Far East buys Katong’s Amberville for $183m
Site is first privatised HUDC estate to be sold en bloc
FAR East Organization has made its first residential land acquisition in Singapore’s private sector since the property market peak in 1996-97.
It has bought Amberville at Katong - making it the first privatised HUDC estate to be sold in a collective sale - for $183 million.
This works out to a higher-than-expected $396 per square foot per plot ratio inclusive of an estimated development charge of $35.2 million and $23.8 million to top up the site’s lease from the remaining 71 years to the original 99 years.
Market watchers see Far East’s move - after such a long absence from the private residential scene - as significant.
‘The giant has finally woken up,’ says Knight Frank executive director Foo Suan Peng, whose firm brokered the Amberville sale. ‘It’s an indication from an experienced developer monitoring the market for some time that the current recovery will be for real - not short-lived like we saw in 1999.’
Owners in other HUDC privatised estates will no doubt be hoping that the Amberville purchase will boost their chances of en bloc sales too.
Two sites are currently on the market - Minton Rise at Hougang and Waterfront View, which faces Bedok Reservoir. Several others are in various stages of preparation including Pine Grove, Gillman Heights and Farrer Court.
The owners’ chances of success will depend on two key factors, besides setting realistic asking prices, says Mr Foo. ‘Number one, how prime the location is. And number two, the size of the site. Many former HUDC estates are on huge sites that could generate 1,000 or more new apartments upon redevelopment. Developers may not want to put all their eggs in one basket, in one location.’
The 218,435 sq ft Amberville site can be redeveloped into a new condo of at least 20 storeys, with around 530 units averaging 1,200 sq ft.
Far East’s breakeven cost is likely to be around $600 psf, observers say.
The site is zoned for residential use with a 2.8 plot ratio - the ratio of potential maximum gross floor area to land area.
The new condo will boast unblocked views of the sea, and the site is next to a foot tunnel that connects with the beach.
The tender for Amberville had attracted four bids when it closed on Tuesday this week. Far East’s offer was the highest.
The other contenders were City Developments, MCL Land and Wing Tai, sources say.
The owners of Amberville’s existing 168 apartments will each receive $1.09 million on average - at least 85 per cent more than what their units would have fetched had they been sold individually.
The sale to Far East is subject to several conditions - including confirmation of the baseline gross floor area, the buyer obtaining outline planning permission for a residential development with a 2.8 plot ratio, in-principle approval from Singapore Land Authority to top up the lease to 99 years, and the nod from the Strata Titles Board.
Source : Business Times - 19 Jan 2006
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