Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Chip Eng Seng Makes Top Bid For Pasir Ris HDB Site

Source : The Business Times, December 19, 2007

99-yr leasehold plot can be developed into a condo with about 380 units

CHIP Eng Seng has emerged as the top bidder for a condominium site at Pasir Ris, HDB said yesterday.





















The 99-year leasehold site on Bernam Street/Tanjong Pagar Road and next to Amara Hotel, has a land area of some 49,125 sq ft and a maximum gross floor area of 288,860 sq ft.

The developer beat two other bidders with its offer of some $104.0 million - or $228 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr) - for the 152,054 sq ft site on Elias Road.

The bid was slightly lower than the $260-$300 psf ppr analysts expected the site to fetch when it was launched in late October.

Ku Swee Yong, director of marketing and business development at Savills Singapore, said that the price offered by Chip Eng Seng was 'reasonable'.

'The launch price should start around $650 psf,' said Mr Ku. 'We anticipate strong demand for the project given the growing demand for mass-market homes.'

Analysts expect prices of mass-market homes to climb about 15 per cent next year on the back of strong demand - outstripping the price performance in the high-end residential segment, where home prices are expected to increase by less than 10 per cent.

Chip Eng Seng's bid was just 4 per cent higher than the second highest bid of $100.4 million - or $220 psf ppr - put in by GuocoLand. The developer's bid was also 12 per cent higher than the lowest bid of $93.0 million - or $204 psf ppr - from the Sim Lian Group.

Experts said that the 99-year leasehold site can be developed into a condominium with about 380 units averaging 1,200 sq ft.

Separately, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said that a hotel site on the government's reserve list is now open for application.

The 99-year leasehold site on Bernam Street/Tanjong Pagar Road and next to Amara Hotel, has a land area of some 49,125 sq ft and a maximum gross floor area of 288,860 sq ft. The maximum building height is 35 storeys.

The site is one of the four new hotel sites which are scheduled to be released for application on the reserve list in the government's land sales programme for the second half of 2007.

Under the reserve list system, a site is only offered for public tender if the government receives an application from a developer who commits to bid for the site at a price which is deemed acceptable.

The site in Tanjong Pagar is an attractive location for a new hotel as established hotels are found there, said URA.

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