A 99-year leasehold bungalow in Sentosa Cove owned by Singapore tycoon Lim Chin Huat was reportedly sold for $22 million last month, media reports said.
Based on market chatter, the fruit and vegetable mogul who is Founder and Director of Seasonal Produce, raked in a profit of $7 million after his 9,268 sq ft property was purchased for $2,374 psf on 17 February. Lim and his wife Yap Seok Bee originally purchased the home for $14.95 million ($1,613 psf) in April 2010.
The two-storey bungalow at the posh enclave’s Treasure Island comes with seven bedrooms and a jetty.
Based on caveats lodged with the Singapore Land Authority (SLA), the unit was picked up by someone with an HDB address. Information from the agency also showed that the sellers own another Sentosa Cove bungalow at 69 Ocean Drive.
Aside from being the first landed home sale on the island this year, the transaction represents a silver lining amidst Sentosa’s sluggish luxury residential market. In fact, only four bungalows were transacted there last year at a combined price of $56.5 million, a far cry from the 18 deals valued at $366.76 million in 2013.
Sentosa Cove may have “lost its shine”, but the selling point of properties there lie in their waterfront location and openness to foreign buyers, said Desmond Sim, CBRE’s Research Head for Singapore and Southeast Asia.
The last high-profile transaction on the island was the sale of two residential units at Seven Palms for S$28.55 million last November, translating to a record price for the area of $4,131 psf.
“A new transaction is encouraging, but doesn’t mean a total revival. There is equity out there, but the market is still hit by various measures,” he explained.
Notably, Sentosa Cove is the only place in Singapore where foreigners are permitted to buy landed property even if they are not permanent residents (PRs).
Image: Aerial view of Sentosa Cove.
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Singapore Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
