View of historical shophouses and modern skyscrapers in Tanjong Pagar. (Photo: GuocoLand)
Prices of luxury apartments in the downtown core, which includes Raffles Place, Marina Bay and Tanjong Pagar are outperforming other high-end districts in Singapore, according to an OrangeTee report.
The area comprises districts 1 and 2 and is one of the most sought-after locations for luxury properties here, the report said. Proximity to the Shenton Way financial district and commercial amenities in Boat Quay and Chinatown were cited as the main reasons for the strong appeal.
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OrangeTee’s analysis of URA Realis caveats shows that the average price of non-landed luxury homes in the two districts grew by 9.3 percent to $2,147 psf in Q1 from a year ago. This is higher than the 6.2 percent increase to $2,046 psf for the Core Central Region during the same period.
The average price of private condos downtown is also close to the peak of $2,207 psf seen in Q1 2013.
Specifically, District 2 saw a bigger year-on-year price increase of 14.5 percent as compared to District 1 (5.6 percent) due to projects like Wallich Residence at Tanjong Pagar Centre – Singapore’s tallest building, Icon in Gopeng Street and 76 Shenton.
In fact, the second and third most expensive non-landed homes in dollar psf terms transacted last quarter were high-floor apartments at Wallich Residence; a 958 sq ft unit was sold at $3,894 psf, while a 1,722 sq ft unit was sold at $3,832 psf.
Although prices continue to rise in both districts, demand for homes has been picking up since Q2 2017, with sales breaching the five-year average of 85 units, said OrangeTee.
URA data shows that 493 caveats were lodged in districts 1 and 2 last year, up 153 percent from 195 caveats in 2016. In the first three months of 2018, 89 caveats were lodged.
The best-selling project in the downtown core since 2017 has been Marina One Residences in Marina Bay, which sold 47 units at a median price of $2,428 psf. This was followed by V on Shenton in Shenton Way and Spottiswoode Suites at Spottiswoode Park Road, which moved 44 and 40 units at median prices of $2,235 psf and $2,135 psf respectively.
Looking ahead, OrangeTee expects non-landed home prices in districts 1 and 2 to rise by about 8.0 to 12 percent this year as more units from Marina One Residences and Wallich Residence are released.
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Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
