Oxley Holdings acquires Joo Chiat site for S$8m
Oxley Holdings, a Singapore-based property developer specialising in residential-cum-commercial developments, has continued its aggressive land-banking expansion with the latest acquisition of a 606 sq m freehold plot at Joo Chiat Road for around S$8 million.Situated at 339, 339A, 339B and 339C...
Continue Reading • 5 Apr 2012
Tharman: Govt working to cool property market
Overwhelming demand in the housing market has exceeded supply in recent years, and as a result, prices have surged faster than peoples’ incomes. Tharman Shanmugaratnam (pictured), Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister, commented that “we're not in a very happy part of the...
Continue Reading • 5 Apr 2012
Residential auction market cools down
Interest in residential property auctions fell in the first quarter of this year, from 14 in 2010 and five in 2011 to just one in the last quarter. Out of the 84 properties put up for auction in Q1, three were sold — one of which was a residential property, while the other two were a...
Continue Reading • 5 Apr 2012
Bungalow market gaining momentum
Although the bungalow market opened the year on a quiet note, activity is now starting to look more favourable, according to a report by The Business Times. In the GCBA (Good Class Bungalow Area) segment, a two-storey bungalow located at Bishopsgate was sold for S$27 million, which works out to...
Continue Reading • 5 Apr 2012
Gardens by the Bay set for June unveiling
Gardens by the Bay (pictured) will make its long-awaited debut on 29 June, with the opening of Phase One which includes the 54-ha Bay South Garden and two cooled conservatories.The development comprises three waterfront gardens that are expected to be fully open by 2015. It includes the Bay...
Continue Reading • 5 Apr 2012
Property investment activity down 50% in Q1: DTZ
Property investment activity in Singapore fell 50 percent in the first quarter to S$3.7 billion, from S$7.4 billion the previous quarter, according to the latest report by DTZ Research.The sudden decline in real estate investment activity was mainly attributed to a weaker property market, rising...
Continue Reading • 4 Apr 2012
Controversial Toh Yi studio flats see strong buyer interest
The controversial Golden Kismis studio apartment project (pictured) in Toh Yi has attracted strong interest from potential buyers, amid concerns that the site’s location atop a slope would be highly inconvenient to elderly residents.According to The Straits Times, when the applications for...
Continue Reading • 4 Apr 2012
PropertyGuru ranked world's 8th most dominant property portal
Property portal PropertyGuru saw an overwhelming influx of online traffic over the last year, recording a 168 percent growth in visits and a record eight million visitors in February, compared to 2.5 million over the same period last year.Additionally, the group has seen a notable increase in...
Continue Reading • 4 Apr 2012
Fernvale Lane EC site fetches top bid of S$245m
An executive condominium (EC) site at Fernvale Lane (pictured) has received a top bid of S$245 million in a public tender that closed on 3 April 2012.Among a total of four bids, Peak Living Pte offered the top bid of S$245 million for the site, while the second highest bid was a joint bid between...
Continue Reading • 4 Apr 2012
More Aussie borrowers switching to fixed-rate mortgages
A growing number of Australian borrowers are now switching to fixed-rate mortgages in order to avoid the effect of sudden interest rate hikes, according to a recent survey.Newest figures released by the Australian Finance Group showed that 25 percent of borrowers who refinanced their mortgages...
Continue Reading • 4 Apr 2012
4 new sites set aside for international schools
The government has allotted four new sites for international schools wanting to expand their campuses in Singapore, according to a report by The Straits Times.The land parcels, which are estimated to range in size from 1.7 ha to five ha, were released under a Request for Interest (RFI) exercise,...
Continue Reading • 4 Apr 2012
URA, HDB data show market stabilising
Flash estimates released yesterday by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) may be an indication that private home prices are now stabilising.According to Chia Siew Chuin, Director of Research & Advisory at Colliers International, the marginal decline of 0.1 percent in overall private...
Continue Reading • 3 Apr 2012
Punggol EC site awarded to Qingjian Realty
The Housing and Development Board (HDB) has awarded the tender for an executive condominium (EC) site (pictured) at Punggol Central to Qingjian Realty (South Pacific) Group Pte Ltd, after it offered the highest bid of S$136.7 million in a public tender that closed yesterday.“The top bid for...
Continue Reading • 3 Apr 2012
Top US locations for foreign buyers
A new report published by U.S. real estate portal Inman News has highlighted the top ten locations in the United States for global property buyers and investors.According to the report, foreign buyers account for a small but growing segment of overall U.S. property sales. Of the US$1.06 trillion...
Continue Reading • 3 Apr 2012
CapitaLand hires Margaret Goh as CEO of Special Projects
CapitaLand, Southeast Asia’s largest property firm, has announced the appointment of Margaret Goh as its CEO of Special Projects with effect from 16 April 2012. “I am pleased to welcome Margaret to the CapitaLand family,” said Liew Mun Leong, President and CEO of...
Continue Reading • 3 Apr 2012
UK remortgage rates to change
Interest rates for remortgages in the UK are expected to change a little amid forecasts that the standard base interest rate of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will remain unchanged, according to a report. It noted that the weakening economy has caused lenders to...
Continue Reading • 3 Apr 2012
Bartley Grove Apartment, terrace houses sold for S$74.1m
Bartley Homes Pte Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Top Global Ltd, has acquired Bartley Grove Apartment (pictured) and three adjoining terrace houses for S$74.1 million. This works out to around S$810 psf ppr, making it the first pure-residential collective sale for 2012. Located in District 19,...
Continue Reading • 3 Apr 2012
Sellers who back out must pay, say agents
Even when a client backs out from an exclusive agreement to sell a property, some real estate agents are still requesting to get paid for their services. For instance, a prospective seller could engage an agent to do detailed valuations of a home and then arrange for viewings. But the owner...
Continue Reading • 3 Apr 2012
URA revises guidelines for strata landed housing
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) has announced that it will no longer permit developers to build strata landed homes in projects with ‘condominium’ status. According to market watchers, the move will effectively close a loophole which has allowed foreigners to buy strata landed...
Continue Reading • 3 Apr 2012
Singapore luxury property continues to attract ultra-rich
Despite the cooling measures introduced by the government, the luxury property market remains resilient as the wealthy still see the city as a safe haven, according to The Wealth Report 2012 by Knight Frank. Done in collaboration with Citi Private Bank, the report surveyed 4,000 individuals who...
Continue Reading • 2 Apr 2012