Tall & Urban News

Singapore’s largest private residential site—Braddell View Estate—has recently been relaunched for collective sale by its tender, with the owners’ reserve price remaining unchanged at SG$2.08 billion (US$1.5 billion).

Owners of the residential units stand to receive between SG$2.04 million (US$1.48 million) and SG$4.03 million (US$2.9 million) each if the sale succeeds, marketing agent Colliers International said on 13 August. Apartments range in size from 1,453 square feet (135 square meters) to 3,369 square feet (313 square meters).

Meanwhile, commercial shop owners could receive about SG$529,500 (US$382,125) to SG$1.2 million (US$866,040) in profits, if the sale is to go through.

After factoring in the 7 percent bonus balcony gross floor area, the estimated differential premium, and the cost of topping up the lease to 99 years, the reserve price translates to a land rate of about SG$1,159 (US$837) per square foot, per plot ratio, Colliers International said.

The property in Braddell Hill was originally put up for sale on 27 March, but the tender closed in May with no bids. It was reported that market watchers were unsurprised by this, given the size of the estate, cooling measures implemented last July, and the moribund en bloc market.

Braddell View, which sits on a 1.14 million square-foot (105,909 square-meter) hilltop site overlooking MacRitchie Reservoir Park, comprises two commercial units and 918 residential units. The plot has a lease tenure of about 102 years, with effect from Feb. 1, 1978.

Tang Wei Leng, managing director at Colliers International, said: “Understandably, developers are assessing the risks associated with acquiring a large site. That said, there are ways to mitigate these risks—forming a consortium to undertake development being one of them.”

“In addition, the site will also potentially benefit from the upcoming enhancements in the Bishan-Toa Payoh area under the Draft Master Plan 2019.”

Colliers added that the proposed transformation of the nearby Bishan Sub-Regional Center into a business hub could see the injection of new offices being integrated with community facilities, offering greater convenience to future residents, and bringing jobs closer to their homes.

Healthcare facilities will also be accessible, as the site is near Mount Alvernia Hospital, while Health City Novena, which is a short drive from Braddell View, will also see new developments, such as the Integrated Intermediary Care Hub, and the new National Skin Center, which is slated for completion by 2022.

Tang Wei Leng also added: “Location, accessibility, convenience, good value, and being near schools are some of the key factors driving demand for homes. We believe the Braddell View site ticks the right boxes and should appeal to diverse groups of buyers given its attractive attributes. More importantly, this site offers excellent potential and will provide developers with a solid development pipeline over the next few years.”

The site is located near schools, including Marymount Convent School, Raffles Institution, Raffles Junior College, Catholic High School, and CHIJ Secondary School.

It is also near the Braddell MRT station on the North-South line, as well as the Marymount and Caldecott MRT stations on the Circle line. Come 2020, the Caldecott MRT station will be connected to the new Thomson-East Coast Line.

The collective sale tender will close on 25 September 2019.

For more on this story, go to The Straits Times.