Issue 26

Copyright 2011 www.Propwise.sg. All Rights Reserved.

CONTENTS
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p5 p12
Singapore Property News This Week
Taking the Road Less Travelled Part One Resale Property Transactions (October 29 November 4)

FROM THE

EDITOR

Welcome to the 26th edition of the Singapore Property Weekly. Hope you like it! Mr. Propwise

p14 Singapore Property Classifieds #16

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26

Singapore Property This Week

Residential
540,314 sq ft Upper Thomson site, 24,265 sq ft Lavender site and 17,997 sq ft Mount Elizabeth site up for sale 540,314 sq ft Thomson View Condominium located along Upper Thomson Road is zoned for residential use. The gross plot ratio is 2.1 with a maximum height of 24 storeys. The site with 65 years of lease remaining, is asking for $595 million to $635 million, about $694 to $732 psfppr, including lease top uppremium, differential premium, and assuming the developer taps the 10 per cent balcony allowance. It could potentially yield 1,012 1,100 sq ft apartment units and 33 2,500 sq ft strata landed houses. Meanwhile, two adjoining freehold sites at 165 and 167 Tyrwhitt Road with a total land area of 24,265 sq ft is asking for $36 million to $40 million or $500 to $550 psfppr. Zoned for residential use with commercial at first floor, the site with a plot ratio of three could be redeveloped into a six-storey commercialcum-residential development with gross floor area of 72,795 sq ft. It is expected to draw interest from developers interested in small sites.

17,997 sq ft freehold residential Chateau Eliza located along Mount Elizabeth is asking for $111 million to $115 million equivalent to $2,099 psfppr to $2,174 psfppr. It has a proposed gross floor area of 52,887 sq ft that a new development could build on the site.
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26 Breakeven cost is estimated at $2,700 psf to $2,800 psf. The tenders for each site will close on Jan 12 at 3pm, Dec 8 at 3pm and Dec 15 at 3pm respectively. October sales a sign of private home market slowing down? No, say analysts. Analysts say that despite the lower sales for private homes in October, this does not mean a slowing down in the market. The 1,387 units sold in October excluding executive condominiums (ECs), are 15% lower than the 1,631 units sold in September. Nonetheless, given the 1,398 and 1,351 private homes sold in July and August respectively, Octobers sales are considered strong, especially since the total number of units sold (1,387)in October exceeded the total number of units launched (1,337). Furthermore, the 13,688
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private homes and 2,702 ECs sold in the first 10 months of 2011 compared to the 13,117 private residential units sold in the same period last year shows the strong demand from home buyers, driven by the low interest rate, the high liquidity in the market, and real estate being seen as a hedge against inflation. However, there is also an increase in the number of units launched but unsold and a large number of units that haveyet to be launched. Should demand decrease, the surplus supply may lead to a fallin prices.

99-year leasehold residential Miltonia Close draws eight bids

site

at

The highest bid of $138.9 million or $364 psfppr for the private condo site, a joint bid from TG Development and Master Contract Services was in line with market expectations.
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26 The project is estimated to cost$850 psf to $900 psf when launched. Situated on the fringe of Yishun New Town,it is likely to be developed intoa high-rise project of 350-400 apartments, where units on higher floors will have a view of The Orchid Country and Golf Club and the Lower Seletar Reservoir. Khaw Boon Wan: First-timers stand high chance of getting flats National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan posted on his blog that 73% of newlywed first timers who applied for HDB's build-toorder (BTO) flats for the first time in July this year were invited to choose one, compared to 11% of second-timers. First-timers are applicants who have never bought an HDB flat directly from HDB, nor received a CPF Housing Grant. Since only 5% of new flats were reserved for second-timers, their success rate would be low. He assures second-timers
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that balloting rules will be changed to increase their chances after the most of the first-timer queue was cleared and stated that it should be towards the end of the next year. Industrial 60-year leasehold Ganbas Ave industrial plot draws top bid from HLS Development The bid of $78.2 million that beat out four other bids came from HLS Development, a unit of Singapore-listed Hock Lian Seng Holdings. This translates to $136 psfppr given themaximum gross floor area of 576,587 sq ft and 2.5 plot ratio for the 230,635 sq ft site zoned for Business 1. Breakeven is estimated at $300 psf and the prospective market price is estimated to be $350 psf. The bid is lower than what other sites in the area had fetched earlier this year, reflecting the developers negative outlook for the market.
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26

Taking the Road Less Travelled Part One

by Mr. Propwise This is Part One of an interview with Getty Goh on his tips for investing in overseas property, and his experiences developing an overseas property project. In Part One we ask Getty whether it makes sense to even look at overseas property investments, the differences between investing overseas and in Singapore, and the risks involved when buying foreign property.

Getty is the author of two real estate bestsellers (Buy, Bye Property: Mistakes you want to Avoid in Property Investing and Buy Right Property: the R.I.G.H.T. Approach to Property Investing in Singapore), as well as the Director of Ascendant Assets Pte Ltd,

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26 a real estate research and investment consultancy based in Singapore. With his latest foray into Krabi, Thailand, Getty is adding development to his real estate CV. Getty has an MSc in Real Estate and a BSc in Building from the National University of Singapore. For someone who is interested to invest in property, is it a better choice to invest in Singapore or overseas? When you think about it, the key objective of any investor is to make money from the property market. In other words, anywhere where you can make good profits will be a good place to invest. At present, the Singapore private residential market is not a good place to invest as the series of anti-speculation measures introduced by the government has significantly reduced that segments profitability quotient.
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I am aware that as a result of the antispeculation measures, investor interests have shifted to the non-residential sector (i.e. commercial and industrial properties). My company, Ascendant Assets Pte Ltd, did research recently and we found that from 1995 till 2011 (16 years), there were only 109 and 2083 profitable commercial and industrial transactions respectively. This translates to approximately 70% of commercial and 65% of industrial properties being profitable. We did a separate analysis for residential transactions and using a sample of 5 years from 2003 to 2008, we found that there were more than 12,700 profitable transactions. This was approximately 95% of all residential transactions. I find this information to be very telling as some investors would assume nonresidential units would be as profitable as residential units. This is clearly not the case.
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26 We often think that investing in properties abroad can be risky as we do not often hear of people making good returns from it. What we more often hear about (and remember) are the horror stories of how overseas investments had gone awry. I agree that overseas investment can potentially be risky, however I have also come across instances where investors made significant returns from their purchases abroad. For example, several years back, I came across one particularly savvy investor who bought a mountain in New Zealand for about S$1 million and sold it for S$16 million several years later. The view was fantastic and he value added to the site by building a small lodge on it. Back then, no one knew that a mountain could see such price appreciation. Ultimately, the foresight as well as courage of the investor (to invest in such an
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unconventional real estate) paid off. I also know some friends who bought properties in China before the Chinese economy boomed and they are sitting on handsome profits right now. Even one of my wifes relatives managed to make good profits by investing in an apartment in Kensington (near Harrods in London). All these examples made me realise that there is really no such thing as a good or bad location and profits (as well as losses) can be made almost anywhere. So if I were to invest in real estate now, I would consider looking at overseas properties as I believe that there may presently be some interesting real estate deals abroad. I must emphasize that this remark is made based on current market conditions. As the real estate market is constantly evolving, this view may not be valid or relevant in three to six months time.
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26 What are the differences between investing overseas and in Singapore? At the macro level, investing in overseas properties is actually not very different from investing in Singapore as the considerations are largely the same. In my second book Buy Right Property: The R.I.G.H.T. Approach to Investing in Singapore Properties, I wrote about five key considerations (i.e. market Realities, Investment considerations, Goals, Hotspots and Target price) that people should take note of before they buy. These five conditions are also applicable when buyers are sourcing for good investment opportunities abroad. The differences are more apparent at the micro level and the specific rules and regulations vary significantly from one country to another. It is not possible for me to list all the differences down.
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But a general piece of advice is that investors should do their due diligence before making a purchase. Some examples of due diligence include checking up on the developers credibility, financing terms, property tenure, making a site visit, consulting a lawyer, etc. But when you think about it, are these not things that you should also do when you buy a property in Singapore? What are the things investors should check before investing overseas? What are the risks? Let me state up front that buying a property, whether in Singapore or abroad, can be potentially risky. The risks of buying an overseas property is generally more as information is not as readily available as compared to Singapore. The uncertainty is compounded for countries where English is not the native or working language and
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26 some of the nuances are lost in translation. If I were to list a single success factor, I believe that the secret lies with who your service providers (i.e. property agents, legal advice, financial advice, etc.) are. For example, if you are lucky enough to come across a very professional and competent property agent who is familiar with the overseas market, they will be able to valueadd to your investment decisions by preempting the pitfalls as well as giving valuable advice. In other words, they would be able to help make the most complicated deals as smooth sailing as possible. On the other hand, if you are unlucky come to across agents who are not well versed in handling overseas deals, they may mess up even the most straightforward process. To illustrate, for my companys development
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project, we hand-hold potential buyers from the point of purchase to when they sell their units. We assist them in all aspects of the purchase, ranging from bringing buyers to see the site, helping them with the contract, sourcing for financing, reselling their units, managing of property, etc. I also make it a point to be personally involved when we communicate with our clients. I have observed that it helps when I personally explain to my buyers what we are trying to do, what our future plans are and how they can make money from it. It reassures them that I have a personal stake in the development and that we are with them all the way. It gives them the confidence in the development when they know that my own money is involved. More importantly, my buyers know that if anything is not right, they will be able to get in touch with me directly and we will fix it. Ultimately, it is this level of commitment that my team and
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26 I put in which assures our buyers. Risk-wise, I have come across investors who are hesitant to buy overseas properties and the common concerns cited are (1) frequent changes in ownership regulations and (2) natural calamities. In general, many assume that it is safer to buy properties in Singapore as the government is stable and they do not think that anything would likely happen to their property once they buy it. How wrong they are! In Singapore, the Land Acquisition Act gives our government the authority to acquire any land that it deems necessary for public good. If you have been following the recent news, a large land acquisition exercise was recently announced due to the construction of the North-South Expressway (NSE). Whether you had recently bought a million-dollar property
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or are a long-time HDB occupant for a development that lies in the path of the NSE, do you really think that your property would not be affected? In view of this, can you really say that your Singapore property is risk free? Another common reason that put some people off buying overseas properties is the risk of natural calamities. They believe that Singapore is relatively safe from calamities like earthquake and typhoon. However, if you recall, Singapores famous shopping belt and Bukit Timah were hit by a series of major floods in 2010 and in 2011. It is anyones guess if these areas will flood again in 2012. My purpose of highlighting these is to reinforce my earlier statement that property investments are risky and almost anything can go wrong. The only way to minimise such risks is to thoroughly do your homework.
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26 However, not everyone has the time or expertise to do such detailed research so the next best alternative is to find reliable third parties (e.g. developers, marketing agencies, lawyers, etc.) whom investors can trust to do the leg work for them. Hope you enjoyed Part One of this interview! In Part Two we ask Getty which countries have the most upside for property investors, how to find deals, how much capital you need to invest overseas, and his experience developing property overseas.

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26

Non-Landed Residential Resale Property Transactions for the Week of Oct 29 Nov 4
Postal District 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 5 7 8 8 8 8 9 9 9 9 9 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 Project Name ICON THE ARRIS QUEENS THE ANCHORAGE EMERALD PARK MARINA COLLECTION HARBOURLIGHTS PASIR VIEW PARK SOUTHBANK CITYLIGHTS CITYLIGHTS CITYLIGHTS KENTISH GREEN BELLE VUE RESIDENCES WATERMARK ROBERTSON QUAY CAIRNHILL PLAZA ESTILO MACKENZIE 88 ARDMORE PARK TANGLIN PARK VENTUNO BALMORAL WILLYN VILLE THE CAPRI THE ESTORIL SIXTH AVENUE VILLE Area Transacted Price Tenure (sqft) Price ($) ($ psf) 581 1,150,000 1,978 99 915 1,550,000 1,694 FH 1,184 1,435,000 1,212 99 883 980,000 1,110 FH 1,012 1,050,000 1,038 99 2,390 4,880,000 2,042 99 915 1,250,000 1,366 FH 1,464 1,465,000 1,001 FH 969 1,400,000 1,445 99 904 1,500,000 1,659 99 689 1,067,000 1,549 99 1,421 1,800,000 1,267 99 1,076 868,000 806 99 2,820 6,550,000 2,323 FH 1,076 1,950,000 1,812 FH 2,293 4,050,000 1,766 FH 517 875,000 1,694 FH 807 1,050,000 1,301 FH 2,885 9,000,000 3,120 FH 1,109 2,060,000 1,858 FH 1,313 2,150,000 1,637 FH 861 1,370,000 1,591 FH 603 900,000 1,493 FH 2,088 3,100,000 1,485 FH 710 980,000 1,379 FH Postal District 10 11 11 11 11 11 12 12 12 12 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 15 15 15 15 15 15 Project Name VILLA AZURA PARK INFINIA AT WEE NAM GILSTEAD 38 WATTEN ESTATE CONDOMINIUM THE TREVOSE HILLCREST ARCADIA PARC HAVEN ONE ST MICHAEL'S TRELLIS TOWERS BOON TECK TOWERS COSMO LE REVE DENG FU VILLE VISTAYA VIEW D' PALMA SIMSVILLE BLOSSOM VIEW THE SUNNY SPRING GUILLEMARD VIEW THE SEAFRONT ON MEYER GRAND DUCHESS AT ST PATRICK'S WATER PLACE OCEAN PARK ONE AMBER AMBER POINT Area Transacted Price Tenure (sqft) Price ($) ($ psf) 1,270 1,515,000 1,193 FH 1,442 2,580,000 1,789 FH 980 1,350,000 1,378 FH 2,594 2,975,000 1,147 FH 1,367 1,418,000 1,037 99 1,884 1,900,000 1,009 99 452 695,000 1,537 FH 1,249 1,480,000 1,185 FH 1,647 1,930,000 1,172 FH 1,722 1,578,000 916 FH 420 693,000 1,651 FH 840 930,000 1,108 FH 1,044 1,038,888 995 FH 1,270 1,234,000 972 FH 969 927,000 957 FH 1,238 1,110,000 897 99 980 800,000 817 FH 1,066 830,000 779 FH 1,335 888,888 666 FH 1,604 2,967,400 1,850 FH 1,389 1,850,000 1,332 FH 1,227 1,530,000 1,247 99 2,110 2,590,000 1,228 FH 1,453 1,730,400 1,191 FH 1,668 1,830,000 1,097 FH

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26

Postal District 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 17 17 18 18 18 18 18 18 19 19 19 20 20 Project Name COTE D'AZUR THE GERANIUM TANJONG RIA CONDOMINIUM EAST VIEW 18 CRESCENDO BUILDING CHELSEA LODGE VILLA MARINA LE CONNEY PARK COSTA DEL SOL LANDBAY CONDOMINIUM CHANGI COURT BAYSHORE PARK BAYSHORE PARK TANAMERA CREST TANAMERA CREST BEDOK COURT AVILA GARDENS ESTELLA GARDENS TROPICAL SPRING CHANGI RISE CONDOMINIUM CHANGI RISE CONDOMINIUM SAVANNAH CONDOPARK EASTPOINT GREEN ELIAS GREEN KOVAN PRIMERA CHERRYHILL COMPASS HEIGHTS GRANDEUR 8 BISHAN PARK CONDOMINIUM Area Transacted Price Tenure (sqft) Price ($) ($ psf) 1,324 1,435,000 1,084 99 1,001 1,000,000 999 FH 1,281 1,260,000 984 99 1,163 1,030,000 886 FH 1,173 1,028,000 876 FH 1,302 1,110,000 852 FH 1,130 960,000 849 99 1,087 920,000 846 FH 1,227 1,660,000 1,353 99 1,238 1,340,000 1,083 FH 1,098 1,125,000 1,025 FH 936 850,000 908 99 936 840,000 897 99 1,195 925,000 774 99 1,184 835,000 705 99 2,271 1,430,000 630 99 1,324 980,000 740 FH 1,259 920,000 731 FH 1,496 1,320,000 882 99 1,023 858,000 839 99 1,023 850,000 831 99 1,367 950,000 695 99 1,012 670,000 662 99 1,507 975,000 647 99 1,270 1,270,000 1,000 FH 1,195 1,010,000 845 FH 2,390 1,448,000 606 99 1,119 993,000 887 99 1,507 1,168,000 775 99
Postal District 20 21 21 21 21 22 22 23 23 23 23 23 23 23 26 26 26 26 26 26 26 27 27 28 Project Name FAR HORIZON GARDENS SYMPHONY HEIGHTS SIGNATURE PARK THE HILLSIDE HIGH OAK CONDOMINIUM PARC OASIS LAKESIDE TOWER THE DAIRY FARM THE PETALS HILLVIEW REGENCY HILLVIEW REGENCY MERALODGE HILLTOP GROVE HILLVIEW APARTMENTS BULLION PARK CASTLE GREEN CASTLE GREEN CASTLE GREEN SEASONS PARK FOREST HILLS CONDOMINIUM CASTLE GREEN EUPHONY GARDENS SELETARIS GRANDE VISTA Area Transacted Price Tenure (sqft) Price ($) ($ psf) 1,152 788,000 684 99 926 980,000 1,059 FH 1,399 1,330,000 950 FH 1,302 1,180,000 906 FH 1,884 1,573,000 835 99 1,389 1,065,000 767 99 1,970 898,000 456 99 1,572 1,620,000 1,031 FH 1,765 1,628,000 922 FH 969 838,000 865 99 1,130 950,000 841 99 1,130 920,000 814 FH 1,238 908,000 734 99 1,206 880,000 730 FH 807 820,000 1,016 FH 947 810,000 855 99 947 800,000 845 99 947 800,000 845 99 1,249 968,000 775 99 1,195 860,000 720 99 1,152 818,000 710 99 764 720,000 942 99 1,356 1,020,000 752 FH 1,636 1,320,000 807 999

NOTE: This data only covers non-landed residential resale property transactions with caveats lodged with the Singapore Land Authority. Typically, caveats are lodged at least 2-3 weeks after a purchaser signs an OTP, hence the lagged nature of the data.

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 26

Singapore Property Classifieds #16

For Sale Bliss Residences @ Kembangan. FH 1500+sf 3+1BR Penthouse. Only $1000psf. 1 min to MRT, 15 min to CBD. Rooftop pool and BBQ. TK Tan 98206228. HDB BLK 112 SIMEI (5I), 122sqm, 7 min to MRT, #02 Nicely Renovated Corner. Val $520k. Main Door Face North East. Call Nelson Lim 83680693

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