Monthly Archives: June 2011

Singapore luxury property: A strong long term investment

The most costly landed properties in Singapore are on Sentosa Island.

Landed luxury properties are still hot and in demand due to scarcity of land in Singapore especially in prime areas. The costliest landed properties in Singapore are in Sentosa where sites are said to have exchanged hands for more than $2400 (US$1,95) psf. This is also because there is no restriction to foreign buyers purchasing land in Sentosa, which is not the case in the rest of Singapore. Foreign investors are also buying into the Singapore luxury segment as Asian countries introduce more measures to curb investment demand. China has been imposing the most measures to curb property prices and ever since we have been seeing more Chinese buying into luxury properties in Singapore in areas such as Marina Bay and Sentosa. However due to the Singapore government recently introducing new measures to stabilise the market, luxury real estate is seen as more of a longer term investment. With a strong economy, good rental yields and governance in place, Singapore is in an attractive location for foreign investors. Tourism is also increasing with more retail and hotel sectors thanks to Marina Bay Sands and Sentosa. With the Singapore economy continuing to grow and the inflow of foreigners into Singapore, the luxury segment is still a good buy.

Is the Singapore market cooling off?

Since the introduction of the new set of measures in January, sales volume has slowed slightly comparing to last year but prices have still been increasing at a healthy rate. The government’s intention is not to crash the market but to stabilise it. Prices of suburban properties (mass market) may correct about 5 per cent over the next year because of the large number of apartments in the pipeline. However the luxury segment will still hold well and climb up in price at a slow but healthy rate due to demand and supply. Expect the market response to remain positive due to the cheap credit environment and continued wealth increase because of the booming economy and wealth created from the en-bloc transaction from projects that are not priced too high.

The best opportunities and investment strategies in Singapore

With the near completion of Marina Bay Financial Centre, Ocean Financial Centre and Asia Square 1 and 2 will push up demand for residential properties in Marina Bay, such as Marina Bay Residences, Marina Bay Suites, The Sail and One Shenton. Prices have still not been realised yet in the Marina Bay area if you compare it with other luxury apartments outside the Bay area.

It would also be a good time to jump into industrial properties which have just started picking up in price and rental over  the past 2-3 months.  The active investment market for industrial properties in the first quarter is a good sign for demand in this sector.  However prime warehouse space is still more affordable than in Hong Kong and still a good opportunity if you’re looking into investing in Singapore. Industrial property that is still a good buy would be Pantech Business Hub (next to the port) and the Macpherson area.

Source : SEAPR – 8 Jun 2011

Park Infinia at Wee Nam hits $2,180 psf

Prices at Park Infinia at Wee Nam hit an all time high of $2,180 psf last month. This is the second time prices at the three year old condominium along Lincoln Road have breached the $2,000 psf level. Before this, a 560 sq ft unit on the 30th floor was sold for $1.13 million ($2,019 psf) in April. The 486 unit condo was developed by Keppel Land and completed in 2008.

Across the road, at the 85-unit Miro by Far East Organization, prices at the freehold condo hit a peak of $2,300 psf last December, when a 2,917 sq ft unit on the 29th floor sold for $6.7 million. The latest transaction was for a 1,248 sq ft unit on the 23rd floor for $2.47 million ($1,980 psf), according to caveats lodged with URA Realis. Miro is targeted for completion in 2012.

Located next to Miro and directly across the street from Park Infinia is The Linc, a 51 unit boutique development, also by Keppel Land, completed in 2006. In May, a 1,292 sq ft unit on the 15th floor was sold for $1.82 million ($1,409 psf), near the high of $1,471 psf achieved when a 646 sq ft unit on the first floor was sold for $950,000 in March.

Anthony Liang, CEO of Liang Long Real Estate, says prices of condos in the Newton-Novena neighbourhood in prime District 11 could be rising in anticipation of City Developments Ltd’s upcoming launch of Buckley Classique along Buckley Road, just off Newton Road and near Lincoln Road. The upcoming 64-unit condo is a redevelopment of the former Buckley Mansion en bloc site and a bungalow sitting on a 71,812 sq ft freehold site. The bungalow belongs to the Kwek family of Hong Leong Group, and will be conserved and retrofitted into a clubhouse for the new condo. Buckley Classique is said to be a low-rise, high end condo with large units ranging from two-bedroom apartments of 1,098 sq ft to penthouses of up to 4,381 sq ft. Prices are said to start from $2.4 million for the two-bedroom apartments, $3 million for the three-bedroom units, and $4 million for the four-bedroom units.

Park Infinia stands out among developments in the Newton-Novena area as it is one of the largest condo projects sitting on one of the biggest freehold sites in prime District 11, notes Raymond Ho, a team director at ERA. It also has a wide range of facilities, including a swimming pool, tennis courts and a clubhouse. The development has a mix of one to four bedroom units as well as penthouses meas- uring 560 to 3,315 sq ft. The condo is popular with expatriate families as most units are three to four bedroom apartments.

Park Infinia is a few minutes’ drive to the Newton MRT and Novena MRT as well as to the Orchard Road shopping belt and the CBD. It is also near good schools such as Anglo Chinese School and St Joseph’s Institution Junior and therefore sought-after by Singapore- ans as well. In the vicinity are shopping malls such as United Square and Velocity@Novena Square, and the wet market and hawker centre along Cambridge Road.

For the period of May 10 to 16, there were two transactions at Park Infinia. On May 12, a 560 sq ft unit on the 28th floor was sold for $1.22 million ($2,180 psf), representing a 17.5% premium over the last transacted price of $1.038 million ($1,854 psf) in October 2010. The unit was sold for $858,159 ($1,533 psf) at the launch in 2007.

The other transaction was for a 1,001 sq ft unit on the seventh floor for $1.76 million ($1,758 psf). The unit had changed handsfor $1.53 million ($1,530 psf) in 2007 and$866,000 ($865 psf) in 2006.

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Source : TheEdge – 6 Jun 2011