How much does the average new private home cost in Jan/Feb 2010?

The Business Times today reported that as developers released more upmarket projects, the average transaction value of private homes sold in the primary market in the first two months of this year rose to $1.78 million per unit, a study by CB Richard Ellis shows.

This is 37% higher than the $1.3 million average price of homes sold by developers for the whole of last year. But the figure for January and February 2010 is still shy of the $1.97 million average price in the bull year of 2007, according to CBRE’s analysis of URA Realis caveats data on March 5.

Reflecting the pattern of developers migrating to releasing higher-end projects towards the end of last year, after kicking off the year with mass-market launches, the priciest home in absolute dollar terms sold in the primary market since January 2007 was transacted in November last year – a $33.41 million junior penthouse at Far East Organization’s Boulevard Vue project. The price of the 8,051sqft unit works out to $4,150psf. The unit, which occupies the 30th and 31st levels of the 33-storey block, is believed to have been bought by Nippecraft non-executive chairwoman Linda Wijaya Limantara and her family. Nippercraft is part of the Asia Pulp & Paper group.

The unit’s absolute price surpassed that of the most expensive unit transacted in the primary market in 2007, when a 19th floor unit at The Marq on Paterson Hill sold for $31.4 million in July that year. That price equated to $5,100psf.

As for last year, another high-priced primary market deal was a bungalow at Kasara The Lake, located at Ocean Drive in Sentosa Cove, which fetched almost 14.43 million.

In January this year, the most expensive unit transacted in the primary market was a fourth-floor condo unit at Marina Collection on Sentosa Cove, at $10.3 million (or about $2,200psf). February’s priciest sale was a 16th floor unit at Urban Suites in the Cairnhill area - $10.43 million or $2,213psf.

A CBRE executive director reckons that the average dollar value of primary market transactions for the whole of this year is likely to be generally above last year’s figure as more high-end projects are slated for launch this year.

High-end projects primed for release this year include Seascape and The Residences at W, both at Sentosa Cove, phase 2 of Marina Bay Suites and a project at 76 Shenton Way in the downtown area, says CBRE. In the Orchard Road area, Ardmore III and projects on the sites of the former Anderson 18, Parisian, Grangeford and Beverly Mai are among expected launches.

Another reason why the average value of homes sold by developers this year is likely to surpass last years figures – more 99-year leasehold projects on recently sold Government Land Sale sites will be launched at higher prices because of their higher land costs and location attributes such as proximity to MRT stations.

And at the other end of the spectrum, the lowest absolute price for a unit sold by a developer in the first two months of this year was $437,880 for a fourth-floor apartment at Suites @Kovan in Upper Serangoon Road. The price for the 366sqft unit works out to $1,196psf.

For the whole of last year, the smallest primary market deal was $305,860, involving a 441sqft unit on the second storey of Ventura View at Rambutan Road, off Still Road. It was sold in August last year.

Looking at the reported figures, and putting things in perspective, $1.78 million is almost equivalent to winning the standard $600K first prize in Toto THRICE over – somber thought indeed!

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