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When bids for two residential plots under the Government Land Sales (GLS) program were submitted yesterday, prices hit record high once again.
Tenders for both 99-year leasehold plots – one in Tampines and the other in Lentor Central – ended yesterday night with nine offers apiece, as developers raced to refill land banks as unsold private housing inventories neared a four-year low of 16,929 units.
They were both verified list sites for the GLS program’s first phase in 2021. This implies that they were released on time, regardless of demand. They have the potential to produce 1,195 residential units when combined.
About Tampines Street 62 Land Bid
A joint venture between Qingjian Realty and Santarli Construction placed the highest offer for the EC site in Tampines Street 62 at $422 million, or $659 per sq ft per plot ratio (psf ppr).
Their offer was just 1.4 percent more than the second-placed $416.3 million offer.
According to Mr Nicholas Mak, director of research and consulting at ERA Singapore, the $422 million offer is the highest land rate ever paid for an EC site in the history of this kind of housing.
He noted that it shattered the past record land sales of $603 psf ppr for an Executive Condo (EC) site in Tengah Garden Walk, which closed shortly before this tender.
Six out of nine bids for the Tampines plot, which is anticipated to produce 590 units, were more than the $603 psf ppr land pricing for the Tengah Garden Walk site, according to analysts.
“The developer would have to price the upcoming Tampines EC development at more than $1,250 per square foot. In the second quarter of this year, the median transaction price for new EC units was $1,154 psf “Mr Mak expressed his thoughts.
The site’s closeness to the future Tampines North MRT station and facilities in Tampines town, according to Mr Ong Teck Hui, senior director of research and consulting at JLL, is a major selling factor.
According to OrangeTee & Tie’s senior vice-president of research and analytics, Christine Sun, new EC prices are creeping closer to $1,200 psf this year.
“Piermont Grand sold for $1,151 psf, while Parc Central Residences sold for $1,173 psf. As a result, when (the Tampines) plot is released, a median selling price of more than $1,200 psf for new ECs may be broken “she said
About Lentor Central Site
Meanwhile, a GuocoLand subsidiary was the highest bidder for the Lentor Central site, offering $784.1 million, which was 4.5 percent more than the second-highest offer of $750 million.
The Urban Redevelopment Authority has submitted a proposal for a private residential complex with commercial space on the first level. It has the potential to produce 605 units.
The $784.1 million offer for the property, which is next to the Thomson-East Coast Line’s planned Lentor MRT station, equates to a land cost of $1,204 psf ppr.
PropNex chief executive Ismail Gafoor remarked, “This offer is 7.7% higher than the previous bid of $1,118 psf ppr for the Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1 GLS tender that ended in May this year.”
“The planned Lentor Central development’s possible selling price may range from $1,950 to $2,000 per square foot.”
“The commercial component would offer retail choices and facilities for the residential communities surrounding the Lentor and Yio Chu Kang region, as well as future projects from two Lentor Hills sites in the second-half 2021 GLS plan,” said Ms Tricia Song, CBRE’s director of research for South-east Asia.
Both locations, according to Mr Gafoor, would offer additional mass-market private houses in the suburbs or outside the center region (OCR), which are popular among homeowners and upgraders.
He said that the bids indicate developers’ confidence in the suburban market, which has been exhibiting indications of pent-up demand due to decreasing availability and a dearth of fresh launches.
