Residential Market News Extract - 18 September 2012

Property here may sizzle from QE3 heat

The possibility of a fresh wave of capital flows into Singapore as a result of the latest round of quantitative easing (QE3) in the United States has raised the prospect that the property market could heat up again. This, in turn, could lead to a new round of government measures to keep prices in check.

The Federal Reserve's decision to pump US$40 billion into the US economy each month until sustained jobs growth kicks in, while welcome news for the struggling global economy, also created fears that loose monetary conditions in the US may push funds into the region in search of yields and fan asset price inflation.

An influx of foreign funds into the property market here could well push the government to introduce new measures or tweak existing ones to prevent a bubble from forming, said economists and property consultants.

Already in the region, Hong Kong has moved swiftly to introduce mortgage curbs. In its fifth round of mortgage-tightening measures, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority announced that it would limit the Cashmaximum term of all new mortgages to 30 years.

Additionally, mortgage payments for investment properties cannot be more than 40 per cent of buyer's monthly incomes, compared with 50 per cent previously.

The government has repeatedly stated that it remains ready to take further action to cool the property market should the situation call for it.

Source: Business Times – 18 September 2012

 

Private home sales down 27% in August

A dearth of major new project launches in August as developers avoided the Hungry Ghost month led sales of private residential homes, excluding executive condominiums (ECs), to fall 27 per cent from a month ago.

URA's monthly developers' sales statistics for August showed that 1,421 units were snapped up last month, lower than the 1,946 in July. Property consultants say that the drop in sales was expected because the Hungry Ghost month typically sees slower transactions, and that sales figures this year are still expected to smash last year's record.

What is noteworthy, they say, is that the lack of fresh launches sparked an interest in homes of projects that were first launched before August. Just one in three of the 1,118 homes launched in August were from new projects - which in turn made up just 14.5 per cent of the 1,421 units sold.

Eugene Lim, key executive officer of ERA Realty Network noted that the drop in sales is unlikely to steer the market away from its path of recording the highest number of sales in a year.

"Due to the sales volumes exceeding 2,000 units for February to April, the overall average so far this year is 1,950 units, still well above the long run average of 1,500 units sold per month."

He added that September's sales figures are likely to shoot up again as a slew of launches typically hits the market immediately after the Chinese seventh month.

Notably, a unit at SC Global Developments' The Marq on Paterson Hill was sold for $4,921 psf, the highest median price achieved for a private residential apartment this year.

Sales in Outside Central Region (OCR), where mass market projects are located, fell by 45 per cent to 835 units as there were no new mega mass-market projects launched in August, but take-up in the Rest of Central Region (RCR) bucked the trend by seeing a higher number of units sold in August compared with July.

One Dusun Residences was the top-selling project in August by volume. The smallish, mixed-use freehold development is a joint venture by the Nobel Design Holdings, 2E Capital and Lian Huat Group.

In the CBD, 65 units of UIC's 510-unit V on Shenton were sold at $2,927 psf, bringing its total sales to 206 units since its launch in July.

In total, 15,295 homes have been sold this year, compared with 15,904 for the whole of last year.

In the EC market, 118 units were sold in August, all of which were from existing projects as there were no new launches during the month. This is slightly fewer than the 124 ECs sold in July.

Some 2,668 ECs have been sold in the year, 7 per cent lower than the 2,883 ECs sold in 2011.

Source: Business Times – 18 September 2012

 

Green Lodge sold for $191.888 million

In the largest freehold residential collective sale so far this year, Green Lodge at Toh Tuck Road has been sold for $191.888 million.

Some market watchers believe the buyer could comprise a consortium of investors while others suggest the buyer, or one of the buyers, could be a property player better known as a construction group and industrial property developer.

Green Lodge, located off Jalan Jurong Kechil in Upper Bukit Timah vicinity, has a land area of 151,075 sq ft. Under Master Plan 2008, the site can be developed into a five-storey condominium at 1.4 plot ratio (ratio of maximum gross floor area to land area).

The $191.888 million price for Green Lodge works out to $907 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr), based on the 1.4 plot ratio.

However, Green Lodge has an approved density of equivalent plot ratio 1.4896 (based on a slighter larger original land area) - translating to a lower unit land price of $833 psf ppr. This would allow about 8.9 per cent balcony space on which no development charge (DC) is payable to the state.

However, should the developer decide to tap the maximum 10 per cent balcony allowance, an estimated DC of $827,000 would be payable, resulting in an all-in unit land price at around $828 psf ppr.

Based on this, the breakeven cost for a new condo development would be around $1,100 psf.

Green Lodge has 80 residential units ranging from 1,679 sq ft to 2,056 sq ft. Their owners will receive sums ranging from $2.3 million to $2.6 million per unit - about 50 to 60 per cent higher than what they could have fetched if they had sold their units individually.

Green Lodge is on elevated grounds in a quiet neighbourhood within 1 km of the popular Pei Hwa Presbyterian Primary School. It is also about 800 metres from the future Beauty World MRT Station on the Downtown Line.

Green Lodge is being sold following the third tender closing for the site on Aug 8. The earlier two tenders closed in December last year and in May this year.

Source: Business Times – 18 September 2012

 

700 lodge e-applications for Heron Bay's 394 units

More than 700 interested buyers had lodged e-applications for the lavish 394-unit Heron Bay executive condominium (EC) as of 5pm yesterday.

That easily makes Heron Bay, which was launched on Sunday, the best performing EC in terms of first-day application numbers in recent years, said Mr Vincent Ong, managing partner of Evia, a partner in the development consortium.

What makes the project so appealing, he said, is the Upper Serangoon development's luxury features on an EC budget.

Units are priced between $715 and $720 per sq ft on average. The smallest unit, at about 775 sq ft, is expected to cost around $560,000, while the five-bedroom penthouse is 2,841 sq ft and expected to cost between $1.5 million and $1.6 million. Such five-room units are firsts for an EC development.

Some ground floor units can accommodate a jacuzzi-cum-pool of up to 6m in length, or a garden pond. There will also be pricer and sleeker household appliances, a year's worth of free fibre broadband service, a basement carpark and a swimming pool.

Eventually, there will also be a sea sports recreational centre with kayaks and tandem bicycles. Dual-key units that allow for multi-generational living are also available.

The EC, between Serangoon River and Punggol Park, is being developed by a consortium comprising Ho Lee Group, See Hup Seng, CNH Investment and Evia Real Estate Management. Construction is due to be completed sometime in 2016.

A ballot will be held after applications close on Sept 23, as the number of applications has exceeded that of the units. Successful applicants can book their units from Oct 26.

Source: The Straits Times – 18 September 2012