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Showing posts from March, 2010

Breakfast in bed at The Residences at W Singapore, Sentosa

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The Residences at W looks awesome! Why? Apparently, shared concierge services with the luxury W Hotel Next to Sentosa Cove arrival plaza ( North Cove ) Beside Retail & F&B on Sentosa Island View of marina Beside One Degree 15 Marina Club Now the only thing missing is its own beach front ! The Residences at W is located next to the luxury W hotel, along the northern cove. The W Hotel is expected to be opening in 2012. Gosh. Imagine living in a condo (next to a hotel) with all your hotel concierge/room services plus buggy drivers, pool attendants, security guards and berthing facilities (34 berths, ~$3,000 a year)! While you probably will pay through your nose for hotel standard room service breakfast, if you can live there you sure can afford it. Also, the Hotel & Residences' Clubhouse will be linked through a basement connection. Finally monthly maintainence fees are going somewhere useful (anyone knows how much?). Well sorry we got caught up in all of

The silver property market

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So what is the next big thing in the property market? Well...the silver property market and we are not talking about commodities! Apart from riding the usual wave of boom and bust property cycles and flipping Marina bay and Sentosa apartments, you might want to find out more about this interesting segment: "property for aging people" . With at least 1.2 billion aging people in Asia (at least according to the brochure we found), it seems like some big time local private developers such as Frasers Centrepoint Homes and Tong Eng Group are taking the lead and already moving into the arena, and its not hard to understand why. Singapore itself has a graying population with locals not responding to all kinds of monetary aphrodisiacs the government is dangling at us. In fact, we have been noticing lots of studios meant for the elderly being included in HDB flats recently ...which means even the government is anticipating this in a big way (see: Studi

Pender Court up for en bloc

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Pender Court , the 48-unit, District 4 apartment located just off Telok Blangah Road is now up for en bloc. Sitting at the foot of Mount Faber, the owners are hoping for a $100m-$108m windfall. This is their second attempt at selling their home. They had already pocketed $12m from a failed en bloc back in April 2008 when the initial buyer decided to cut their losses. This en bloc is the sixth one since the beginning of 2010. So far the outlook for a successful en bloc looks rather dim given the sizable number of available residential plots put out by the Government this year. As posted in h88.com.sg by John

Private resale home prices erupt: highest ever

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Private home prices have never been higher before - at least according to Savills Singapore. This seems to be happening just when measured measures were supposed to be working. Perhaps this will give even more for the government to think about . According to Savills Singapore, a report said that average prices for non-landed private resale homes have gone beyond the 2007 peak by 6%, and surpassed by it by 15.6% for landed homes - in short we are staring at some of the highest levels ever seen in Singapore's history: Average resale mass market prices: $662 psf (Jan,Feb 2010), up from $555 psf (2007)* Average resale mid market prices: $886 psf (Jan,Feb 2010), up from $740 psf (2007)* Average resale high end market prices: $1,425 psf (Jan,Feb 2010), up from $1,254 psf (2007)* Notably however, volume of sales are still shy of 2007 numbers. While we aren't sure if it is right to compare a two month average versus an annual average considering there are seasonal ad

REDAS: higher property prices is the government's fault, MND: NO.

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Simon Cheong , President of the Real Estate Developer's Association of Singapore (and founder of property developer SC Global Developments ) today encouraged the market by urging buyers not to be too cautious and slammed the government's reserve price system while he was at it. According to Channelnewsasia.com Simon Cheong hinted that the current environment presents an abundance of opportunities and that recent cooling measures were shaken off by genuine home buyers and investors. He also criticized the government's reserve price system for state land tenders as a cause for higher housing prices because higher bidding prices for land means higher selling prices from developers. He cited Ten Mile Junction as an example. Ten Mile Junction was not sold for a low bid in April 2008 at $162 psf ppr when the economy was down, but was successfully sold only at $437 psf ppr this year after things heated up again. Woah! This is surely a punch in the sucker for

New record price for HDB flat

Hot on the heels of record private home prices is a record per square foot paid for a HDB flat along Bain Street in Bugis Estate. The previous record was set back in November 2009 in Queenstown for a 4RM flat. Hmmm. Very interesting don't you think? We do recall some announcement regarding some sort of measure by some Govt agency not that long ago... The 25th floor 4 room flat cost a Taiwanese couple $650,000 or a record smashing $736psf - which is sure to raise some eyebrows and create a big headache for agents selling HDB flats. Now everyone will want to sell for that price! Our hearts go out to you poor agents! We wonder how the buyers are feeling now that they know (if they haven't before) they are the best HDB buyers ever in Singapore, and that amount could have got them a shiny new condo somewhere else in the Singapore suburbs. The average prices we see for that area over the past few months hover between $668 and $677psf . As posted in h88.com.sg by Franc

Singapore Residential Price Index : NUS Institute of Real Estate Studies

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INTRODUCTION The National University of Singapore (“NUS”) Singapore Residential Price Index Series (“SRPI”) is a transactions-based index that tracks the month-on-month price movements of private non-landed residential properties in Singapore. Developed by a team of researchers at IRES, the SRPI provides a resource for the development of property derivatives that would help to expand the suite of financial products offered in Singapore, particularly in the context of obtaining exposure to and managing risks associated with the real estate market. It will also complement existing property information on the state of the residential market. Currently, SRPI indexes are published in the form of value-weighted indexes. The SRPI is the index for the overall non-landed residenti

1st look at Market Trends affecting Singapore Property Market

2010 Feb 22nd - Government Budget 2010, changes in property tax calculation, will now be a tiered taxation structure as opposed to old flat rate set way back in 1994. The tax rate for owner-occupiers will be adjusted from the current 4% flat rate to: 0% for the first $6,000 of Annual Value 4% for the next $59,000 of Annual Value 6% cent for the balance of Annual Value in excess of $65,000 Non-owner-occupied residential properties and other properties are taxed at 10%. Th Budget 2010 speech Feb 20th - Government introduce measures to contain property speculation to temper sentiments and pre-empt a property bubble from forming. Introducing a Seller’s Stamp Duty (SSD) on all residential properties and residential lands that are bought after today and sold within 1 year from the date of purchase. Lowering the Loan-to-Value (LTV) limit to 80% for all housing loans provided by financial institutions regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). 2009 Sep - The Government introdu

Condo Review: The Estuary

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About The Estuary Yishun's latest condo is one we've been watching for some time now. This District 27 condo saw brisk sales with many of the small 1 and 2 BR units taken up before the showroom doors opened on 25 February. Yishun has a distinct lack of new condos and judging by the strong interest, it shows that there is a demand for condos in that area. Developers have taken note too with the EC site in Yishun Avenue 11 seeing some 10 bids recently. As we've mentioned in our previous Condo Watch: 2010 article, The Estuary was bought at a record price by MCL Land back in 2007. Prices however, were lower than what analysts predicted. Tenure: 99-year leasehold District: 27 Developer: MCL Land Site Area: 290,077 sqft Estimated TOP: 31 December 2013 Blocks: 7 Floors: 15-17 Units: 608 total, 1BR (85), 2BR (153), 2+1BR (50), 3BR (265) and 4BR (55) Unit Sizes (without PES / with PES) : 1BR (592 - 603 sqft / 678 sqft and 689 sqft) 2BR (904 - 1,130 sqft / 1,09

Live among skyscrapers with 76 Shenton Way

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Fancy living among skyscrapers, a-la New York City? Now you can with 76 Shenton Way . Formerly a very empty office building, the geniuses at CDL have decided to convert this shell of a skyscraper to a 99-year, 39-storey development complete with 202 one and two-bedroom units. Tenure: 99 year District: 2 Developer: Hong Leong House Private Limited (City Developments Ltd) Site Area: 32,456 sqft Estimated TOP: 2014 Blocks: 1 Floors: 39 Units: 202 total, 1BR(134), 2BR(68) Notable Facilities: 35m lap pool, gym and two spa suites. Unit Sizes: 1BR (588 and 620 sqft) 2BR (963 and 973 sqft) Location Map Images: Google Maps. Note: Site overlay is approximate Site Layout Units all put together. Click here for high-res version. Facilities Layout Doesn't the swimming pool look like somebody's torso? Prices Nearby Altez @ Enggor has seen a price range of $1,600 to $2,300 psf and a median price of $1,817 psf last month according to recent URA data. So expect to see some

Urban Suites, a piece of Orchard area

Only 11 units more of 4 bedroom available! Available units and Prices as attached below Unit Size (sqft) *Price #04-03 2,002 $5,242,400 #05-03 2,002 $5,263,800 #04-07 2,002 $5,043,100 #05-07 2,002 $5,063,900 #06-07 2,002 $5,084,500 #09-07 2,002 $5,167,700 #11-07 2,002 $5,209,100 #12-07 2,002 $5,229,900 #13-07 2,002 $5,250,600 #14-07 2,002 $5,271,400 #15-07 2,002 $5,292,000 *Prices are subject to changes without prior notice All prices quoted are based on Normal Payment Scheme Sales Gallery Along Grange Road (Off Paterson Road) Viewing Strictly By Appointment ONLY Call 98533323

The Laurels plants itself in Orchard

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The Laurels - District 9's latest offering along Cairnhill Road has 229 units ready for your viewing pleasure. Come in and take a look at this freehold condominium in the prime district. Tenure: Freehold Site Area: 78,047 sqft Developer: Sing Holdings Limited Estimated TOP: 2013 Blocks: 2 Floors: 19 Units: 229 total 1BR(45), 2BR(60), 2+1BR(30), 3BR(75), 4BR(15), PH(4) Trivia: Built over the former Hillcourt Apartments Key facilities include 50m pool, gym, tennis court and function room. Unit Sizes: 1BR (549 - 721 sqft) 2BR (883 sqft) 2+1BR (1,001 - 1,345 sqft) 3BR (1,281 - 1,927 sqft) 4BR (1,819 - 2,573 sqft) PH (3,853 - 4,833 sqft) Siteplan Location Map Images: Google Maps . Note: Map overlay is approximate Unit Distribution Click here for the high-res version Prices Sales already started in late Feb and more recently The Straits Times reports that 135 of the 179 units released have been sold. Prices range from $2,500 to $2,800 psf. As posted in h88.com.sg

Private home sales in February hit 1,196

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According to the latest property data released by URA, February 2010 sales of new condos (or private non-landed homes) reached 1,196, slightly short of the 1,476 seen in January. Though that figure is lower, let's not forget that last month had fewer days as well as the long Lunar New Year break. Seems that the buying fervour hasn't been tempered by the cooling measures put in by the Govt. We've done some maths, come in and take a look. If we divide the total sales by the number of days, we'd get 42.71 sales per day in February. For January, it works out to 47.61, or around 5 more units sold per day. Take away 3 days in February to account for Chinese New Year however, and the figure rises to 47.84. That's roughly the same rate as January. So going by these numbers, perhaps the fever hasn't subsided as much as the Govt wants. Developers also launched 1,161 units in February, compared to 1,424 units in January. Notably these developments have also managed to

HDB launches anti-speculation measures

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After all that chatter about flats not being affordable, HDB has hit back with a roundhouse combo of anti-speculation measures. Sure they call it 'Reinforcing Owner-Occupation Among HDB Flat Owners', but we know what this means - no more making a quick buck off your resale flat. There are changes to the HDB concessionary loan and the Minimum Occupation Period. Here's a rundown of what these new measures are and how they will affect you. 1. Lifting of Upgrading Condition Current Situation If you're upgrading to a larger flat, HDB will give you their super-low second concessionary loan; but only if you are upgrading (ie. 4rm to 5rm). Downsizers have to trawl the banks for a market-rate loan. New Situation HDB will give you a second concessionary loan regardless . So whether you're upgrading, downgrading or 'rightsizing' as they call it, HDB will be there with their loan. Private property owners, you're on your own. You won't get a second HDB loan when