Hoi Hup Realty and Sunway Developments will cite nearby golf course as key selling point

A JOINT venture which has emerged as the top bidder for a condominium site in Yishun is highlighting its location next to a golf course as a key selling point.

The tie-up between Hoi Hup Realty and Sunway Developments put in the best of seven bids for the 99-year leasehold land parcel at Miltonia Close, at the fringe of Yishun Town Centre.

The bid of $165 million, or $405.5 per sq ft per plot ratio (psf ppr), beat market expectations and came in about 31 per cent above the next bid.

Hoi Hup director Wong Sjew Hung told The Straits Times: ‘We see the potential of the site. It is really hard to find a site next to the golf course here.

‘We plan to build a five-storey condominium with 380 units. It will be mainly two- and three-bedroom units suitable for families.’

A construction firm, Master Contract Services, placed the second-highest bid of $126 million, or $309.68 psf ppr. The third-highest bid from a joint venture between Frasers Centrepoint and Orchard Parade Holdings came very close at $125.32 million, or $308 psf ppr.

The lowest of the seven bids came from Intrepid Investments – at $97.88 million, or $240.56 psf ppr.

Analysts had projected bids of $270-$350 psf ppr.

The site, which can be developed into a strata housing community or a condominium project, is on the boundary of the Orchid Country Club golf course. It is not near an MRT station, but it does enjoy an unblocked view of Lower Seletar Reservoir.

CBRE Research director Leonard Tay said the location will appeal to people who prefer a quiet neighbourhood, lots of greenery and a serene environment.

Private residential developments nearby include The Shaughnessy, Lilydale executive condominium, Orchid Park Condominium and The Estuary (under construction).

Mr Tay said the top bid could reflect a break-even cost of about $700-$750 psf should a low-rise condo be developed. And condo units in this new project could possibly sell above $800 psf, he said.

By comparison, units at The Estuary, which was launched in April, transacted at $650-$850 psf from April to August.

In the same period, units at the 16-year-old Orchid Park Condominium were sold at $550-$700 psf, said Mr Tay.

An industry expert said the tender response shows that, apart from the top bidder, the other developers are now more cautious in bidding for sites given the record upcoming supply.

But developers are still hungry for land as their landbanks are fast depleting, he said.

Ms Wong said this project – if the joint venture is awarded the site – will be Hoi Hup’s fourth with Sunway Developments. The joint venture’s previous project was The Peak @ Toa Payoh.

Source: Straits Times, 25 Aug 2010

Government to ramp up flat supply for middle-income home buyers

SINGAPORE – The executive condominium (EC) market looks set to stir when new projects are launched over the next three to six months. According to property consultancy CB Richard Ellis, ECs are making a comeback after a hiatus of five years as the Government steps in to ramp up flat supply for middle-income home buyers.

Four new EC projects in Compassvale Bow, Punggol Field, Buangkok and Yishun – yielding some 1,400 units – will be launched in the next three to six months.

These sites were awarded in the first half of this year. The Government will also be selling another five EC sites later in the year – at Jurong West, Punggol Drive, Pasir Ris, Tampines and Segar Road – which are expected to yield about another 2,600 units.

The last EC launched was La Casa in Woodlands in 2005, which was completed in early 2008.

CBRE said the comparatively cheaper pricing of ECs is expected to attract a large number of HDB upgraders.

Executive director of CBRE Research Li Hiaw Ho said assuming the historical 30 per cent gap between private suburban homes and new ECs, the median prices of new ECs are likely to stay around $650 to $750 per square foot (psf).

The median price for private suburban homes as of the second quarter stood at $824 psf.

Ms Tay Huey Ying, director for Research and Advisory at Colliers International, expects prices for ECs to rise moderately. “It will still fall below private units in terms of absolute price per square foot simply because there are conditions attached,” she said.

For example, foreigners are not allowed to buy ECs. On top of that, those whose monthly household income exceed $10,000 cannot buy ECs.

Mr Li added that the prices of ECs will match those of comparable private apartments in the same locations after five years, as they will be treated as private properties.

Currently, the non-landed private home market is attracting a lower share of HDB upgraders compared to last year with only 36.1 per cent of them making new home purchases in the second quarter.

At its peak in the first quarter last year, the proportion of HDB upgraders reached 63.6 per cent but it has steadily dipped below the 10-year average of 44 per cent.

Mr Li said with the steep rise in prices of new private homes, more HDB upgraders face a bigger burden of servicing huge mortgage loans.

“The lowering of the housing loan limit from 90 per cent to 80 per cent since March this year also meant that HDB home buyers need to pay more cash upfront,” added Mr Li. “Despite this, HDB upgraders can find a less-costly alternative with the upcoming ECs.”

Source: Today, 13 Aug 2010

TWO build-to-order (BTO) Housing Board (HDB) projects that will add 1,016 new flats to the market were launched yesterday. The launch means 9,844 flats have been released in seven months, exceeding the 9,000 units offered for the whole of last year.

The projects are Senja Gateway in Bukit Panjang and Corporation Tiara in Jurong West.

Senja Gateway at the junction of Kranji Expressway and Woodlands Road will have 741 standard flats, comprising 254 studios, 313 four-room flats and 174 five-roomers.

Studios of 35 sq m to 45 sq m will cost $67,000 to $95,000, four-room flats of 90 sq m will be from $242,000 to $306,000 while five-roomers of 110 sq m will go from $308,000 to $398,000.

Corporation Tiara in Jurong West, at the junction of Corporation Road and Yung Kuang Road, will have 275 premium flats, comprising 171 four-roomers and 104 five-roomers.

Four-roomers of between 90 sq m and 93 sq m will cost between $242,000 and $325,000 while five-room flats of 110 sq m to 113 sq m will cost between $304,000 and $389,000.

Under the BTO scheme, flats are built only when a certain level of demand for the project is met.

PropNex chief executive Mohamed Ismail expects this launch to be more than three times oversubscribed as demand is still strong due to the high cash-over-valuations (COV) asked for in the HDB resale market.

He added that the pattern of demand from past BTO launches showed that four- and five-room flats were often the most popular.

‘I think demand will be sustained throughout this year and we might even see a record number of BTO flats being launched,’ he said.

The HDB said that if demand from first-time buyers is sustained, it is prepared to offer up to 16,000 BTO flats this year. This is a significant supply as the total annual take-up of HDB flats in the last 10 years ranged from 7,000 in 2006 to 16,100 in 2000, with flats left unsold almost every year, the board said.

Buyers can expect about 1,400 flats to be launched in Yishun next month while upcoming projects include areas like Woodlands, Punggol and Sengkang.

The BTO stock will also be supplemented by an upcoming supply of 4,700 units under the design, build and sell scheme (DBSS) and executive condominium scheme such as a site launched for tender in Tampines Avenue 5 last month.

The HDB said it is prepared to launch more DBSS sites if demand keeps up.

Applications for the BTO flats launched yesterday can be made online at www.hdb.gov.sg until Aug 11.

Source: Straits Times, 30 Jul 2010

ELDERLY residents at Nee Soon South are getting a leg-up with Khatib MRT station now fully equipped with barrier-free access facilities.

Work began in January this year on two new ramps, a covered shelter connecting the 20-year-old station to the nearest bus stop in Yishun Avenue 2, as well as an additional drop-off point.
The refurbishments cost $2 million.

Many of the estate’s residents have to walk through Khatib station to get to the nearest overhead bridge or the pedestrian crossing.

For the estate’s elderly folk, who make up more than half of the approximately 50,000 residents, climbing the stairs to get to the station was no mean feat.

One resident, Madam Wong Lay See, cheered when the station was outfitted with ramps. The 85-year-old walks through the station to get to the market every day.

Said her son, who is in his 50s and wanted to be known only as Mr Foo: ‘We’ve been waiting for this. It makes a lot of difference for my mum because it’s now more convenient and safe for her.’
The station, which has only one lift from the station floor to the train platform, was built in 1988. Before enhancements were made, there was only a ramp to the nearest taxi stand.

Madam Woon Eng Say said the new facilities would benefit not only the elderly, but also those with children. ‘I found it a struggle to pull my nephew’s stroller up the stairs on my own,’ said the 49-year-old, who baby-sits her nephew.

Member of Parliament for Ang Mo Kio GRC Lee Bee Wah told reporters yesterday that residents had asked for the facilities many times.

Already, more than half of the flats in the Nee Soon South division are outfitted with barrier-free access facilities.

Ms Lee, who is also adviser to Nee Soon South grassroots organisations, said the next step would be to explore the feasibility of having a lift installed at the overhead bridge spanning Yishun Avenue 2.

The additional features at the Khatib station are part of the Land Transport Authority’s islandwide programme to make pedestrian walkways, access to MRT stations, taxi and bus shelters as well as public roads barrier-free.

The $60 million programme, which began in December 2006, is expected to be completed by the end of next year.

Currently, all MRT stations have at least one entrance fitted with a lift and a barrier-free route.

Source, Straits Times 31 Aug 2009

RESIDENTS in five neighbourhoods will be the first to get improved cycling facilities under a $43 million programme to promote it as a mode of transport.

Work will begin on 6.9km of cycling tracks for Tampines residents in the second half of this year, while 7.5km of tracks will be added in Yishun from next year. Plans are also in the pipeline for tracks in Sembawang, Pasir Ris and Taman Jurong.

These will either be dedicated 2m-wide cycling tracks or, where space is restricted, the tracks will join existing pedestrian footpaths but have painted markings to clearly identify them for cyclists.

The five were chosen because they have strong support for cycling, are relatively compact and
have land available for the cycling tracks.

Senior Parliamentary Secretary (Transport) Teo Ser Luck announced these measures yesterday during the budget debate on estimates for the Transport Ministry.

He was responding to Ms Irene Ng (Tampines GRC), Madam Cynthia Phua (Aljunied GRC), Mr Wee Siew Kim (Ang Mo Kio GRC) and Mr Ang Mong Seng (Hong Kah GRC) who, while encouraged by the increasing use of bicycles, were concerned about safety and how cyclists would interact with pedestrians and other motorists.

Mr Teo, in acknowledging the competing demands for space, said the authorities had taken ‘a very careful and deliberate approach to finding that balance between the various stakeholders’.

And while there was still some way to go before Singapore could be considered a ‘cycling nation’, he outlined initiatives to move the country in that direction.

First, a scheme to allow foldable bicycles on public transport has been approved after a six-month trial.

Foldable bicycles will be allowed on buses and trains during the off-peak periods of 9.30am to 4pm and after 8pm on weekdays, and all day on weekends and public holidays.

Other initiatives include 823 additional bicycle racks at three MRT stations – Pasir Ris, Tampines and Yishun – and safety signs on popular cycling routes.

An avid cyclist, Ms Ng, said that while cyclists were now allowed to share bus lanes, they were constantly squeezed out by buses. She called for markings on bus lanes to make them ‘bike-bus lanes’.

Responding, Mr Teo said too many markings may confuse users. He suggested education and publicity as an alternative approach.

Mr Ang – who brandished a model of a bicycle, photographs and a bicycle light and bell when speaking during the debate – wanted bicycles to have licence plates so cyclists could be held responsible if they were reckless.

Mr Teo said this may not be practical or feasible to implement, and noted that bicycle-friendly cities like Paris and Amsterdam did not have such a regulation.

‘Instead, we should focus on improving cyclist and pedestrian behaviour, which is really the crux of the matter,’ he said. ‘This is why we can move only at a pace that people are reasonably comfortable with, all the while actively consulting and engaging the various groups before taking the next step.’

Source: Straits Times – 13 Feb 2009

SINGAPORE: More is going to be done to promote cycling in Singapore.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) will spend S$43 million to design and construct dedicated cycling tracks next to pedestrian footpaths in HDB estates.

The first phase of this programme will be implemented in Tampines, Yishun, Sembawang, Pasir Ris and Taman Jurong.

Foldable bicycles will also be allowed on MRT trains and public buses during off-peak hours on weekdays and all-day on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, from March 15.

The scheme follows an earlier six-month trial where an average of 70 foldable bicycles were brought on board trains and two foldable bicycles on board public buses each week.

LTA said eight out of 10 train commuters and about seven out of 10 bus commuters surveyed support the initiative.

Source: Channel News Asia – 12 Feb 2009

THE government will build two new community hospitals with 200 beds each as part of a bigger plan to deal with the ageing population over the next two decades.

Each of the hospitals will be built close to a general hospital. The first, to be ready by 2013, will be next to the Khoo Teck Puat Hospital under construction in Yishun. The second, to be completed by 2016, will be adjacent to Jurong General Hospital.

Announcing the plans during the Ministry of Health’s committee of supply debate yesterday, Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan said the target is to boost the number of community hospital beds by 60 per cent over the next 10 years. And by 2020, the ratio of community hospital beds to acute hospital beds should be improved to one to five, from one to eight at present.

‘Similarly, we are expanding nursing home capacity by 50 per cent over the next decade from 9,200 to 14,000 beds,’ Mr Khaw said. ‘This will be in both the private and voluntary welfare organisation sectors.’

The Health Ministry is already working with existing nursing homes, including those with expiring land leases, to increase bed capacity or relocate to bigger premises. Five new nursing homes are expected to be set up over the next two years. And there are plans to reserve more sites for nursing home development to meet longer-term demand.

The moves are in anticipation of higher demand for long-term care services as Singapore faces a ‘silver tsunami’ in 10-15 years when a generation of baby boomers turns 70-75. Mr Khaw believes Singaporeans will need to save more for their long-term care needs in future, but the issue will be revisited when the economy eventually recovers.

The $400 monthly payout provided under the basic Eldershield is clearly not enough, given a private nursing home can cost $1,800 a month. ‘We can either create an Eldersave or you save more in Medisave so it can also be used to fund long-term care,’ Mr Khaw said. ‘The question is how much will be needed for long-term care.’

Preliminary analysis shows the costs may not be insurmountable, he said. The Health Ministry is studying what is happening in the US, Europe and Japan, which spend less than 3 per cent of GDP on long-term care.

Source: Business Times – 10 Feb 2009