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More sites are up for sale, with prices likely to rise by 10% to 15% from last year’s levels

THE market for Singapore’s most coveted homes - good class bungalows (GCBs) - is still going strong, with more sites coming onstream to meet rising demand.

This week, two freehold GCBs were offered for sale at Bukit Tunggal Road, off Chancery Lane, with a combined price tag of $24 million.

With a total land area of 48,543 sq ft, the price works out to about $494 per sq ft (psf) - a tad higher than the current average GCB price of about $476 psf as of mid-February.

This compares with $394 psf in the second half of last year and $375 psf for the whole of 2005, according to a report by Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) in March.

Over the last month, another three sites have been put on the market at even higher unit land prices.

A 26,514 sq ft GCB at Astrid Hill is up for sale with an asking price of about $530 psf, while a 17,475 sq ft GCB at Cluny Park and a 15,884 sq ft site at Gallop Road have guidance prices of between $600 psf and $650 psf.

And prices are set to climb even further, said Savills Prestige Homes’ director, Mr Steven Ming, who expects prices to rise by 10 to 15 per cent from last year’s levels.

‘(This would be) for the very prime sites, such as Nassim Road and Cluny Hill, and I believe prices can cross $650 psf by the end of this year,’ he added.

Pointing out that a benchmark price of $580 psf was set in December last year, he observed that GCB buyers are becoming more bullish in their bids to secure these exclusive homes.

GCBs - which must sit on plots of at least 1,400 sq m, or 15,070 sq ft, in size - are located only in the 39 areas set aside for their construction. These include Nassim Road, Jervois Hill and Chatsworth Park.

‘Buyers are recognising the scarcity of good stock and seeing very strong growth potential for Singapore,’ said Mr Ming.

‘They are prepared to be aggressive for the sites, especially those on really choice plots.’

But given the shortage of such sites, the demand for GCBs will probably filter down into the less prime locations, said JLL’s regional director and head of investments, Mr Lui Seng Fatt. ‘The demand for GCBs in choice locations and exceptional GCB plots with favourable characteristics will remain robust,’ he said.

‘However, with the limited supply of these GCB plots and coupled with increasing land values, it is expected that there will be a spillover effect on demand for GCBs that are located further away from the city limits.’

This year alone, about 15 GCBs have been sold as of March 2, with a total value of more than $128 million. A 15,108 sq ft site in Ladyhill Road was sold in January for $10 million, hitting a high of $662 psf, said JLL.

And this is coming off a record 104 GCB deals last year worth almost $845 million, which overtook the previous peak in 1999 when 73 GCBs were sold to the tune of $600 million, according to a recent report by property consultancy Savills Singapore.

fiochan@sph.com.sg

Strong interest

THE bungalows - which must sit on plots of at least 1,400 sq m, or 15,070 sq ft, in size - are located only in the 39 areas set aside for their construction. These include Nassim Road, Jervois Hill and Chatsworth Park.

‘Buyers are recognising the scarcity of good stock and seeing very strong growth potential for Singapore,’ said Mr Ming.

‘They are prepared to be aggressive for the sites, especially those on really choice plots.’

Source : Sunday Times - 14 May 2006