Home demand rides the wave of new launches
Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) reported a total of 2,393 private homes - excluding executive condominiums (ECs) - being sold in the month of March, a mere 1 per cent fall from February. Still, this number was 73 per cent higher than in the same period a year ago, reflecting strong underlying demand for new private homes.
This brings the total number of private homes (excluding ECs) sold to 6,682 in the first three months of 2012 - a record for quarterly sales since 1Q 1996 when quarterly data was first compiled and around 41 per cent of the total volume sold in 2011.
New launches have been driving demand, observers say. An eye-popping 2,582 units (excluding ECs) were launched in March.
Sales of ECs also remained at high levels, with 639 units sold in March, slightly lower than the 725 units in the month before, but still more than four times the volume transacted in the same period last year.
Including ECs, the total number of new private homes in March reached 3,032 units.
Units were snapped up in both new launches and projects launched earlier.
Among the new kids on the block, top-sellers included Ripple Bay (326 units sold at a median price of $883 psf), Palm Isles (102 units sold at a median price of $860 psf), Seletar Park Residence (98 units sold at a median price of $1,162 psf) and East Village (83 units sold at a median price of $1,309 psf).
Among projects launched earlier, The Minton (118 units sold), Riversound Residence (115 units sold), Archipelago (93 units sold) and Bartley Residences (86 units sold) saw strong demand.
Though no new ECs were launched in March, buyers - especially upgraders - continued to buy, with The Tampines Trilliant and Twin Waterfalls transacting 369 units and 153 units respectively.
The bulk of properties sold in March remained in the $1,000 to $1,500 psf range, similar to the month before.
The mass-market outside central region (OCR) continued to dominate demand, with a total of 1,825 OCR units (excluding ECs) sold, just seven units less than the 1,832 homes transacted in February.
Source: Business Times – 17 April 2012
Katong Regency pricey but likely to draw buyers
A MIXED-USE freehold project to be launched in Paya Lebar on Thursday is expected to get a good response despite a hefty price tag, property consultants said.
Residential units at Katong Regency, which sits on the former Lion City Hotel and Hollywood Theatre sites, will cost an average of $1,500 to $1,600 per sq ft (psf), a price experts said is 'on the high side'.
However, given that the area is fairly middle-class, there will be a catchment of residents here who have the means to buy this project.
More than half of the residences at Katong Regency are one-bedroom and one-plus-study units. Prices for a 550 sq ft one-bedroom unit start at about $950,000 and go up to over $2.5 million for a 1,970 sq ft three-bedroom penthouse.
A major selling point could be the upcoming rejuvenation of the Paya Lebar area, consultants said. This could have possible spillover effects for Katong Regency, potentially enabling a one bedroom unit to command a monthly rent of $3,000.
A new mall, One KM, will be built on the lower levels below the flats.
Mr Kam Tin Seah, senior general manager of UOL Group, said yesterday that the mall, with a net lettable area of 210,000 sq ft, will follow a similar concept seen in United Square, but will focus more on performing arts education.
Source: The Straits Times – 17 April 2012
Debate over whether selling more land will cool market
Even as the government yesterday rolled out seven sites that can potentially generate about 3,000 private homes, a discussion has surfaced as to whether releasing more land will have the desired effect of cooling the market.
The Urban Redevelopment Authority and Housing & Development Board, as state land sales agents, yesterday launched the tenders for three private housing sites on the confirmed list - a plot near Sengkang MRT Station, another a stone's throw from Buangkok MRT Station, and the third at Pasir Ris Drive 3.
URA also announced that a reserve-list plot at Boon Lay Way near Jurong East MRT Station had been triggered for launch following a successful application by a developer.
In addition, three reserve-list sites - one next to Redhill MRT Station and two District 10 sites at Farrer Drive (next to Sommerville Grandeur and near Farrer Road MRT Station) and at the Farrer Road/Lutheran Road corner, a short distance from Botanic Gardens MRT Station - are being made available for application on the reserve list this month. The seven 99-year leasehold sites can potentially generate nearly 3,000 homes.
The government supplied land under the confirmed list for a total of about 16,200 private homes including ECs last year. The supply for the first-half 2012 confirmed list is about 7,020 units.
The biggest of the plots on offer is the confirmed-list plot near Sengkang MRT Station, which could yield around 710 homes. Property consultants polled by BT varied widely in their forecasts of top bids - $400 to 550 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr). Keppel Land paid about $502 psf ppr for the next-door site (being built into The Luxurie condo) at a tender in March 2011.
One MRT stop closer to town, at Buangkok, forecasts for top bids for a condo plot that can yield about 580 homes range from $320-500 psf ppr.
For the Pasir Ris Drive 3 site, consultants indicated the highest bids could come in at $300-460 psf ppr. A nearby site drew a $472 psf ppr top bid at a tender that closed last week.
The developer that successfully applied for the release of the reserve-list condo plot in the Jurong East MRT vicinity has undertaken to place a minimum bid that reflects about $409.85 psf ppr.
Source: Business Times – 17 April 2012
CapitaLand sells 125 units at Sky Habitat
CapitaLand said it has sold 125 units at its 99-year leasehold Bishan condo project Sky Habitat as at 6pm yesterday.
The property group did not provide an overall average per square foot (psf) price achieved, but said the average prices for a four-bedroom unit and a one-bedroom unit were $1,642 and $1,747 psf respectively.
The prices are nett, after factoring in all the discounts under an incentive scheme - a 3 per cent discount for all buyers, plus a further one per cent loyalty discount for existing owners of CapitaLand homes and an additional one per cent discount if the buyer currently lives in Bishan.
CapitaLand said two and three-bedroom units accounted for 81 per cent of the 125 units sold. So far, 180 of the project's 509 units have been released.
Source: Business Times – 16 April 2012
No comments:
Post a Comment