Tag Archives: Singapore Real Estate

Resale prices of Caribbean at Keppel bay cross $1,100 psf

With the opening of the $6 billion Resorts World at Sentosa fast approaching, there is a buzz of excitement as investors anticipate the influx of visitors expected in 1Q2010. To cater for a surge in tourists and locals to the island, a 620m $70 million walkway is being constructed and is expected to be completed in November 2010.

As development at the upcoming casino gain traction, interest in properties on the mainland of Singapore and Sentosa Cove have picked up in recent months.

For instance, at the 969-unit Caribbean at Keppel Bay, developed by Keppel Land and completed in 2004, there were three transactions in the week of July 3 to 10, according to caveats lodged with URA Realis. A check against the monthly number of transactions shows there was an average of five units changing hands from April to June this year versus only two from January to March.

According to property agents, buying activity has picked up and there is more interest from foreigners. However, transaction levels remain low, owing to higher quantum prices and the gap in asking prices ranging from $1,300 to $1,400 psf versus buyers’ expectations of $1,000 Continue reading

Hold firm, first-time home buyers

Two Sundays ago, my editor wrote in this column about property advice his parents gave him just before he bought his first home.

He was unaware, but on the day his column was published, I took the plunge and bought my very first property with my partner.

His words obviously resonated with me: My purchase was an apartment way below $1,000 psf and under $1million, and reasonably near an MRT station by 2015.

But beyond these guidelines, I discovered that buying the first home was a lot more difficult and agonising than I had ever imagined – a process determined by so many pressures and factors.

For the longest time, the classified advertisements on Saturdays were my best friend. I zoomed in on cheap private properties because my partner and I were deemed ineligible for HDB flats (he is neither a citizen nor a permanent resident).

I pored through every single column, rang countless property agents and viewed so many apartments that one blurred i Continue reading