Eye on Yishun: Star of the north
Although Yishun was established more than 30 years ago, the northern town is not showing any signs of ageing, as Muneerah Bee finds out. In earlier days, Yishun was home to various pepper and pineapple plantations. Named after industrialist and rubber magnate Lim Nee Soon, Yishun became one...
Continue Reading • 25 Aug 2014
OCBC may sell property firm stake to Thai billionaire
Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp (OCBC) is in talks to sell its stake in United Engineers Ltd (UE), a Singapore property and construction company, to Thai billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi, according to media reports quoting sources familiar with the matter. The discussions are at an early...
Continue Reading • 22 Aug 2014
Leasing demand hits new high, but rents still sliding
Bucking the trend of a slowdown in Singapore residential sales, rental volumes surged 12.2 percent quarter-on-quarter to reach a high of 15,053 transactions in Q2 2014, according to a Savills report. Year-on-year, this is a growth rate of 5.2 percent. For the first six months of 2014, a...
Continue Reading • 22 Aug 2014
Oxley reports 74% profit drop in Q4
Homegrown developer Oxley Holdings posted a 74 percent plunge in net profit for the fourth quarter ended 30 June 2014 to $9.8 million compared to $38 million in Q4 2013. Group revenue in the period also fell 70 percent to $82.9 million from $277.3 million the year before. In a statement,...
Continue Reading • 22 Aug 2014
Pros and cons of subletting, lease buyback scheme
Singaporeans aged 55 and above who live in HDB addresses have two options if they want to monetise their property, said experts quoted in the media. They can sublet their unit but this option is only available to those with a room to spare, while those with other living quarters can rent out...
Continue Reading • 22 Aug 2014
Cluster homes to get more space, greenery
In an effort to improve the quality of life for residents in landed housing estates, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has fine-tuned the guidelines for strata landed housing developments, commonly known as cluster homes.
Continue Reading • 22 Aug 2014
En bloc sales still relevant: report
Despite the standstill in Singapore’s en bloc market, collective sales are still a relevant option for property developers to replenish their development pipeline and for owners to exit from their ageing assets, according to a media report quoting Colliers International. However, Colliers...
Continue Reading • 22 Aug 2014
SG launch for Marine Wharf East
Singapore will host the worldwide exhibition launch of Galliard Homes’ Marine Wharf East in London’s SE16 this weekend, when real estate agency JLL showcases the project on Saturday, August 23 and Sunday, August 24, at St Regis Hotel Senator Room in the city-state. The project is located...
Continue Reading • 22 Aug 2014
Confidence back for Bangkok buyers
Confidence in Thailand property investments has certainly returned, and this weekend another development – the 50-storey Skywalk Condominium – will again be showcased to potential buyers in Singapore. The mixed-use development situated 140 metres away from BTS Phra Khanong along Sukhumvit...
Continue Reading • 22 Aug 2014
Property buying sentiment in Indonesia still strong: survey
Property buyers in Indonesia remain confident of market conditions in the country, according to a new property sentiment survey by Rumah.com for the first half of 2014. Of the 922 respondents polled, 65 percent are quite satisfied with the property climate so far this year, an increase from...
Continue Reading • 21 Aug 2014
URA awards Potong Pasir site to MCC Land
A commercial and residential site at Meyappa Chettiar Road in Potong Pasir (pictured) has been awarded to MCC Land after the developer submitted the highest bid of $471.16 million in the tender for the site, according to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). Launched for sale on 30 April...
Continue Reading • 21 Aug 2014
Sentosa Cove feels brunt of property cooling measures
Sales of non-landed homes in Sentosa have declined significantly in the last three years, as government measures such as the Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) and the Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR) framework continue to bite, said media reports. Based on URA data, only 10 non-landed...
Continue Reading • 21 Aug 2014
Come November, shorter travel times for MRT passengers
Commuters who use the North-South MRT Line will enjoy shorter travel times starting from October or November this year, as the existing speed limit due to sleeper replacement work is gradually removed, media reports said. SMRT Trains Managing Director Lee Ling Wee revealed that replacement of...
Continue Reading • 21 Aug 2014
Iskandar too crowded with Chinese developers?
Despite the possible residential supply glut in Iskandar Malaysia and the negative publicity hounding some Chinese projects there, another China-based developer is making plans to venture into the region. Henan-based Weiye Holdings is courting partners for potential joint ventures in Singapore...
Continue Reading • 21 Aug 2014
Melbourne continues to be world's most liveable city
Singapore is missing on the top ten list of the Economist Intelligence Unit’s latest liveability survey. Melbourne remains the most liveable location of the 140 cities surveyed, followed by the Austrian capital, Vienna. According to media reports, this is the fourth year...
Continue Reading • 20 Aug 2014
HDB rents to remain soft for the rest of 2014
Rents for HDB flats are expected to remain depressed for the rest of the year, on the back of sluggish demand and rising supply of flats, said property analysts and reported in the media.
Continue Reading • 20 Aug 2014
15 bids for Potong Pasir site
A commercial and residential site at Meyappa Chettiar Road received 15 bids, with MCC Land submitting the highest tendered sale price of $471.6 million, translating to $8,343.82 psm of GFA. Measuring 16,149.3 sq m and offered on a 99-year lease term, the land parcel located is near NEX and...
Continue Reading • 20 Aug 2014
Housing may be built on Jurong industrial plots in future
At the National Day Rally on 17 August, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said he has been talking to Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak about siting the terminus for the High Speed Rail (HSR) in Singapore in the Jurong Lake District. “So we are discussing with the Malaysians, we have not...
Continue Reading • 20 Aug 2014
July home sales flat after dropping in June
July's developer sales stayed flat month-on-month and year-on-year (y-o-y) at 484 units, which brought year-to-July sales to 4,893 units, down 53 percent y-o-y from 10,432 units in 7M 2013, according to a recent report by Barclays Bank, Singapore. Two out of the four new launches, City Gate...
Continue Reading • 20 Aug 2014
Singapore's new four-in-one depot to be the world's first
Singapore will have the world's first four-in-one train and bus depot, according to the Land Transport Authority (LTA) in a statement on 15 August. Measuring 36 hectares, this first-of-its-kind depot will house 550 buses, as well as 220 trains for the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL), East-West...
Continue Reading • 19 Aug 2014