Singapore now slightly more liveable: study
Singapore's liveability rating has risen by 0.2 percent from 2008 to 88.7 percent, revealed the Economist Intelligence Unit's latest report for 2013. The city-state is now ranked in 52nd place among the 140 cities monitored.“Liveability often seems static on a year-to-year basis. But...
Continue Reading • 5 Sept 2013
Govt looking for more possibilities underground
Singapore is considering further utilising its underground spaces and is looking at several ideas which will complement the above-ground master plan to make the country more “exciting and liveable”. In a blog post, National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said the current master...
Continue Reading • 3 Sept 2013
CEA denies spot check case
Singapore’s Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) has confirmed that it did not conduct checks on a salesperson as suggested in a recent email received by PropertyGuru. CEA also confirmed it had earlier received such similar feedback.In the email, a real estate agent who was marketing a HDB...
Continue Reading • 3 Sept 2013
Ambitious new Health City launched in Novena
Singapore’s largest healthcare complex will soon rise in Novena, according to media reports.Called “Health City Novena”, the 17ha hub will connect public and volunteer healthcare facilities with a medical school.To be completed in 2030, the complex will comprise five new...
Continue Reading • 2 Sept 2013
Albedo negotiates for more land in Iskandar
Catalist-listed Albedo, a steel trading company, announced that the deadline for agreeing to a reverse takeover deal with Temasya Cergas has been extended to 30 September.While Albedo and Temasya have signed a supplemental agreement to a memorandum of understanding (MOU), both parties also agreed...
Continue Reading • 2 Sept 2013
Changi's Terminal 5 one of the world's largest
Changi Airport’s new Terminal 5 is set to be ready in the mid-2020s, revealed Minister of State for Finance and Transport Josephine Teo, who is also chairperson of the Changi 2036 Steering Committee.The mega-terminal is expected to handle 50 million passengers per annum (mppa) and will be...
Continue Reading • 2 Sept 2013
Property tycoons top Singapore rich list
Forbes Singapore's rich list now has a record 21 billionaires from just 16 last year. As for the combined net worth of the 50 richest Singaporeans, it stands at US$80 billion or over S$102 billion. Holding on to top spot are property tycoons Robert and Philip Ng whose net worth rose to US$10.6...
Continue Reading • 30 Aug 2013
S'pore household debt at 77.2% of GDP: report
Singapore’s household debt during the first quarter was relatively high compared to other Asian countries at 77.2 percent of its GDP, revealed a report from Bank of America Merrill Lynch. It then comes as no surprise that the government has implemented measures to ensure that Singaporean...
Continue Reading • 30 Aug 2013
Enhanced housing grants to cost Govt $150m
To help first-timer families upgrade to larger property, the new housing grants will cost the government at least S$150 million each year. Subsidies for Build-to-Order (BTO) flats will increase to over S$440 million annually, compared to about S$290 million last year, including the Special...
Continue Reading • 29 Aug 2013
Oxley profit up 307% amid strong revenue
Local developer Oxley Holdings has posted a 307 percent net profit increase attributable to shareholders to S$69.1 million for its financial year ended 30 June 2013, compared with S$16.9 million in FY2012.The strong showing is due to a 187 percent revenue hike to S$457.7 million in FY2013 from...
Continue Reading • 29 Aug 2013
Profit slump for developer Sim Lian
Property developer Sim Lian Group has reported a profit of S$167.9 million for its financial year ended 30 June 2013, down 27 percent from S$230.56 million in the same period last year. Group revenue also slipped three percent to S$742.2 million, while dividend was at 4.6 cents per share.Revenue...
Continue Reading • 28 Aug 2013
KSH awarded multi-million dollar contract to build NEWest
KSH Holdings, the construction and property development group, has secured a S$98.94 million contract to build NEWest, a mixed-use development at West Coast Drive. The deal was awarded by developer Oxley Viva and will see KSH constructing 136 residential units and 141 commercial lots on the...
Continue Reading • 28 Aug 2013
Wing Tai reports 102% profit hike
Singapore-listed developer Wing Tai Holdings has recorded a 102 percent net profit gain to S$531.1 million from S$262.4 million last year. Full-year revenue also increased 113 percent to S$1.33 billion from S$624.9 million in FY2012.In a statement, Wing Tai attributed the strong results from...
Continue Reading • 28 Aug 2013
Chuan Hup buys Perth site for S$19.3m
A wholly-owned subsidiary of Chuan Hup Holdings has acquired prime development land in Maylands, Western Australia for A$16.7 million (S$19.3 million).Located 4.5 km from Perth’s central business district, the 17,256 sq m site was purchased by Ventrade Maylands from private investor...
Continue Reading • 27 Aug 2013
Bukit Panjang station to get third entrance
Following persistent lobbying by residents and Holland-Bukit Timah GRC MPs Liang Eng Hwa and Vivian Balakrishnan, The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has given the green light for a third MRT entrance in Senja, Bukit Panjang.According to an LTA spokesperson, the agency carefully studied the...
Continue Reading • 27 Aug 2013
Singapore top US investment destination in Asia
Singapore is now the most preferred Asian investment destination for US-based companies, according to David Adelman, the outgoing US Ambassador to Singapore.Speaking to the media, Adelman said: “The 10-year cumulative US investment in Singapore stood at US$138 billion (S$176.6 billion) at...
Continue Reading • 27 Aug 2013
Blackstone eyes property assets in Asia, Europe
US-based investment giant Blackstone plans to sell its US properties and acquire new assets in Asia and Europe, according to recent media reports. The private equity firm currently has the world's largest real estate portfolio, with US$64 billion (S$81.9 billion) in assets under management. But...
Continue Reading • 27 Aug 2013
CapitaLand sees sales decline in S'pore, China
Property giant CapitaLand recorded slower pre-sales in Singapore and China during the second quarter of this year, resulting from policy headwinds. According to Barclays, home sales for the developer fell to 139 units or S$300 million from 544 units (S$1.3 billion) in Q1 and 202 units...
Continue Reading • 26 Aug 2013
Pasir Ris waterfront gets spruced up
Residents in Pasir Ris will soon enjoy an upgraded waterfront as two of its waterways will receive a S$7 million makeover under PUB's Active, Beautiful, Clean Waters Programme. By 2015, close to a kilometre of the town’s Sungei Api Api and Sungei Tampines waterways will be revamped with...
Continue Reading • 26 Aug 2013
Singapore stronger than other countries: Tharman
Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said Singapore is stronger than many other developed countries, as the policies introduced are for a “fair and just society” to benefit future generations.Speaking at a recent lecture, Mr Tharman, who is also the Finance Minister, said the...
Continue Reading • 26 Aug 2013