Foresta @Mount Faber: Review (Part 2)

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The other showflat in the sales gallery of Foresta is a 926sqft, 2-bedroom ground-floor unit (Type C2G).

For those who are not interested in ground floor units (read: large PES), the typical Type C2 unit is 786sqft.

The kitchen is on your left as you enter the unit. And unlike the 1-bedroom apartment, the kitchen is distinctly separated from the living/dining room. It comes equipped with similar furnishing and kitchen appliances as the 1-bedder. However, you get homogenous tiles for the kitchen floor, which we reckon is more appropriate than marble. The wife and I also like the “pull out” storage cabinet between the integrated fridge and washing machine (see photo).

The living/dining room is rectangular-shaped and is spacious enough for a small sofa set plus a 4-seater dining table. It comes with similar 90cm x 90cm large marble-slab floor and 4.2m high ceiling (3.2m for 2^nd floor and above). 

The common bathroom is almost square-shaped and of decent size. It comes with homogenous-tile walls and floors as well as “Keramag” toilet and “Grohe” bathroom fittings. The wife and I were slightly disappointed with the standing shower stall, which has a rather “plasticky” look to it.

The common bedroom is small - the photo we took is actually quite flattering compared to the actual size. Maybe this is the reason why there is no bay window for this project? (else the bedrooms will be even smaller!)

The master bedroom seems surprisingly smaller than the one in the 1-bedder showflat. And instead of separate “His” and “Hers” set of wardrobe, you get the standard “2-panel” wardrobe here.

The master bathroom is quite good size, with similar look and feel as the common bathroom. This is with the exception of the shower stall, which looked more appealing than the one in the common bathroom. However, those expecting a bath tub or maybe “rain shower” (as a consolation) will be disappointed.

Price wise, this is what you can expect to pay for a 2-bedder unit in Foresta:
• #02-28 (721sqft, inward-facing): $1,369,900 nett or $1,900psf
• #02-01 (667sqft, inward-facing): $1,267,000 nett or $1,900psf

What we like:
• Foresta is about 450m away from the upcoming Telok Blangah MRT station and 980m away from Harbourfront MRT station - not exactly at your doorsteps but still within reasonable walking distances. Vivocity is also supposedly a 10-minutes walk away, which may appeal to those working in Harbourfront or thereabouts.

• The high ceiling (4.2m/3.2m), which is especially welcomed given the (small) size of the units.

• The quality of furnishing provided – we like the well-designed kitchen, the good quality marble floors and the appealing wardrobes.

• Two primary schools are within 1-km of Foresta – Radin Mas & Blangah Rise Primary.

What we dislike:
• Location – We were unimpressed with the “sights” around Foresta. The surrounding buildings looked rather dated and poorly maintained, which gives the whole area a rather “sad” look. Granted that all these may change by the time Foresta is completed in 4 years’ time, so one can always hope!


• We suspect the stretch of roads outside Foresta (i.e. Morse Road & Wishart Road) will be rather congested during the weekends, as you probably find cars belonging to church-goers (there are at least 4 churches along that short stretch of roads) parking on both sides of the narrow roads.

• Many marketing agents for Foresta will tell you that the project faces Keppel Club and Reflections at Keppel Bay. But in reality, there is not much in terms of view for “outward facing” units in Foresta given the height of the project (5-storey) – you either face the row of old shophouses/the flyover along Telok Blangah Road (for front-facing units) or Pender Road along the foot of Mount Faber (for back-facing units). So the “best facing” units are probably the inward (pool-facing) ones.

• Speaking of inward-facing units - the distance between Blocks 100/102 and Blocks 106/108 is a mere 15 metres. This is a tad too close for our comfort but good news for curtain/window-blind makers.

• The amount of PES/balcony space is disproportionately large compared to the overall size of the unit. Do you really need two balconies (one in the living room and one in the master bedroom) for a 700sqft, 2-bedroom unit? This is especially when you are paying full price for the balcony space!

Our Verdict: The wife and I feel that Foresta is hardly value for money by any stretch of our imaginations. The project is average at best in terms of location (at the wrong “foot” of Mount Faber), mediocre in terms of its facility offerings and not quite “high end” enough in terms of interior quality (some furnishing in the showflat we really like but not enough to pay the kind of money the developer is asking). At $1,900psf or above, one can still have quite a few options for freehold projects even at current market prices. However, given the rate at which units in Foresta have been snapped up so far, maybe the buyers knew something that we don’t…?!

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