Two Singapore Office Blocks Sold For $40m

Source : The Business Times, July 24, 2008

Both buildings with 999-year leasehold transacted around $1,300 psf of NLA

Amid the quiet investment sales market, two small office blocks have been sold - in High Street and Middle Road - for a total of about $40 million or $1,300-plus per sq ft of existing net lettable area (NLA). Both buildings have 999-year leaseshold tenure.

Done deals: Wisma Sugnomal (left) at 75 High Street was sold for $23.5 million and the five-storey building at 33 Middle Road was sold for $16.8 million

A Hong Kong investor is believed to have bought Wisma Sugnomal at 75 High Street for $23.5 million or $1,349 psf based on existing NLA of 17,414 sq ft.

The property is believed to have been sold by mortgagee bank DBS. The mortgagor is understood to be an entity linked to the Aswani family.

The seven-storey office block, which has shops at street level, is about 12 years old.

The existing gross floor area of about 25,500 sq ft is slightly higher than the maximum allowed for the site under the Master Plan.

Fragrance group has bought 33 Middle Road, which is next to a Hotel 81, for $16.8 million or $1,324 psf of existing NLA in the five-storey building.

Market watchers expect Fragrance to convert the property into a budget hotel when existing leases to Tyndale Education Group and another tenant run out in the next few months and give the neighbouring Hotel 81 a run for its money.

Based on building's existing gross floor area of almost 17,000 sq ft, the property could house about 50 budget hotel rooms, industry observers suggested. Colliers International is believed to have brokered both deals.