A new year ahead... and a new page for SG PropTalk!

As we bid farewell to 2011 and welcome a brand 2012 in an hour or so, the wife and I would like to wish you a terrific year ahead. The private home market is shaping to be equally exciting next year (albeit for slightly different reasons), and we look forward to continue sharing our thoughts with you via SG Proptalk.

And with the new year comes new aspirations: During the past month, the wife and I have been toying with the idea of setting up a property consultation arm (of sorts) to complement SG Proptalk. This stamped from several enquiries we had received from readers on whether we do provide such service.

The consultation arm is currently still work in progress, but we have at least decided on its name - SG PropConsult.

We will be adding an additional page on our blog dedicated to SG PropConsult, which will provide information about the services that we can provide.

Our main aim with SG PropConsult is to provide potential home buyers with objective information/opinions/recommendations on both new and existing developments in Singapore to enable them to make better-informed decisions. So whether it relates to a report on specific development in question, or a recommendation report on developments within a specific area/district that best meet your purchasing criteria (pre-determined), we will be open to discussion to undertake the project (for a nominal fee, which will help reimburse us for our time, effort and petrol cost). We may also be able to connect you with property marketers that we have gotten to know (and trust) during the course of writing our blog, who may specialize in marketing developments in the location that you are interested in.

What we deemed unique about SG PropConsult is that you (the home buyers/investors) are our "clients", as opposed to a typical property-marketing arrangement whereby the agent's obligations are mainly towards the property seller.

Given the limited resources that the wife and I are operating with, we cannot realistically expect to take on every project that may come our way. Having said that, we are not even sure if there is actual demand for services from two "non-professional" property watchers. But we reckon that if we don't try, we will never know!

More details will be available on our SG PropConsult page soon. Meantime, please give us your thoughts about SG PropConsult.

Happy New Year everyone!

With best wishes,
The Folks @PropTalk

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Reflections at Keppel Bay: Villa unit achieved $3,256psf!

A four-bedroom apartment on the fifth level of a six-level villa block at Reflections at Keppel Bay recently fetched $11 million, according to caveats lodged and downloaded from URA Realis as at Dec 14. The standout transaction of the 3,380sqft unit achieved a price of $3,256psf, considered the highest average price at Reflections so far. The price was achieved as the unit is said to be "one of the best facing units with 180-degree views of the sea", says Eunice Chen, a property agent with Global Property Strategic Alliance, who brokered the deal jointly with her colleague PK Soh. The buyer is said to be a Singaporean, who is buying for his own use.

The record price deal for the unit was done before the government introduced the additional buyer's stamp duty (ABSD) on top of the existing 3% on Dec 8. When the government introduced it, property consultants anticipated the worst for the high-end market, as foreign buyers account for a third to half of purchases in this segment. "Many were caught off-guard and there were concerns about whether the stamp-duty hike would discourage property investors," says Benson Koh, senior group district partner at SLP Real Estate Empire. Like other property consultants, however, he believes it is too early to tell what the impact will be, as the rule came into effect only recently.

SLP's Koh brokered the sale of a two-bedroom unit at Reflections for $1,888psf recently.

The most recent sub-sale at Reflections was for a 1,012sqft two-bedroom unit on the seventh floor that changed hands for $1.57 million ($1,550psf). The unit was purchased at $1.41 million ($1,393psf) in August 2007, when the project was launched.

With six soaring glass towers of 24 to 41 storeys and 11 villa apartment blocks of six to eight floors, Reflections dominates the skyline in the HarbourFront, Keppel Bay and Telok Blangah area.

The development spans 750m of shoreline and, depending on the orientation of the units, some have views of the bay, while others of the golf course, parks and also Mount Faber. The most premium units are those with direct sea views and tend to be in the villa blocks. The 99-year leasehold project developed by Keppel Land and designed by renowned architect Daniel Libeskind obtained its Temporary Occupation Permit (TOP) about a fortnight ago.

So far, 835 of the 950 units launched at Reflections have been sold, according to Keppel Land. In the latest phase, only 115 units are available for sale, which include the 13,000sqft triplex super penthouse. The asking price of the super penthouse is said to be $45 million to $60 million.

The average transacted price today is said to be $2,168psf, compared with $1,950psf when the project was launched four years ago, according to Keppel Land.

About 60% of the buyers are said to be Singaporeans and permanent residents, as well as local corporate buyers, with foreign buyers making up the rest.

Reflections has seen a wave of transactions in the months leading to its completion and more recently, since its completion. In the week of Nov 23 to 29, a three-bedroom, 1,539sqft unit on the 10th floor of one of the towers was sold by the developer for $2.6 million ($1,690psf) on Nov 22. In the secondary market, sub-sale prices achieved in October and November ranged from $1,513 to $2,668psf, according to URA Realis.

Source: THEEDGE SINGAPORE

For those who are interested, below are our previous posts on Reflections at Keppel Bay:
http://sgproptalk.blogspot.com/2011/09/project-spotlight-reflections-at-keppel.html
http://sgproptalk.blogspot.com/2011/08/why-buy-1-unit-when-you-get-purchase.html
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Will the US$ Sibor rates affect home loan rates?

As reported in The Business Times today, the US-Dollar Sibor rates are at 52-week high.

Two questions come to mind:

1. Does this mean that the local Sibor-pegged loan rates will increase in tandem with the US$ Sibor rates increase?

2. Will we soon see a return of SOR-pegged housing loans, since we understand that the Singapore-US$ swap rates are set to increase?

Maybe some of you financial/banking folks out there can shed some light on the matter...

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Renewed interests in pre-war flats at Tiong Bahru...

A wave of transformation is sweeping through the once-sleepy Tiong Bahru estate.

Thanks to a new breed of indie retail shops and coffee houses, the 20 blocks of pre-war conserved flats have attracted renewed interest from home buyers and this has pushed up home prices in the area by about 50% over the last two years.

Located near Tiong Bahru Market and Food Centre, the area bounded by Seng Poh, Outram and Tiong Poh Roads was once an old estate.

The 20 blocks of pre-war flats were built in the 1930s and awarded conservation status in 2003.

In the past year, the estate has been gaining attention for the rising number of independent shops and coffee houses that has sunk roots there.

One of the shops specialising in Bhutanese art and home decor opened for business in March this year.

Tan Tiong Pin, owner of Bhutan Shop, said: "This was still considered an old estate two years ago. Many elderly folks lived here. But with new condominiums built, many expatriates and yuppies now live here."

A couple who moved into one of the Tiong Bahru pre-war apartments nine years ago fell in love with the estate.

Three months ago, they opened a shop selling curios and vintage items, which are attracting tourists and residents from other estates.

Terence Yeung, owner of Flea & Trees, said: "There's a charm in this space. When people come to this area, they find it's like an oasis in a big city, right next to the heart of the city and that's very charming."

With new life breathed into Tiong Bahru, prices of the pre-war flats have also gone up.

Property agents say conserved flats in Singapore are rare.

With the attractive amenities and shops in Tiong Bahru, agents say prices for the pre-war flats have jumped.
A 1,000sqft pre-war flat, for example, is now going for close to a million Singapore dollars.

Source: Channel News Asia

Would you pay a million bucks for a 1,000sqft "walk-up" with about 55 years left on its 99-year lease? 

Click below to access the URA web-page on the Tiong Bahru Conservation Area:
http://www.ura.gov.sg/conservation/tbahru.htm

Click below to access an informative blog-site that is dedicated to the Tiong Bahru Estate:
http://tiongbahruestate.blogspot.com/
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More EC, you see...

More land will be released for the development of executive condominiums (ECs) in 2012.

The Ministry of National Development (MND) says that it is prepared to supply land sites for 5,000 EC units next year.

This is part of the government's move to help more higher income Singaporeans own private housing by expanding the EC market.

The government has taken an earlier step by raising the monthly income ceiling for the purchases of new ECs from $10,000 to $12,000 in August this year.

Minister of State for National Development and Manpower Tan Chuan-Jin said that the increased income ceiling has benefited around 220 households who have booked their ECs since the widening of the scheme.

Mr Tan was speaking at the Real Estate Developers' Association of Singapore (REDAS) anniversary dinner.

The EC scheme was introduced in 1995 to provide a more affordable private housing option for Singaporeans.

Since the introduction of the scheme, 14,600 EC units have been launched by developers and 3,000 units are coming on-stream.

Still, Mr Tan pointed out that the majority of Singaporeans will continue to live in public housing.

He reiterated that the government remains committed to help first-time owners and newlyweds purchase their own homes.

But Mr Tan said that from next year, the government will begin to pay more attention to helping HDB second-timers.

On the recent move to introduce additional buyers' stamp duty, Mr Tan said that it is "natural and not unexpected" for the announcement to attract much public discussion with diverse views.

He added that the volatile equity markets and uncertainty in Europe may cause more foreign funds to be attracted to Singapore's property market.

The latest move is targeted to moderate such investment demand to avoid the need for a major correction in the future.

Mr Tan said that developers may not welcome such a move but he seeks their understanding for the good of the industry.

Source: Channel News Asia

Accelerated construction of public housing, increased number of Government Land Sales (GLS) sites and now more land release for development of ECs... The wife and I really hope that there will be enough demand over the next 3 - 5 years for all these new supply PLUS the substantial inventory of unsold homes that are already in the market.
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