman & Wakefield’s Director of Investment Sales Christina Sim says prime locations like Tai Seng and Paya Lebar will make the building a “hot commodity”.

She adds that “the special ‘white zoning’ of the site will give an added boost to its development potential.

The tender will close on 5 February 2013.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 3 Jan 2013

Kismis Lodge up for en bloc sale

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Kismis Lodge, a freehold site located off Toh Tuck Road, is up for collective sale.

This is the second time the site is being put up for sale.

According to its marketing agent Jones Lang LaSalle, the 70,283 square feet site is zoned for a “3-storey mixed landed” development.

The site can be redeveloped to yield up to 43 strata terraces or a combination of conventional and strata landed homes, subject to design and planning approval.

“Given its location, we believe that the new development at Kismis Lodge could easily achieve between S$3.5 million to S$4.0 million for its strata terraces.” said Ms Yong Choon Fah, National Director, Jones Lang LaSalle.

Ms Yong added that keen interest from developers is expected.

The owners of Kismis Lodge are expecting offers in the region of S$90 million from the collective sale, or approximately $1,281 per square foot (psf).

That is at the lower end of its asking price of S$1,281 to S$1,352 psf when it was first put up for sale by Credo Real Estate last July.

There is no development charge payable for the site.

If successful, each owner of the 64-unit apartment will fetch approximately S$1.4 million.

More than 80 per cent of the owners by floor area and share value have consented to the collective sale.

The tender for Kismis Lodge closes at 2.30pm on January 24.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 2 Jan 2013

Two redevelopment sites go up for sale

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Two redevelopment sites at Balestier Road and Pasir Panjang Road have been launched for sale by tender, according to exclusive marketing agent Knight Frank.

The first site at 520 Balestier Road is a 1,971.3 sq m (around 21,219 sq ft) freehold plot zoned commercial and residential under the 2008 Master Plan. With a gross plot ratio of 3.0, it can offer a gross floor area (GFA) of 5,913.9 sq m (63,657 sq ft). Shops can be developed on the lower floors with apartments on the upper levels, but the commercial component should not exceed 40 percent of allowable floor area, as per URA’s guidelines.

“The guide price for the property is from S$68 million to S$75 million. Depending on the quantum of the commercial and residential GFA proposed, the prices reflect an equivalent land rate of approximately S$1,088 to S$1,198 for redevelopment up to a GPR of 3.0, after factoring in an estimated development charge at prevailing rates,” said Ian Loh, Director & Head of Investment at Knight Frank.

If an additional 10 percent balcony space for the residential component is factored in, the price translates to around S$1,056 to S$1,160 psf ppr, he added.

The site may be combined with an adjoining state land parcel of about 750 sq ft, subject to authorities’ approval — extending the site area to about 22,000 sq ft and the GFA to around 66,000 sq ft.

Meanwhile, the other site at 241 Pasir Panjang Road offers a land area of around 1,201.5 sq m (12,933 sq ft) and is zoned residential under the 2008 Master Plan with a gross plot ratio of 1.4.

The family-owned property comprises an old bungalow built in the 1930s. The site could be redeveloped into a bungalow, strata landed or strata residential units.

According to Mary Sai, Executive Director for Investment (Commercial Sales) at Knight Frank, the sellers expect bids to range between S$12 million and S$13 million, or S$928 to S$1,005 psf.

The tender for the sites at Pasir Panjang Road and Balestier Road will close on 5 and 13 December respectively.

Source : PropertyGuru – 6 Nov 2012

Orchard Road shopping malls face challenges in en bloc sale

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Tanglin Shopping Centre is trying for an en bloc sale for the second time.

It failed to find a buyer on its first attempt last year at a reserve price of S$1.25 billion.

In fact, there has never been a successful en bloc sale in the Orchard Road shopping belt.

Teresa Wong purchased a freehold shop spanning 330 square feet at Far East Plaza 25 years ago.

For the beauty therapist, the need to control costs was crucial.

She said: “The landlord might ask us to leave after two or three years. So my best bid was to buy the shop and stay here permanently. When we shift, we have to renovate. And renovation cost money.”

The shop space cost S$0.5 million back then and its current value is triple that or at least S$1.6 million.

Should an en bloc sale take place, Madam Wong would only sell at double the current value or S$3 million.

Satisfying the expectations of owners with shops of varying degrees of human traffic is a major obstacle to putting a strata-titled mall on the market.

Jones Lang LaSalle’s head of investments, residential, Karamjit Singh, said: “In Orchard Road, you will always have a situation where some trades, despite the age, may be doing very good business. Whenever you have that taking place, the owners are always very reluctant to sell because there aren’t many comparable replacement properties for them to channel their investments towards.”

This could also be the challenge to getting 80 percent of the 173 owners at Tanglin Shopping Centre to approve an en bloc sale. But, it may be second time lucky for this 40-year-old mall.

Christina Sim, director for investment and capital markets at Cushman & Wakefield, said: “They have a good chance of succeeding because I don’t think there are many big ticket commercial properties right now. And with QE3 coming in, there would be some hot money coming in too. What would likely happen is that a foreign investor would team up with a local developer to do this.”

Analysts say an en bloc sale attempt could be made easier should URA’s masterplan, reviewed once every five years, indicate a new building could yield more gross floor area than the existing one.

Another push factor to convincing numerous strata titled owners in a building to agree is to an en bloc sale is the change of land use from say shops to a hotel.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 23 Oct 2012