We tour freehold landed homes within 1km of Tao Nan & CHIJ Katong (from $3.88m in 2021), Lifestyle News
If you've ever looked at a property in Singapore, you'll probably know that proximity to a famous Primary school (within 1 km) is considered a big plus point, as such properties are often in demand with the parents of would-be students. (As per this MOE link: "priority is given to Singaporean Citizens and Permanent Residents who live closer to the preferred school when balloting" — for those not familiar with the process, you can find out more via the link.)
The properties on Martia Road are lucky enough to be within 1 km of not 1, but 2, famous Singaporean Primary Schools: CHIJ Katong and Tao Nan School. (However, it can differ from unit to unit, so always check for the exact property you're keen on even if the street is supposedly within the 1km mark.)
To be honest, given that some of the Martia Road Houses are right across from CHIJ Katong, you may wonder: "how close is too close?" (Just visit any school before school starts and ends to see what I mean - there are often lines of cars clogging up all the nearby roads. A friend who is 1 of these waiting parents — albeit not at CHIJ — has often told me how sorry she feels for nearby residents!)
Anyway, I'm putting the cart before the horse here — let's take a look at the entire area so you can see for yourself!
We'll head in before looking at the shops on East Coast Road.
Generally, street parking is hard to find in this landed enclave.
I had previously mentioned that I'm not sure if the properties on Martia Road are a little too close to CHIJ. However, judging from the reviews of these boutique condos, it doesn't appear that way.
Most of the residents appear pretty happy — only one had a few lower-star ratings, but no reasons were given, so I'm discounting those. In fact, Villa Martia, the closest development to CHIJ has a 4.6 rating. (Maybe not many parents pick up/ drop off their kids at CHIJ, or if they do, they're the considerate type?)
The last sale also transacted at $28 million, so the proximity doesn't seem to have hurt the property sales. (Moreover, the last sale was in 2021, so the owners seem happy enough here, at least happy enough to not sell up!)
Fun fact: according to the article I linked to, the Martia Road houses are also next to Odyssey The Global Preschool. I didn't hear any noise when I visited, but I do wonder what noise levels are like when all the kids are out on recess…
We've seen most of the residential properties now, so let's go check out the commercial units nearby!
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This article was first published in Stackedhomes.
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