Developers upbeat about Executive Condominium market

Developers upbeat about Executive Condominium market segment given the provisional results for yesterday's tender for an executive condominium (EC) site in the Sengkang area, like that for a Woodlands EC site which closed earlier this month, led property consultants to conclude that.

This is despite measures introduced in January to rein in some of the exuberance in the sector and more recently, strong hints from the government that its housing subsidy of up to $30,000 for first-time buyers who pick up an EC unit from a developer, is in for a change. ECs are a public-private housing hybrid.


At yesterday's tender closing, a 99-year EC site in Anchorvale Crescent drew a top bid of $330.65 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr) from Qingjian Realty (South Pacific) Group. This will be the group's fifth EC project.

Earlier this month, it clinched the Woodlands EC site plot with a winning bid of $341.21 psf ppr. That tender attracted seven bids.

At yesterday's tender, Qingjian's bid was 3.2 per cent higher than the next highest offer of $320.45 psf ppr placed by City Developments unit Bellevue Properties.

Kheng Leong partnered Low Keng Huat to bid at $316.68 psf ppr. Frasers Centrepoint's unit FCL Place and Hytech Builders joined forces, offering $308.30 psf ppr. The two other bids were from EL Development ($275.75 psf ppr) and Teambuild Land unit Ecco Development, which offered $266.59 psf ppr for the site, which can yield an estimated 690 units.

The site tendered yesterday is near Farmway LRT Station and Sengkang Riverside Park. ECs come with initial buyer eligibility and resale conditions that are completely lifted 10 years after the completion of an EC development.

Li Jun, general manager of Qingjian Realty (South Pacific) Group, forecast last night that the average selling price for the project could be in the $730-780 psf range, subject to market and economic conditions at the point of launch. "Qingjian assessed that the property market is stable and that the EC market is healthy," he added.

It will be launching its next EC development, the 512-unit Ecopolitan, at Punggol Way next month. E-applications open on June 28. The group has two earlier EC projects - RiverParc Residence and Waterbay - both of which are under construction in Punggol, and fully sold.

Source: Business Times –31 May 2013