Merchant Square, an office building located at the fringe of the Central Business District (CBD), is up for sale by Expression of Interest. The building, completed in 1996, comprises a four-storey office tower and two blocks of shophouses. It is situated close to the junction of Merchant Road and Clemenceau Avenue, with a tenure of 99 years leasehold from 1993. CB Richard Ellis, which is the sole...
2009
The next phase of the Circle Line – Stages 1 and 2 – will start operations in the first half of 2010. Transport Minister Raymond Lim revealed this at a dialogue session in Bukit Panjang on Sunday. Its exact opening date, however, will only be finalised after engineers complete the necessary tests. The first five stations on the Circle Line opened for service on May 28. Even though ridership has not...
Some consider the seventh month of the lunar calendar an inauspicious time to buy a property. But it seems like the Hungry Ghost Festival is not going to spook homebuyers and property investors in Singapore. A 99-year condominium at Toa Payoh was open for sale on Saturday and within a couple of hours, about 85 per cent of the 400 units available in the first two phases were snapped up. In response to...
Judging from the brisk sales at launches, it appears many Singaporeans have jumped on the runaway property bandwagon. But before you get caught up in the sales pitches and showroom euphoria of property agents cheering as each unit is sold, industry players warn that you should step back, take a breath and think twice. This, they say applies to both HDB upgraders as well as those looking for a second...
Last month, more than 20 landed homes in Serangoon Gardens and Lorong Chuan areas changed hands, according to URA Realis database of caveats lodged. From July 24 to 31 alone, contracts were signed for 10 properties — seven terraced houses, a pair of semi-detached homes and a single-storey bungalow. One of the oldest housing estates in Singapore, Serangoon Gardens Estate was built for British soldiers...
Another international school has opened its doors in Singapore, hoping to fill an expected demand for foreign-style education system here and in the Asia Pacific. According to Singapore-based education group Cognita, although earlier surveys had estimated the exodus of some 2,000 international students, improvements in Singapore's economy have in fact led to an increase in expatriates moving into the...
Asian real estate investment trusts (REITs) have bounced back strongly in the first half of 2009, according to a recent analyst report by property consultancy CBRE. Their total market capitalisation rose 14.3 per cent for the period. Analysts said on Thursday this performance was driven by improving credit conditions, government support for re-financing – especially for Japan REITs (J-REITs) – and...
Mainboard-listed developer Guocoland has posted a full year net loss of S$70.2 million, reversing a S$161.8 million net profit in the previous financial year. The net loss was mainly due to a revaluation loss of S$81million on its Tung Centre property, write-downs in values of development properties in Malaysia and foreign exchange losses. Revenue for the financial year ended June fell 24 per cent to...
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has investigated over 500 cases of illegal subletting at private residences so far this year. That's 25 per cent more than the whole of 2008. These involve the unauthorised partitioning of apartments, shophouses and terrace units into smaller units in order to sublet them individually. Authorities said the majority of offences involved turning residential units...
Mainboard-listed property firm Sim Lian Group said its full year net profit fell 12 per cent to S$38.7 million from a year earlier. The drop in profit was mainly a result of allowances for a foreseeable loss in a development project and a decline in fair values of investment properties. Revenue for the financial year ended June rose 48 per cent to S$575.5 million, mainly due to higher revenue from its...