Only religious groups that actively contribute to the community can bid for land reserved for places of worship, the Ministry of National Development (MND) said on Thursday (Sep 13) in a press release outlining changes to the tender framework for place of worship land. MND will be tightening the prerequisites for such tenders, which used to be evaluated solely on price, it said in the press...

HDB flats were in the limelight again earlier this year, when the matter of lease decay became a hot-button issue. Many flat owners were concerned over the value of their own flats, as it was mentioned that they would eventually become zero at the end of 99 years and that not all flats will be eligible for the Selective En Bloc Redevelopment Scheme (Sers). In fact, only an estimated 5 per cent of HDB...

Funeral parlour operators here could benefit from taking over just 10ha of some 1,500ha of land currently occupied by 17 golf courses, some panellists suggested, during a discussion on the future of the business in land-scarce Singapore. The industry is facing a space crunch as it is often relegated to operating in industrial estates, and leases are typically for only three years. Funeral director...

The lacklustre rental market for both private and HDB properties dragged on for another month, going by data from real estate portal SRX on Wednesday. Rents for condominiums and private apartments in August dipped by 0.1 per cent from July, after being unchanged since May. This brings private rents back to year-ago levels, that is August 2017. Private property rents are also now down by 19.1 per cent...

Freehold development Gisborne Light in district 10 will be put up for collective sale in a public tender starting Sept 13, with an asking price of S$37 million, which translates to S$1,671 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr). "The land rate of Gisborne Light is attractive and fairly adjusts for the current market sentiment following the introduction of new cooling measures on July 6, 2018," said...

Singapore's small construction firms are likely to face more difficulties repaying debt as a clampdown on property speculation worsens their already tight liquidity. The island's economy grew at a slower pace in the second quarter than initially projected as construction plunged. Singapore increased stamp duties for developers in July, and also tightened borrowing limits for individuals taking up their...

Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) has acquired a portfolio of 14 purpose-built student accommodation buildings across six towns and cities in the United Kingdom for about £180.5 million (S$321 million) cash, it announced early on Monday morning. The buildings, acquired from the Unite Group, have a total capacity of 3,436 beds. They include 10 freehold assets and four leasehold assets, and are located in...

Resale prices of private non-landed homes fell last month, ending a 12-month climb to record highs, after the latest property cooling measures came in effect in July. Resale prices of condominiums and private apartments dropped by 0.2 per cent in August from the previous month, real estate portal SRX Property's flash estimates released on Tuesday showed. Compared to August 2017, resale prices are up...

Real estate agency HSR International Realtors has been fined S$12,500 over its agents' failure to properly advise investors of the risks involved in purchasing properties in Bangkok. For breaching the Council for Estate Agencies’ (CEA) Practice Guidelines, the agency was also barred from marketing or selling foreign properties for six months, starting Sep 10, CEA said in a media release on Tuesday...

The Government will not rule out the possibility of giving private developers a role in the Voluntary Early Redevelopment Scheme (VERS), Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong said in Parliament on Monday (Sep 10). Responding to a question from MP Cheryl Chan, Mr Wong said the Government already “inject(s) some private development” in the redevelopment process for the Selective En bloc...