ASEAN environment ministers have approved the nomination of Bukit Timah Nature Reserve in Singapore and Mount Malindang Range Natural Park in the Philippines as new ASEAN Heritage Parks (AHP). To date, 30 national protected areas have been designated as AHPs. The AHP aims to generate greater awareness, appreciation, enjoyment and conservation of ASEAN's rich natural heritage, through the creation of a...
General
The tender of a commercial site at Sims Avenue / Tanjong Katong Road closed on Tuesday with only one bid - a joint tender by UOL Group and Singapore Land for S$529 million. The 99-year lease site was launched by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) on July 26 and has a maximum permissible gross floor area of 86,918 square metres. The tender price translates to about S$565.74 psf of gross floor area...
Singapore-listed mall developer CapitaMalls Asia made its debut on the Hong Kong main bourse on Tuesday. The counter was listed by way of introduction, which means no new shares were issued or funds raised. The shares closed at HK$7.79 on the Hong Kong bourse. By comparison, the counter settled at S$1.24 a share on the Singapore bourse. Taking into account the exchange rate difference, the Hong Kong...
The MP for Holland Bukit Timah GRC, Christopher De Souza said that though housing policies need fine-tuning, the foundation of these policies are still sturdy. He was responding to concerns expressed by Non-Constituency MP Gerald Giam of the Workers' Party (WP) on the public housing situation in Singapore. "BTO flats do not solve the immediate housing problem, because it takes up to three years before...
Singapore’s en bloc market is heating up, with over S$1.5 billion worth of private properties launched for sale as of yesterday. After the Dragon Mansion en bloc sale exercise on Monday (S$142m target for Dragon Mansion collective sale), three more sites followed in its path, with the Faber Garden site along Upper Thomson Road being the most expensive at $830 million. “En bloc land sites require a...
The authorities are getting tougher on errant estate agencies and agents. Industry watchdog, the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) has formed an Inspection and Compliance Section - aimed at detecting infringements and unethical behaviours. Executive director of CEA, Chionh Chye Khye said: "Staff will carry out inspection and compliance checks to ensure that estate agents have in place proper systems for...
The government is seeking the public's views on the real estate agency industry. A nation-wide survey was announced by Minister of State for National Development, Lee Yi Shyan on Tuesday. The survey will cover four areas, including consumer satisfaction and expectations. The results will guide the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) in industry development and consumer education. Mr Lee was speaking at...
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has launched the industrial site at Gambas Avenue / Gambas Crescent for sale via public tender today. The land parcel was made available for sale through the Reserve List system on 24 June 2011. On 4 October 2011, URA announced that it had received an application from a developer to put up the land parcel for tender. The developer has committed to bid at a price of...
New home sales in Singapore surged last month despite global macroeconomic uncertainties and stock market volatility, driven by strong demand in mass market condominiums from HDB upgraders. Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) data released yesterday showed developers sold 1,631 private homes last month, up 20.7 per cent from the 1,351 units in August. A total of 1,321 units were sold in the outlying...
On the back of a projected increase in tourists arrivals, analysts at CBRE Hotels now expect hotel occupancy in Singapore to exceed 86 per cent, up from its previous projection of 83 to 86 per cent. This despite an 11 per cent increase in supply of new hotels this year and an estimated six per cent increase next year and the year after. Robert McIntosh, Executive Director (Asia Pacific) of CBRE Hotels,...