THE buzz continues at property launches on the island. City Developments said yesterday that it achieved about $190 million of sales from selling about 150 units at The Arte at Thomson since March 21.

The freehold project is priced at $880 psf on average. No premium is being being charged for an interest absorption scheme (IAS) that CDL has extended to buyers. The scheme means buyers pay just the initial 20 per cent to CDL and defer paying the bulk of their purchase price until The Arte is completed. However, buyers have to take up a housing loan at the point of purchase.

CDL has released 180 of the total 336 units in the project, which comprises two 36-storey high towers.

The majority of The Arte’s buyers have private home addresses. Most of the units are going for under $2 million.

Over at Holland Road, Bukit Sembawang is releasing more units at its freehold Verdure from today. It has sold 14 of the 34 apartments in the five-storey project released last weekend. Verdure comprises 69 apartments, with an average price of about $1,350 psf, and six strata semi-detached homes, which cost about $4.8 million on average.

Bukit Sembawang had previously offered an IAS without charging any premium, but from today, buyers will have to pay 2 per cent more to benefit from the IAS.

Over at Tembeling Road in the Katong area, Alpha Land International is offering a small development with a total of 12 apartments. Prices in the five-storey freehold project, which is expected to be completed towards the end of this year or early next year, range from $663,840 (for an 818 sq ft two-bedroom unit) to $1.64 million (for a 2,379 sq ft four-bedder penthouse).

Alpha Land is offering an early bird discount in the form of renovation packages ranging from $10,000 to $25,000, depending on the size of the units. Tembeling Court is being marketed by Texan Associates.

Sim Lian Group will also launch its 360-unit HDB project Parc Lumiere tomorrow. Offered under HDB’s design, build and sell scheme, units in the Simei development have an average selling price of $425 psf. Parc Lumiere has four and five-room flats, with four-room flats selling for $378,000-$425,000 and five-room flats going for $462,000-$575,000. Source: Business Times, 17 April 2009

But healthiest quarterly sales in more than a year may not signal sustained recovery

(SINGAPORE) A ray of hope dispelled some gloom in the private home market yesterday when new data showed developers selling 1,220 new units in March. This brings the number sold in Q1 2009 to 2,660 – the best quarterly performance since Q3 2007.

But could this be a false dawn? Citing weak economic fundamentals, several industry watchers believe that it is still too early to say if a nascent recovery has begun.

According to Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) figures from developer submissions, private home sales held up in March and dipped just 8 per cent below the 1,332 units sold in February.
Both months’ showings were markedly better than in January, when buyers took up just 108 units.
In fact, the number of units sold in Q1 2009 has already reached around 60 per cent of that for the whole of 2008.

‘Most of the demand in the first three months of the year was from Singaporeans and permanent residents, a significant proportion of whom comprised HDB upgraders,’ said CBRE Research executive director Li Hiaw Ho.

Indeed, new launches in mass-market to mid-tier projects contributed to the bulk of sales in March. The most popular was Double Bay Residences in Simei – developers UOL Group and Kheng Leong sold 264 units at a median price of $659 psf.

Far East Organization also sold 101 units at its Mi Casa condominium in Choa Chu Kang at a median price of $617 psf, while 90 units at City Developments’ The Arte fetched a median price of $874 psf.

There is ‘strong demand for lower-range properties in the outer areas that are priced below $1,000 psf,’ observed PropNex CEO Mohamed Ismail.

The mass-market and mid-tier sectors also dominated recent launches. DTZ senior director of research Chua Chor Hoon noted that 95 per cent of all launches in Q1 09 were outside the prime districts 9, 10 and 11. Developers brought out 832 new units in March, down 22 per cent from the 1,072 in February.

In contrast, activity in the Core Central Region continued to lag behind in March. Reception to The Mercury at Shanghai Road was the strongest, with buyers taking up 62 units at a median price of $1,148 psf.

The retreat of foreigners from the luxury property market could be one reason for the weak performance, said Knight Frank’s director of research and consultancy Nicholas Mak. ‘Preliminary figures suggest that the percentage of foreign transactions stood at 16.8 per cent in Q1 2009, settling at levels observed in Q2 2003 when the Sars outbreak badly affected the market.’

On the whole, most observers BT spoke to believe that the property market still faces downside risks – the coming months may see prices stay flat or fall and the number of units sold may decrease.

‘Historically, economic recovery precedes property market recovery,’ said DTZ’s Ms Chua. ‘Right now, there is no economic fundamental to support a bottoming of the property market.’

Just on Tuesday, the government cut its 2009 economic growth forecast again to a range of minus 6 to minus 9 per cent.

Already, there are signs of developers lowering prices to push sales. For instance, 6 units in Kovan Residences went for $782-$865 psf in February, achieving a median price of $809 psf. By March, 56 units were sold at a median price of $705 psf, with overall prices ranging from $597-$823 psf.

In fact, price cuts and the relatively affordable costs of smaller units could have spurred demand in the last few months, said DMG & Partners Securities analyst Brandon Lee. CIMB analyst Donald Chua also expects more price adjustments to happen at projects that have not been fully taken up.

In terms of new units that can be sold in the next nine months, few market watchers were confident of seeing the 1,000-a-month mark being crossed often. Some estimate that the transaction volume this year may range from 6,000-8,000 units in total. This would still be an improvement on 2008, when 4,264 units were sold.

Still, it’s not smooth sailing. Even some popular projects are taking back units. URA data indicates that buyers returned 20 units at the Caspian and 10 units at the Alexis between February and March.

URA will release more concrete data on home sales on April 24. Among other factors, its real estate statistics for Q1 2009 will take into account options on units sold that subsequently lapsed later.

Source: Business Times, 16 April 2009

(SINGAPORE) Here’s yet more evidence that there’s still demand for attractively priced condos in the mass-market segment. Property tycoon Ng Teng Fong’s Far East Organization has sold 97 units at its Mi Casa condo near Choa Chu Kang MRT Station since it began sales last week.

Mi Casa: Located near Choa Chu Kang MRT Station, the 457-unit 99-year leasehold condo has an average price of $625 psf. Buyers who wish to opt for an interest absorption scheme will have to pay 3% more

The 99-year leasehold condo has an average price of $625 per square foot. Buyers who wish to opt for an interest absorption scheme will have to pay 3 per cent more.

The 457-unit condo is being developed on a plot along Choa Chu Kang Drive which is diagonally opposite Lot One mall.

In a news release last night, Far East said Mi Casa is the first new private condo project in the Choa Chu Kang town centre in eight years and offers an ‘attractive value proposition’ to HDB upgraders and private home owners in the area.

Upgraders accounted for 80 per cent of Mi Casa’s buyers. A number of buyers also own landed homes in the area and bought units at Mi Casa for investment and for their children, according to Far East. Mi Casa also drew some foreign buyers (such as China nationals and Malaysians).

Far East Organization unit Tian Hock Properties bought the Mi Casa site at a state tender in May last year for $116.01 million or $203 per square foot per plot ratio.

Over at the Balestier Road area, City Developments is understood to have sold another 30 units between Friday and Sunday at The Arte at Thomson freehold condo.

This brings total sales in the project to nearly 90 units. The 336-unit project, which will comprise two 36-storey blocks, is being offered at an average sellling price of about $880-890 psf.

At Somerville Road, boutique developer HLH Group has sold eight of the total 25 units at its D’Almira condo since it began previews three weeks ago.

The average price of the five-storey freehold apartment development is about $750 psf, says ERA divisional director Andrew Soh, who is marketing the project.

HLH is not offering any interest absorption scheme; buyers will have to make normal progress payments on their units when they are billed by the developer, in accordance with the stage of construction.

In the River Valley area, Fortune group sold another five units last week at The Mercury in Shanghai Road. The average price for the freehold project is ‘$1,200 psf plus’, according to Fortune Development general manager Victor Soh.

Interest absorption scheme is available to buyers in exchange for a 3 per cent premium. To date, 64 of the total 67 units in the project have been sold.

Source: Business Times, 31 Mar 2009

SOME home hunters have been packing showflats in the Balestier area and buying units, even as the general property market remains weak.

City Developments (CDL) said yesterday it has sold ‘about 60 per cent’ of the 100 units at The Arte@Thomson at an average price of $880 per sq ft since a hush-hush preview started last Friday.

The Arte has 336 fairly large units in two 36-storey blocks in Jalan Datoh, off Balestier Road.

The 60 or so units were transacted at $852,800 to $2.46 million, said a CDL spokesman.

Most of those sold were two- and three-bedroom units. The two-bedroom units are 1,055sqft, while nearly half of the project comprises three-bedroom units ranging from 1,399 sq ft to 1,625sqft.

CDL said it had extended the interest absorption scheme (IAS) to buyers during the preview at no extra cost, but could not yet say how many buyers had taken advantage of it.

‘Buyers are given some time to decide if they wish to take up the IAS,’ said the spokesman.
The scheme allows buyers to defer the bulk of the purchase price until completion on condition that they take up a loan at the point of sale.

The CDL spokesman said the $880 per sq ft price was being offered for a limited number of units only. ‘We will be reviewing the price and adjusting it upwards progressively,’ he said.

The encouraging sales at The Arte came amid a still-slow market as some other launches see relatively weak interest. Demand for high-end homes, in particular, remains poor.

New home sales in February were lifted to a relatively high level, but that was largely due to the strong sales at three mass to mid-end projects. Many buyers went for small units as their absolute prices were low, and hence affordable.

Just last week, Keppel Land deferred the construction of two yet-to-be-launched projects – Marina Bay Suites in Marina Bay and Madison Residences in Bukit Timah – because of the slumping market.

In the Balestier area, the new showflats benefited from spillover crowds from the various launches, said Savills Residential director Phylicia Ang, who is marketing the 104-unit Domus in the area.

Released for sale two weeks ago, Domus, in Irrawaddy Road, welcomed visitors who had initially attended The Arte preview.

So far, 33 units – out of the 59 launched at Domus – have been sold at an average of $900 per sq ft, or from $480,000 to $1.2 million, said Ms Ang.

The sales included 20 one-bedroom units of 474sqft.

Novelty Group’s I-Residences, a 70-unit project in Irrawaddy Road, is about 50 per cent sold since its private preview late last year.

Nearby, on the former Ruby Plaza site, Soilbuild had a preview for The Mezzo, which offers a 6 per cent rental guarantee for two years. It did not comment on sales.

Source: Straits Times, 27 Mar 2009

Success of two new launches encourages a few developers to release their projects

Thanks to the mini-buzz created by two new successful launches – Caspian in Jurong and Alexis @ Alexandra – a few developers have decided to release their projects for sale.

It is an improvement, even if it is just a slight one, from the very sombre mood a month ago, when market watchers were expecting the lull in the market to continue.

Over the weekend, TG Development launched 30 units of the freehold, 102-unit St Patrick’s Residences in St Patrick’s Road in the East.

On average, prices start at around $675 per sq ft (psf) for a two-bedroom unit and rise to about $900 psf for a four-bedroom penthouse.

Unit sizes range from 1,152 sq ft for the two-bedroom units to 3,423sqft for the four-bedroom penthouses. Some three-bedroom units can cost just under $1 million.

The interest absorption scheme, which allows buyers – if they take a loan from the start – to defer making any payments beyond the initial down payment until the project is completed, is offered at a 3 per cent premium.

Marketing agent Savills said the condominium offers quality furnishings and fittings usually associated with prime projects, and that a few units have been sold since the preview a week ago.

Near Upper Bukit Timah, Hiap Hoe has launched The Beverly, its 118-unit condo in Toh Tuck Road.

Each unit is served by a private lift. Prices start at $648 psf; the average price is $750 psf. This means that the total price per unit should start from just below $1 million.

Unit sizes range from 1,120 sq ft for the two-bedders to 4,187 sq ft for the four-bedders. There are also double-storey penthouses from 2,099 sq ft to 3,757 sq ft. Hiap Hoe is not offering the interest absorption scheme.

Other projects expected this month include Double Bay Residences in Simei, The Arte in Thomson, Domus in Irrawaddy Road and an 18-storey project in River Valley.

These are in the mass- to mid-market categories that, unlike the high-end segment, are still attracting buyers.

New home sales in January had plunged to a new low as developers and buyers kept to the sidelines.

The two new projects that sold very well about two to three weeks ago – Caspian and Alexis – helped revive the market mood to a certain extent.

The Caspian showflat was packed during the preview, when 300 out of 712 units were sold at average prices starting from $580 psf. So far, more than 500 units have been sold.

The 293 Alexis units were all sold at $950 psf to $1,250 psf, but the absolute prices were reasonable, given that most units are small.

At a results briefing last Thursday, City Developments’ Kwek Leng Joo cited the good take-up at the two projects as proof that there is still demand.

‘The good response to recent launches is true,’ he said.

Still, the stock market and buying sentiment remain weak.

Ms Phylicia Ang, director of Savills Residential, said: ‘The affordability threshold is key at this point.
In the current market, it is important to price projects at an attractive level to attract buyers.’

The UOL group should start selling the 646-unit Double Bay Residences near the Simei MRT station soon. It declined to give pricing details of the 99-year leasehold condo until the launch, but there is talk that prices will be around $650 psf to $680 psf.

The one-bedders start at 538 sq ft, the two-bedroom units from 915sq ft, while the big units can go up to 3,703 sq ft.

Along Thomson Road, The Arte is expected to be released for preview sale by the middle of the month.

Property agents have advertised the preview of the 336-unit, freehold condo at prices starting at more than $950 psf.

About half of the project, or 164 units, are three-bedroom units from 1,399 sq ft to 1,625 sq ft. Another 100 units are 1,873 sq ft four-bedders.

There are also advertisements for the preview of the 18-storey, 67-unit project in River Valley, which offers the interest absorption scheme. It has mostly small units – 32 are 635 sq ft apartments and 30 are 1,044 sq ft units.

A Chinese developer, Lakeview Developments, may also push out its 104-unit Domus this month.

High-end launches will likely be few and far between this year, as current demand is coming only from owner-occupiers or very small investors, according to a developer.

There should be more mass- to mid-market projects coming up in the next few months. These could include projects like the 99-year leasehold Ascentia Sky next to the Redhill MRT station. It offers two- to four-bedroom units from approximately 1,000 sq ft to 1,800 sq ft.

Source: Straits Times, 1 Mar 2009

Developers cutting prices and offering discounts; some small projects on the way

The property market is off to a quiet start this year, with some developers even closing their show-flats temporarily in response to dwindling crowds.

But as home prices continue to fall, house hunters tempted back into the market do have some places to go shopping.

Several small developments are coming on the market, while other projects that have been launched earlier are giving discounts or other buying incentives.

In the Balestier area, developer Roxy Homes is soft-launching two freehold boutique projects this weekend – Nova 48 in Prome Road and Nova 88 in Bhamo Road, both off Balestier Road.

Nova 48 has 48 units while Nova 88 has 88. Both are priced at about $1,000 per sq ft (psf), with a one-bedroom unit of 506 sq ft in size starting at about $500,000.

Another upcoming launch is that of Alexis in Alexandra Road. The freehold development has about 300 units and is less than 10 minutes’ walk to Queenstown MRT Station, according to property agents.

Indicative prices are about $900 to $1,000 psf, according to agents. The developer is offering a payment scheme similar to deferred payment, where buyers can pay 20 per cent upfront and then nothing until completion.

Closer to town, the Heritage Group is holding private previews for Vivace, a new 999-year leasehold project to be built at the former Tong Watt Mansion near Robertson Quay. The 85-unit development has mostly small units, ranging from one-bedroom apartments of 388 sq ft in size to penthouses of 990 sq ft. Prices are understood to start at about $580,000, or about $1,500 psf.

There are also a number of developers that have cut prices or are offering carrots to buyers.
Novelty Group, for instance, has lowered the price of its Lucida project along Thomson Road. The 62-unit development was launched at close to $1,600 psf early last year, but is now selling at about $1,200 psf.

The one-bedroom units are 624 sq ft in size, while two-bedroom apartments are 1,066 sq ft.

In the East Coast, the asking price for Mountbatten Suites has fallen from $1,100 psf at its launch to over $900 psf now. The developer is reportedly offering deferred payment and absorbing stamp and legal fees.

Frasers Centrepoint is also giving renovation vouchers to buyers of its Woodsville 28 project in Potong Pasir. Two-bedroom units come with a $20,000 voucher, while buyers of a three-bedroom unit get $30,000. Prices remain at $850 psf on average for the freehold development.

For the rest of the year, interested buyers can look out for three offerings from City Developments, which is planning to launch Phase 2 of Livia in Pasir Ris, The Arte in Thomson Road, and the Quayside Isle in Sentosa Cove.

While the prices for the last two projects have yet to be finalised, prices start at $797,000 for a three-bedroom apartment at Livia.

Far East Organization is also understood to be planning to launch the latest phase of cluster houses in its Greenwood landed housing development, as well as a new 99-year leasehold project in Choa Chu Kang.

Source : Sunday Times – 4 Jan 2009