Park Nova is a luxury development located in District 10. Aside from its freehold status, the development also offers super spacious units and easy access to MRT stations and nearby amenities.
Continue Reading ⋅ 15 June 2021
Singapore Land Limited (SingLand) was incorporated in 1963 as the first public listed property company. Together with parent company UIC Limited, SingLand has about 2.2 million sq ft of office space and nearly 1 million sq ft of retail space across Singapore.
Project Name: Mon Jervois
Address: Jervois Road
Site area: Approx. 96,424 sqft
Tenure: 99 years from 7th May 2012
District: 10
Configuration: 109 residential units
Unit types:
16 1-bedroom + study units (614 – 624 sqft)
32 2-bedroom units (883 – 1,033 sqft)
6 2-bedroom + family loft units (1,539 – 1,561 sqft)
6 2-bedroom + study loft units (1,582 – 1,668 sqft)
22 3-bedroom units (1,389 – 1,572 sqft)
8 4-bedroom units (1,905 – 1,981 sqft)
19 penthouse units (1,475 – 3,003 sqft)
Maintenance fees: Approx. $420 – $490 per month
Parking lots:
132 normal lots
3 handicap lots
Expected TOP: November 2017
Expected legal completion: November 2020
Project Details
Mon Jervois is a 109-unit development located along Jervois Road near Prince Charles Crescent. At time of writing (Dec 2015), all unit types are available.
Unit sizes range from 1- to 4-bedroom and penthouse units. The lowest-priced unit on PropertyGuru is a 614 sqft 1-bedroom unit going for $1,103,000, which translates to around $1,796 psf. A 2,842 sqft 3-bedroom penthouse unit is going for $5,228,888 and this is an estimated $1,840 psf.
For interested buyers, the show flat is not on site, but located at Ganges Avenue opposite the Boys’ Brigade Headquarters.
Source: Google Street View
Construction for the project is underway and the blocks are already standing.
The project consists of five 5-storey blocks with attics and basement car parking.
Facilities are organized according to the three zones – Suites, Urban, and Habitat.
For family gatherings or parties, there is a sunken BBQ pavilion and a lounge terrace. There is even an al fresco dining deck where residents could head to for some relaxation in the evenings.
Source: Developer’s Brochure
For the smaller units:
All the 1-bedroom + study units are outward facing. Stacks 14 and 16 face Jervois Regency while stacks 4 and 10 will face Princes Charles Crescent and possibly the upcoming Principal Garden and The Crest beyond it.
As for the 2-bedroom units, stack 7 is a premium stack which is internal facing with a partial pool view. While stack 19 is also internal facing, it does not have much of a pool view.
The 2-bedroom loft units are all outward facing as well.
For the bigger units:
3-bedroom – Stacks 1, 8, and 12 are internal facing with a full pool view. Stack 18 is internal facing with a partial pool view.
3-bedroom – Stacks 2, 3, 5, 11 and 13 are premium stacks that are internal facing with a full pool view. Stacks 7 and 9 are also internal facing, but with a partial pool view.
4-bedroom – Stack 11 is internal facing with a partial pool view. Stack 2 is internal facing, but with a view of the entrance court.
Showflat unit is only available for the 3-bedroom unit.
Specifications:
Flooring
- marble tiles for living, dining areas, hallway to bedrooms, bathrooms, powder room, kitchen and dry kitchen
- timber flooring for all bedrooms, family room and study
- homogenous tiles for wet kitchen, yard, water closet, utility room, household shelter, private enclosed space (PES), balcony and roof terrace
Doors
- fire-rated timber door for main and secondary entrance
- timber doors for bedrooms, bathrooms and powder room
- aluminium framed glass door for PES, balcony and roof terrace
- glass door for kitchen, wet kitchen and yard
- bi-fold door for water closet and utility
- steel door for household shelter
Sanitary fittings
- vanity top with wash basin and mixer tap, shower cubicle with shower mixer set, water closet, mirror, towel rail and paper holder for all bathrooms
- rain shower mixer for master bathrooms
- vanity top with wash basin and mixer tap, mirror, water closet and paper holder for powder room
- wash basin with tap, shower head, water closet and paper holder for water closet
Additional items
- built-in wardrobes for all bedrooms
- wall-mounted air-con from Mitsubishi Electric for living, dining areas, bedrooms and family room
Cabinets with solid surface countertops and a stainless steel sink with mixer are provided with the kitchen. Appliances provided include a built-in oven, microwave oven, gas stove and hood, refrigerator and washer cum dryer all from Miele. Larger units come with a dishwasher and penthouse units have a coffee machine as well.
The wet kitchen is connected to the water closet and utility space.
The living room is quite wide and the ceiling height is higher than usual, at 3.3m.
The area extends to the balcony in the 3-bedroom unit.
The common bedrooms can generally fit a queen bed with more than enough room for movement.
You could also choose to turn the room into a work or study space. Or into an entertainment lounge of sorts like the above.
Master bedrooms can accommodate a king-sized bed and still have ample maneuvering space.
The master bedroom also has a walk-in wardrobe to the left of the entrance.
Common bathrooms have a wet and dry area as per normal and fittings are from Hansgrohe.
Master bathrooms are similar to the common bathrooms, except that they come with an additional bath tub.
Buyers are likely to be a mix of owner-occupiers and those looking to lease. Singaporeans and permanent residents account for an estimated 70% of sales currently.
Location
Etymology: Bukit Merah is a large New Town and is actually a hill situated in the central-south region of Singapore. It was much larger hill located at the present Henderson housing estate, but was trimmed in 1973 when the kampongs in the surrounding area were demolished.
The Bukit Merah planning area is bound by Alexandra Canal and the Singapore River to the north and Harbourfront and Keppel Bay to the south. 13 sub-regions include Alexandra, Bukit Ho Swee, Bukit Merah Central, Bukit Merah View, Bukit Purmei, Cantonment, Depot Road, Harbourfront, Keppel, Mount Faber, Redhill, Telok Blangah and Tiong Bahru.
Bukit Merah means red hill and Malay legend has it that the place got its name from a mysterious event involving a clever young boy and a jealous king. The name is not to be confused with Redhill however, which is another area in the same vicinity.
Source: streetdirectory.com
Getting there: Mon Jervois is located in the Jervois enclave of District 10. If you’re travelling by train in the mornings, Raffles Place MRT is a 9-minute ride from Red Hill MRT. By car, it is a 6-minute drive to town via the Central Expressway (CTE), assuming optimal traffic conditions.
Source: Google Street View
Driving straight down from Mon Jervois, along Bishopsgate will get you to town. Turning right at the Jervois Road-Bishopsgate intersection will lead you to the expressways (CTE and AYE).
The park connector along Alexandra Canal offers an alternative mode of transport in that you can actually cycle to the CBD area in less than 20 minutes.
Source: Google Street View
Redhill MRT is an 8-minute walk away. From there, it is five stops down to City Hall MRT, where you have Raffles City Shopping Centre, Citylink Mall, Marina Square, The Esplanade and Suntec City Mall. For early morning commuters, Raffles Place MRT is 4 stops away.
The estate: Being situated in a quiet residential enclave, Mon Jervois affords residents convenience and luxury. It is also on the fringe of the embassy district and fronted by the Bishopsgate and Chatsworth Park Good Class Bungalow (GCB) estate.
Source: Developer’s Brochure
It is a short drive to various lifestyle hubs and shopping malls including the Orchard Shopping Belt, the Marina Bay district and the Southern Waterfront where Vivocity and Sentosa are located. Popular eateries at Rochester Park, Holland Village and Dempsey Hill as well as hipster haven Tiong Bahru are all also a stone’s throw away from the project.
Source: Google Street View
There is a bus stop further up, along Alexandra Road with services 51, 122, 139, 186 and 970. Between them, these services cover different areas; Hougang to Jurong East, New Bridge Terrace, Toa Payoh to Bukit Merah, Shenton Way Terrace to St. Michael’s Terrace and lastly Bukit Panjang to Shenton Way Terrace.
Source: Developer’s Brochure
As for school options, there are a few reputable ones nearby.
International Schools:
- EtonHouse International Pre-school
- SJI International School
- Hwa Chong International School
- International School Singapore
- Overseas Family School
- Finnish Supplementary School
- Norwegian Supplementary School
The National University of Singapore (NUS), Ngee Ann Polytechnic and Singapore Polytechnic are all within a 15-minute drive away.
Source: Google Images
Valley Point Shopping Centre is about 400m away. It’s not a huge mall, but there’s a gastrobar, Starbucks and Fairprice Finest outlet there. Residents won’t have to travel far to get daily goods or their coffee fix.
Source: Google Images
Great World City is a 2-minute drive away. Boasting seven anchor tenants including Golden Village Grand Cineplex, the place offers a wide selection of dining and retail options.
Other malls in the vicinity include the Orchard Shopping Belt just five minutes away if you drive, Vivocity, Tanglin Shopping Mall, Tiong Bahru Plaza, The Anchorage, Queensway Shopping Centre, The Star Vista and Ikea Alexandra.
Source: Google Images
For some down time on weekends, residents can head to the Botanic Gardens, which is a 5 to 6-minute drive away. Recently honoured as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, its 74-hectare area is home to more than 10,000 species of flora. It’s a very pretty place and an ideal location for picnics or just relaxation.
Other recreational amenities near Principal Garden include Mount Faber Park, Telok Blangah Hill Park, Henderson Waves, Hort Park, Labrador Park and Kent Ridge Park. Tanglin Golf Course is a 3-minute drive away for the golfers.
Source: Google Images
SAFRA Mount Faber is also a 3-minute drive away. Kids will enjoy the swimming and bowling facilities at the site. There are a few dining options there too.
As for healthcare needs, Singapore General Hospital is a 4-minute drive away, so it will be very convenient for outpatient care or in the case of an emergency. There are also a number of general and specialist clinics at Great World City.
Analysis
Caveated transactions for Mon Jervois at time of writing (Dec 2015) stands at 42. Recorded transaction prices range from $1.218M to $5M (see Chart 1).
Sales Transactions
Source: PropertyGuru, URA
Source: URA
Mon Jervois’ closest competitor would be Principal Garden, located directly across, along Prince Charles Crescent. Launched in October 2015, its median price is $1,628 psf to Mon Jervois’ median of $2,044 psf. However, prices for Mon Jervois currently, are between $1,700 and $1,800 psf. Residents at Principal Garden are also likely to be a good mix of owner-occupiers and tenants who like the project’s location.
Units at Principal Garden range from 1-5 bedroom units while Mon Jervois consists of 1-4 bedroom units and penthouse units. In competition with Principal Garden, the developers have released 1 stack of 3-bedroom units at Mon Jervois going for approximately $2.397M, instead of the usual $2.5M.
To have a clearer picture, we will be looking at 3-bedroom and 1-bedroom units in particular, across both developments. According to caveats, Mon Jervois’ 3-bedroom units have a median price of $2,063 psf while Principal Garden’s is $1,637 psf. Transactions for the units at Mon Jervois range from $2.539M to $3.289M, and from $1.743M to $1.805M at Principal Garden.
As for 1-bedroom units, Mon Jervois’ have a median price of $2,163 psf while Principal Garden’s is around $1,633 psf. Transactions for the units at Mon Jervois range from $1.218M to $1.422M, while the range is between $766K and $885K at Principal Garden.
Before deciding based on these numbers alone, we should look at unit sizing as well. Units at Mon Jervois are generally larger with the 3-bedroom ones between 1,389 sqft and 1,572 sqft. At Principal Garden, they are 1,076 sqft. As for the 1-bedroom units, they range from 614 sqft to 624 sqft at Mon Jervois and are between 484 sqft and 506 sqft at Principal Garden.
While Principal Garden is admittedly more wallet-friendly, Mon Jervois is a better option if you’re going for space.
Future Rental Potential
To understand what rental prices will be like for Mon Jervois, we need to look at rental prices for other projects in the area.
The current median rental price for projects in District 10 (Bukit Timah / Holland Road / Tanglin) is around $3.8 psf per month at time of writing, based on rental transactions for the past 4 quarters. At these rates, a 3-bedroom unit around 1,400 sqft at Mon Jervois would go for around $6,300 to $6,500 a month, after factoring a 20% premium for its new build. With the median price for the unit being around $2.975M, the annual gross rental yield at the current rate would be an estimated 2.6%.
For investors holding on to 1-bedroom units, rental price for a 620 sqft unit at the current rates would be an estimated $2,800 to $3,000 a month. With the median price for the unit being around $1.327M, annual gross rental yield would be around 2.6%.
The median unit size of a 3-bedroom at Principal Garden, on the other hand, would probably fetch around $5,100 a month at today’s rental rates. This translates to around 3.5% in annual gross rental yield. A 1-bedroom unit at Principal Garden would go for an estimated $1,900 a month, meaning a 2.9% rental yield.
According to the estimated figures, rental yield for Principal Garden seems to be higher. The choice of nearby amenities are quite similar, given that the projects are across each other. Unit sizing differs slightly with units at Mon Jervois being generally larger.
Summary
Location is the biggest pull factor with Mon Jervois and residents will get a premium space in a well-known neighbourhood.
They will also definitely enjoy the easy access to major expressways and proximity to nearby malls like Great World City and The Orchard Shopping Belt. For families with children, the reputable schools nearby are another plus.
While it is true that location is a very big plus point with this development, a potential drawback would be that there is no MRT station within close walking distance. Redhill MRT is about a 700m walk away, according to the distance plotted on a map, or about a 7-minute walk. For some, this could be a long walk, but if the developer were to provide a shuttle bus service, it would alleviate the issue.
Investment potential is high with the project being located on the fringe of the embassy row and within short driving distance of the town and CBD areas.
If you’re looking for space, Mon Jervois is ideal as the units are typically larger than surrounding developments’. The unit mix is also pretty varied with loft options, thus catering to a spectrum of potential buyers.
