HDB upgraders propel private home sales

Private residence purchases rose in 2012 primarily due to increased demand from public-housing dwellers, according to data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority.

17,590 of the 36,887 private residence transactions across all markets last year, or 48 per cent, involved buyers with HDB addresses. This marked a sharp increase of 17 per cent from the number of such transactions in 2011.

Punggol F&B site gets top bid of $11.4m

A plot of land at Punggol Point zoned for food and beverage (F&B) use has drawn a highest bid of $11.4 million, pipping eight other offers.

The offer, which works out to $3,789.6 per square metre of gross floor area (GFA), was submitted by Fragrance Group.

The next highest bidder was KT & T Resources at $8.6 million, or $2,865.1 per square metre of GFA.

Tax blow for high-end developers

The move to abolish the tax vacancy refund will put more pressure on individuals and companies, particularly those with high-end residential asset portfolios.

This, combined with progressive tax rates which will see the government raising property tax rates for high-end residential homes with the largest increases applying to investment properties, means that high-end developers could potentially be hit with a double whammy.

Higher home taxes unlikely to have big impact: Tharman

The increase in "wealth tax" for high-end homes in this year's Budget will not have significant impact on the property sector here, said Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam yesterday.

"I don't think (the higher taxes) will impact the property market much, but if it does, it's not such a bad thing - our property taxes are not very high.

"As a permanent state of affairs, we have to find some ways of getting tax revenue for the long term. It's better to tax wealth than to tax income," he said during a Budget forum broadcast live over Channel NewsAsia.

Minister Khaw unveils Woodlands regional hub plans

National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan yesterday sketched out what Woodlands Regional Centre will be like.

With 100 hectares of space available for development, Woodlands Regional Centre is a key component in reshaping northern Singapore laid out in the recent Land Use plan.

It is expected to serve as a major commercial hub in the north and will take about 15-20 years to fully develop, Mr Khaw said during a community event at Woodlands Ring Road.

Property Development charges projected to rise

Property development charges (DC) rates - payable for enhancing the use of some sites or building bigger projects on them - expected to head upwards come March 1 for all major use groups. They cite an appreciation in land values over the past six months. In some cases, the hikes could be in double digits.

DC rates, revised on March 1 and Sept 1 each year, are stated according to use groups - such as landed residential, commercial and hotel - across 118 geographical sectors. The Ministry of National Development, in consultation with the Chief Valuer, revises DC rates based on current market values. In addition to being tracked in property circles as they can impact redevelopment sites with a sizeable DC component, DC rates are seen as the government's reading of land and property values.

San Centre put up for collective sale

San Centre, a 12-storey office building on Chin Swee Road, has been put up for collective sale by tender.

Standing on 28,719 sq ft of land, the building comprises 107 strata-titled office units and 80 carpark lots. It has a total gross floor area of 131,895 sq ft, resulting in a plot ratio of 4.59.

Offers are expected to come in at between $115 million and $125 million, or between $872 and $948 per sq ft.

Office rents in Singapore half that of Hong Kong's

Singapore's prime office rents are becoming more competitive.

Rents in the Central Business District (CBD) here last year came in at only half those in Hong Kong, which has the Asia-Pacific's highest rents at HK$104.47 per square foot (S$16.66 psf).

The rental rates in Singapore, ranked 14th in the Asia-Pacific, were $8.61 psf last year; the Republic was the 11th in 2011.

Roxy-Pacific Holdings set to launch residential projects in April

Roxy-pacific Holdings can expect to have a busy second quarter this year.

Its chief executive Teo Hong Lim said at a results briefing yesterday that showflats at three of its sites will be completed by next month and are set to be launched in April.

"We always sell the moment we are ready. If you go to the various sites now, the showflats are already rushing," he said.

More HDB resale flats sold at close to $1 million mark

A new record has been set for Housing Board resale flats, with a 1,750 sq ft executive maisonette in Bishan changing hands for $1.01 million last month. It broke the previous record of $1 million, set by a 1,615 sq ft executive apartment in Queenstown last year.

Fresh data from the Singapore Real Estate Exchange (SRX), which collects transaction information from larger property firms, also revealed that such sky-high prices are not one-offs.

Six prime strata office units at Samsung Hub up for sale

Six prime strata office units have been put up for sale on the 17th floor of Samsung Hub, a 999-year-leasehold, Grade A office block on Church Street, near Raffles Place.

The units have strata areas ranging from 883 sq ft to 3,595 sq ft, adding up to 13,132 sq ft. Their absolute price quantums range from $3 million to $12 million.

Their owner, Church Street Holdings, has put the units up for sale.

More home owners holding on to their HDB flats

More home owners are holding on to their HDB flats, reversing a trend that had been rising in the past four years.

According to data from the Housing Board yesterday, the percentage of home owners who sold their property within the year after it hit the five-year minimum occupation period (MOP) was 11.8 per cent last year.

It had been climbing steadily, from 4.3 per cent in 2008 to 18.3 per cent in 2011. These figures are for flats bought directly from the HDB.

OCBC Bank expects up to 30% fall in new home loans

OCBC Bank expects up to 30% fall in new home loans this year following recent property-cooling measures, but the impact will not be as great to its mortgage book, said Ching Wei Hong, the bank's chief operating officer.

Over the past few years, OCBC has grown its mortgages strongly and the drawdown in 2013 of home loans sold in 2010 and 2011 will cushion the fall in new sales, he said at OCBC's fourth-quarter 2012 results briefing yesterday.

Private home sales surged in rush to beat curbs

Private home sales surged 42.8 per cent in January from the month before, as developers dished out discounts and rebates to entice buyers in the wake of the seventh round of cooling measures.

Excluding executive condominiums (ECs), a total of 2,013 transactions were clocked in in January, up from 1,410 in December. This was the highest in four months, and exceeded the 1,799 units launched by developers.

Happy Chinese New Year 2013!!

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR

to all readers

Updates will continue after the Holidays 

(10 - 12 Feb)

Have a great Holiday Season ahead!

HUAT AH!!

Call for review of zoning policy for industrial land

The way industrial land is zoned should be re- assessed to ensure small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will be able to grow.

Responding to the Government's White Paper on Population, said there is a risk some firms will be left out in the cold by existing zoning categories. These were devised for a manufacturing sector that is rapidly evolving - and in turn, threatening to leave these zoning definitions looking outmoded.

Homing in on property price cuts

Developers who have been cutting prices following the new cooling measures risk angering buyers who bought at the earlier levels, say experts.
But developers claim that the recent discounting does not necessarily disadvantage early buyers.

Property experts say some buyers who have just shelled out on a new home will inevitably be unhappy when they see units at the same development suddenly going cheaper.

Major shift in planning strategy for housing and transport infrsstructure: Khaw

The Government has made a major shift in the way it provides housing and public transport infrastructure - it will now invest and build well ahead of demand.

Complaints about overcrowding, congestion and the long wait for a Housing Board flat prompted the switch, which National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan described as "a major shift in planning and development strategy".

"We will do our best not to allow population to surge ahead of our infrastructure again," he told Parliament yesterday. "What we must do is to build infrastructure ahead of demand and where possible, we must also build in a buffer so that we can respond to unexpected developments and needs."

Housing Developers Bill gives more teeth to Controller of Housing

The Controller of Housing will be empowered to require developers to disclose any benefits they provide to home buyers - including reimbursements of stamp duty, discounts and vouchers - and to publish the information, under an amendment Bill introduced for first reading in Parliament yesterday.

The move will boost transparency on home prices, say industry players.

This is one of the changes contained in the Housing Developers (Control and Licensing) (Amendment) Bill - which will be tabled for its second reading at a future Parliament seating.

Next-gen HDB flats will be better designed: Khaw

Next-gen HDB flats will look like Punggol, National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said yesterday, but just how might this pan out?

Mr Khaw told Parliament that the next generation of public housing would be even more comfortable and better designed, holding up Housing and Development Board precincts at Punggol South as an example. Newer neighbourhoods, such as Punggol, were planned as smaller estates, HDB said in response to queries. Each Punggol precinct is made up of between 1,000 and 3,000 homes.

Indirect discounts for home buyers under review

Indirect discounts acting as sweeteners to home buyers by developers, to take the sting out of recent property cooling measures, is being reviewed by the Government.

It is concerned that sweeteners such as stamp duty rebates and furniture vouchers cause home prices to be artificially inflated. The Straits Times understands that the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) is looking into the practice and might act soon, as indirect discounts could make the cooling measures seem ineffective.

Latest Property Cooling measures won't hit banks heavily: Citi Research

The latest property cooling measures is unlikely to impact banks heavily, with mortgage and construction loan demand expected to remain resilient this year, though at a slower growth rate.

This is because data so far since the cooling measures were implemented suggests that demand for property is still strong, Citi Research said in a report yesterday.

It expects the mortgage growth rate to reach 9 per cent this year, compared with 16 per cent last year. It also predicts the growth rate for construction and non-bank financial institution loans to drop only slightly from over 17 per cent to about 15 per cent.

SANT RITZ - Luxurious City Fringe Condominium next to Potong Pasir

ERA has been appointed as SOLE Marketing Agent for  

Another Upcoming Exciting Project

Luxurious City Fringe Condominium

SANT RITZ

Targeted Preview In

End March / Early April 2013!

Preliminary Information Of The Development

Developer	Santarli Realty Pte Ltd
Location	Pheng Geck Avenue
Tenure of Land	Leasehold 99 years
Residential Site Area	4,850.5 sq m
Gross Plot Ratio	3.5
Total No. of Units	Approx. 214 units (1 Bedroom / 2 Bedroom / 3 Bedroom / Penthouses / Row Houses)

Location Map

Location of Sant Ritz
(Click to Enlarge)

Development Attributes

ü Strategically located at city fringe

ü Primed to reap the benefits of government policies to revamp the area (Bidadari etc)

ü Potong Pasir MRT Station at your doorstep

ü Minutes to Serangoon MRT Interchange, Nex Mall, Bugis Junction, Orchard Shopping Belt & CBD

ü Proximity to renowned schools including Stamford American International School, St. Andrews Village (Junior, Secondary & JC), Cedar Primary School & Maris Stella High School (Primary)

ü Well connected to city and other parts of the island via PIE, CTE & KPE

ü 1 bedrm / 2 bedrm / 3 bedrm / Penthouses & Rowhouses

For Enquiries

Steven Teo 张荣坚 | +65 98232630

steo.property@gmail.com

facebook.com/steoproperty

twitter.com/steoproperty

www.steoproperty.blogspot.sg

Slow weekend for sales at showflats

Slow weekend for sales at showflats over the weekend as home-seekers adopted a wait-and-see approach in the wake of the new cooling measures.

A combination of Chinese New Year distractions and the possibility that some developers might start throwing in discounts meant sales are being put on hold.

Larger flats in mature estates draws most interest

Larger flats in mature estates have once again drawn the most interest in the latest Build-To-Order (BTO) exercise, a trend that is likely to continue along with the promise of rising resale values.

When the most recent exercise closed last night, there were 12 applicants for every five-room flat on offer in Ang Mo Kio and six for every four-room unit there. In Tampines, each four-room flat drew about seven bids.

Island south of Sentosa zoned for housing

An island south of Sentosa called Pulau Seringat, could let some residents call it home, in more than two decades later.

The island, reported as a potential site for a casino resort six years ago, has been zoned for residential use under the Ministry of National Development's (MND) Land Use Plan announced on Thursday.

The six southern islands - Kusu, St John's, the Sisters' Islands, Kias, Lazarus and Seringat - were reportedly set to be clustered into one of the two casino resorts, which were eventually sited at Marina Bay and Sentosa.

700,000 new homes by 2030: too many or too few?

700,000 new homes will be built in the central region, including the former Bukit Turf Club, Kallang Riverside, Bukit Brown, and the waterfront area around Keppel, as part of the government's long-term plan to roll out new housing units by 2030.

Of these, almost 200,000 homes, comprising 90,000 private units including executive condominiums, and 110,000 public homes, are expected to be completed by 2016. According to the Land Use Plan released yesterday, three new towns will be carved out: Bidadari which will have about 11,000 homes (both public and private housing), Tampines North which will have about 21,000 homes, and Tengah which will see about 55,000 homes.

Singapore offers a glimpse of its future

A couple of days after projecting that the population could rise to upto 6.9 million by 2030, the government yesterday revealed how they might be accommodated without Singapore feeling the squeeze. Reclamation alone will raise the land area by up to 5,200 hectares or 7.3 per cent - much of it in Tuas Port, Pulau Tekong and Jurong Island. Some of the existing 10,000 ha stock of reserve land will be tapped. Old industrial areas and some golf courses will be recycled to achieve higher land productivity. Infrastructure permitting, land use can be intensified.

Singapore's current population of about 5.3 million live on 71,400 ha of land. By 2030, some 76,600 ha could be available.

Expat housing here 2.7% pricier this year

Expat housing - in terms of relocating staff to Singapore has increased 2.7 per cent to average US$5,510 per month this year - third highest in Asia and eighth globally.

Taking currency fluctuation into account, however, the cost of renting an apartment in Singapore in US dollars has fallen slightly, said Lee Quane, regional director, ECA International, Asia.

"(In US dollars), we actually observe a small decrease in rental price. This contrasts strongly with a year ago when the US dollar was a lot weaker against the Singapore dollar," said Mr Quane, noting that in 2011, rents increased more than 15 per cent once converted into the greenback.

700,000 more homes needed by 2030 says Khaw

700,000 more homes are needed by 2030 and enough land has been set aside for this plan - more than half the 1.2 million households currently - to cater to a growing population.

This is part of a plan to provide good and affordable housing for Singaporeans detailed in the Population White Paper yesterday, as the population may reach 6.9 million by then.

"To support that kind of trajectory, we estimate that we will need another 700,000 new homes," said Minister for National Development Khaw Boon Wan at a press conference. The idea is to create a sufficient buffer, he said.