The top bid of just over $1 billion for the Stirling Road site translates to a land price of about $1,050 psf. (Photo: URA)
UPDATED: The tender for a 2.11ha residential site at Stirling Road in Queenstown that could yield 1,110 units attracted substantial interest from developers, with a total of 13 bids submitted at the close of the tender exercise on Thursday (18 May), said the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).
Hong Kong-listed Logan Property and Nanshan Group from China jointly submitted the highest bid of just over $1 billion for the large site. The second-highest bid of $925.7 million came from MCL Land, followed by a $901 million offer from OUE.
Dr Lee Nai Jia, Head (SEA) Research at Edmund Tie & Co., said the winning bid works out to about $1,050 psf per plot ratio, which means the breakeven price will likely be around $1,600 psf to $1,700 psf.
He revealed that the average price for other developments in the Queenstown and Redhill area, which includes Queens Peak ($1,696 psf) and Principal Garden ($1,662 psf), are priced within the same range.
One of the main attributes of the Stirling Road site is its central location and proximity to the Queenstown MRT station, noted Lee. “It is also close to the Buona Vista area, which consists of high growth industries such as pharmaceuticals and R&D. The rental catchment is substantial, as it appeals to people working in the CBD or Jurong East.”
Offered on a 99-year lease, the land parcel was originally on the reserve list of the Government Land Sales (GLS) programme. It was triggered for sale last month after an unnamed developer committed to a minimum bid of $685,250,000.
Hari Krishnan, CEO of PropertyGuru Group, highlighted that the winning bidder has reason to be optimistic.
“Seller sentiment in the Queenstown and Alexandra area has been strong, with listing volumes on PropertyGuru growing by almost 40 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2017, buoyed by popular projects like Queens Peak, Principal Garden and Artra,” he said.
Krishnan noted that the bullish land bids reflect the tapered supply in the GLS programme. “This might therefore be an opportune time for owners of older projects to consider collective sales, given the recent successes of Shunfu Ville and Raintree Gardens.”
Added Lee: “The recent land bids and successful launches have further reinforced developers’ sentiments, and we expect stronger bids in upcoming launches. It will not be surprising to see another record bid for the tender of the mixed-use site located near the Bidadari housing estate.”
The URA said a decision on the award of the tender will be made after the bids have been evaluated.
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
