Solid sales at new residential launch in Iskandar’s Danga Bay

A NEW residential launch in Danga Bay has brought some cheer to the lacklustre Iskandar property market.

Aquaint Danga Residensi (ADR) sold nearly 80 per cent of the 358 units in two tower blocks during its launch at the weekend, a spokesman for the developer said yesterday.

The project comprises four high-rise towers on 1.6ha of a prime waterfront site. It is being developed by Para Impiana, a joint venture between Rapai Fokus – a wholly-owned subsidiary of Iskandar Waterfront Holdings – and two Singapore partners, Imperial Marina and Skyfront Holdings.

Some of the buyers are understood to be members of a property investment club, Aquaint Property, run by Imperial Marina’s founder, Tan Yang Po, although their numbers could not be confirmed. Imperial Marina is itself a property investment firm.

Selling prices ranged from RM900 (S$351) to RM1,200 per sq ft (psf), with most units ranging from 550 to 1,500 sq ft. The project also has “sky bungalows” of up to 5,000 sq ft. The prices range from RM575,000 for a 550 sq ft one-bedder to RM4.3 million for the “sky bungalows”.

The four towers will have 818 units in all, with shops as well. They are expected to be ready for occupation by late 2018.

ADR is next to Country Garden’s and Greenland Group’s projects at Danga Bay. Greenland is expected to launch its project in about two weeks, with units starting from 463 sq ft and at an average price of RM800 psf.

Country Garden has sold more than 6,000 units at an average of RM720 psf. Its units range from 400 sq ft studios to 3,000 sq ft penthouses.

“(ADR’s launch performance) shows that the local market may still be able to accept selected products in their targeted segments,” said CBRE Malaysia executive director Paul Khong.

“Hopefully, with some positive news in the local JB market, more investors and buyers will have confidence in Iskandar Malaysia,” added Mr Khong.

But PA International Property Consultants executive director V. Sivadas was less sanguine.

“The market generally remains unchanged… (but) we do know that projects that are priced reasonably, whether strata or landed units, are able to sell well in Iskandar Malaysia. These would generally be units below RM500,000, or units within established neighbourhoods in Johor Baru, or both.”