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The Star
21 hours ago
- Business
- The Star
Maiden plot in Singapore's Bukit Timah Turf City snags nine bids as developers jostle for first-mover advantage
SINGAPORE: A consortium led by Frasers Property, Sekisui House and CSC Land Group (Singapore) has submitted a top bid of S$491.5 million in a hotly contested tender exercise for the first residential site in Turf City along Dunearn Road. A total of nine bids were submitted by developers jostling for first-mover advantage in Turf City, which is among key new housing areas in more central locations identified in the Draft Master Plan 2025, and will bring 15,000 to 20,000 new public and private homes to the prime Bukit Timah area. This 13,492 sq m prime district Government Land Sales (GLS) site, which could yield 380 homes, has attracted the highest number of bids since October 2021, when 10 bids were submitted for two smallish sites at one-north, and nine bids were put in for a plot at Lentor, now Lentor Modern, in July 2021, said Tricia Song, CBRE research head for Singapore and South-east Asia. 'We believe the Draft Master Plan 2025 may have boosted sentiment for this Turf City maiden site,' she said. 'The plans for Bukit Timah Turf City look promising, with 15,000 to 20,000 homes, lush greenery, good transport connectivity and 22 heritage buildings being proposed for conservation, including the two grandstands, which will be rejuvenated as community nodes,' she added. Apart from the Dunearn Road plot and an adjacent site that is slated to be launched for tender in December 2025, Wong Siew Ying, PropNex head of research and content, noted there are '20 pure residential plots, three white sites and two residential with commercial at first storey plots potentially lined up in Turf City over the next 10 to 15 years'. Mark Yip, chief executive of Huttons Asia, said the draft masterplan has provided 'more clarity on the land usage in Turf City and reduced risks for developers'. 'The two adjacent residential sites with commercial use at the first storey will provide amenities for the new housing area. Community and recreational facilities and parks will be within a 10-minute walk,' he added. The top bid of $1,410 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr) is also the highest since the River Valley Green (Parcel B) plot was awarded to GuocoLand for $627.8 million, or $1,420 psf ppr, in February 2025. Among the nine bidders for the site, the top bid is 3.7 per cent higher than the second highest of $1,360 psf ppr tabled by City Developments. The two close bids suggest that the developers share a good measure of confidence for the site, despite more housing supply slated for this area, Wong noted. Nonetheless, the $1,410 psf ppr bid is still lower than land prices in December 2017, when a nearby plot in Fourth Avenue – now Fourth Avenue Residences – drew seven bids, with a top bid of $1,540 psf ppr, Song said. 'The lower land bids (today) generally reflect higher construction costs, lower efficiency from gross floor area harmonisation and higher potential Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty (ABSD) on both developers and buyers,' she said. Tight competition for the Dunearn Road site was expected as District 10 has only seen a few GLS sites made available in recent years,' Marcus Chu, chief executive of ERA Singapore, said. The most recent site awarded in District 10 was in Orchard Boulevard, now Upperhouse at Orchard Boulevard, which sold for $1,617 psf ppr in January 2024, he added. Justin Quek, chief executive of OrangeTee & Tie, noted that the Dunearn Road site is close to Sixth Avenue MRT Station and some top schools in Bukit Timah, which may fuel pent-up demand from families. Dr Lee Nai Jia, head of real estate intelligence PropertyGuru Group, noted that demand for non-landed homes in District 10 grew steadily in the first quarter in 2025 but fell in April due to heightened macroeconomic uncertainty from geopolitical and trade tensions. 'In May, demand started to rebound, but activity remained below that from a year ago. But a renewed projects pipeline, coupled with (the future project) on the Dunearn Road GLS site, could re-energise interest in this area,' he said. Soon Su Lin, chief executive of Frasers Property Singapore, said this will be 'an exciting opportunity for us to be part of the Turf City masterplan', if awarded. 'Given that the last GLS site in the vicinity was awarded nearly a decade ago, we believe that quality developments, specifically in prime districts 9, 10 and 11, will continue to be highly attractive to home buyers,' she said. - The Straits Times/ANN
Business Times
10-06-2025
- Business
- Business Times
United House relaunched for sale at S$166 million
[SINGAPORE] United House, a freehold commercial development in the Orchard Road area, has been put up for collective sale again with an unchanged reserve price of S$166 million. This time, the Urban Redevelopment Authority has granted in-principle approval for the building to be redeveloped for hotel use, with the same gross plot ratio of 4.9. The S$166 million price tag translates to a land rate of S$3,045 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr), assuming it is redeveloped for commercial use, said marketing agent Edmund Tie in a Tuesday (Jun 10) press statement. If redeveloped for hotel use, the land rate works out to S$3,254 psf ppr. The prime freehold site is located just behind Concorde Hotel and Shopping Centre, which was sold in November 2024 to Hotel Properties Limited for S$821 million. This was a shade above the guide price of S$820 million and works out to around S$1,804 psf ppr. United House sits on a freehold land parcel of 1,193 square metres (sq m). It is currently zoned for commercial use under the Urban Redevelopment Authority's Master Plan 2019. This means that there is no Additional Buyer's Stamp Duty and no foreign ownership restriction on buyers. A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU Tuesday, 12 pm Property Insights Get an exclusive analysis of real estate and property news in Singapore and beyond. Sign Up Sign Up The property can be redeveloped into a 10-storey commercial building with a gross floor area of up to 62,900 square feet, Edmund Tie head of investment advisory Swee Shou Fern previously said. Successful buyers will also have the option to pursue a strata-titled commercial development, said the agency. Swee noted a growing appetite for quality hospitality assets in Singapore, driven by a resurgence of tourism; meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions; and music-related travel. 'Its proximity to (transportation nodes), arts institutions, and cultural landmarks… makes it ideal for modern hospitality concepts such as urban explorer hubs, wellness retreats, or experiential hotels catering to both leisure and business travellers,' she said. This is United House owners' second relaunch attempt. It was first launched for sale last October, and later relaunched for sale in February this year. Prior to that, the development was put up for sale in 1989 by UOL and sold in 1990 for S$30.6 million or S$900 psf to Hong Kong-based First Pacific Land, which had ties to Indonesian businessman Liem Sioe Liong. Barely a year later, First Pacific put the property up for sale. According to media reports then, marketing consultant Jones Lang Wootton was instructed to sell the five-storey property en bloc or on a floor-by-floor basis. Separately, property consultancy CBRE has extended the tender submission deadline for the en bloc sale of Upper Serangoon Shopping Centre by three months to Sep 9, from Jun 10. This is because CBRE has just received the outline planning permission (OPP) for the freehold site, as well as an adjoining plot of land. This would allow the plots – which span a total site of 5,443.3 sq m – to be redeveloped into a mixed-use development comprising serviced apartments, retail and residential components. With the OPP, the redevelopment could span a gross floor area of 16,424.5 sq m, comprising 3,283.5 sq m of commercial units and serviced apartments, and 13,141 sq m for residential use. Assuming an average home size of 85 sq m, this works out to over 150 residential units. The guide price of S$260 million then translates to about S$1,470 psf. This represents a premium of up to 50 per cent of units' existing market value, chairman of the collective sale committee Mathews Thomas previously told The Business Times. Given the changes, CBRE has agreed to provide potential investors and developers more time to 'assess the implications and consider their options for the sites'. This includes the development mix and pricing for the site. Michael Tay, CBRE deputy managing director of Singapore advisory and capital markets head, added that the dearth of freehold redevelopment opportunities has led to keen interest in the site. 'The OPP will now provide developers with greater clarity on the development potential,' said Tay. 'We anticipate strong interest from developers who have looked at the site with interest since we first launched the tender on Apr 7.' The tender for United House will close Jul 1, while that of Upper Serangoon Shopping Centre will close on Sep 9.
