Issue 131

Copyright 2011-2013 www.Propwise.sg. All Rights Reserved.

CONTENTS
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How the URAs Masterplan 2013 Will
Affect the Property Market Singapore Property News This Week Resale Property Transactions (November 6 November 12)

FROM THE

EDITOR

Welcome to the 131st edition of the Singapore Property Weekly. Hope you like it!

Mr. Propwise

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 131

How the URAs Masterplan 2013 Will Affect the Property Market

By Mr. Propwise By now youve probably read lots of media reports about the Urban Redevelopment Authoritys (URA) Draft Masterplan 2013, a medium term plan which details statutory land use and guides Singapores development over a ten to fifteen year period. In this post I hope to synthesize the different views and look at how the concepts outlined in the Master Plan will affect the property market, and whether it throws up any interesting opportunities.

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 131 The changing focus of the Master Plan The URAs role is to plan the physical development of Singapore and to optimize the use of the countrys limited land resources. To this end it puts out the Concept Plan, which is a long term strategic land use plan that guides Singapores development over a forty to fifty year period, ensuring that Singapore has sufficient land to meet long term population, economic and quality of life goals. It is reviewed every ten years, and the last one was completed in 2011. Historically, the Master Plan has rendered the broad strategies outlined in the Concept Plan into detailed permissible land use and density plans for developments in Singapore. It is reviewed every five years. In the Draft Masterplan 2013, the URA is moving away from its previous mostly quantitative role (i.e. mainly looking at plot
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ratios and land use), and starting to focus on the qualitative aspects of living in Singapore. We can see this shift from the 6 key focuses as stated by the URA:

1. Housing
2. Economy 3. Recreation 4. Identity 5. Transport 6. Public Spaces Out of the above 6 focuses, we see that half of them (Recreation, Identity, Public Spaces) are focusing more on the intangible and people-centric aspects of living in Singapore, with an aim to boost the quality of life here beyond just the hard aspects of having a comfortable home in a convenient location with good transportation links and facilities.
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 131 Decentralization of work will create new market opportunities One of the trends weve been seeing in the recent Master Plans is the decentralization of employment centers to different areas of Singapore, e.g. to Jurong and Paya Lebar, partly as a means to ameliorate the transportation capacity problem of a large part of the population commuting to the CBD to work. The Master Plan 2013 introduces the North Coast Innovation Corridor, which will see the emergence of the Woodlands Regional Centre, the Punggol Learning Corridor and Creative Cluster. There will also be the gradual development of new industrial estates such as Jalan Bahar, Wenya, Tengah, Lorong Halus and Seletar West. Where people go to work, so do opportunities to invest in and rent out property. The key for
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investors is to gauge the speed and commitment of the government to incentivize developments in all the new centers. The irony is that with so many potential centers, there is a diffusion of focus and not all will achieve an equal level of success.

Figure 1: Proposed Holland Extension (Source: URA)

Village

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 131 My sense is that the centers that are closest to the traditional economic hubs like the CBD and Orchard (e.g. Paya Lebar, Holland Village) have the greatest chance of developing quickly, and consequently have better investment prospects. No more premium for being close to the MRT? homes are within a 10-minute walk to the MRT, will this premium still exist? I believe being near to an MRT station will eventually become less important to which MRT station and line you are near to. Homes near MRT interchanges (where two or more lines cross) will likely command a larger premium. Homes near MRT stations on lines with key business hubs (e.g. the East-West line which has connectivity to the hubs of Jurong, the CBD, Kampong Bugis, Paya Lebar and Tampines) will have better prices and rentals versus other lines which may require multiple transits to get to the key hubs.

As part of the effort to improve the public transportation system, by 2030 the rail network will double to 360km, and 80% of all homes will be within a 10-minute walk to an MRT station. Traditionally homes near to an MRT station will usually be able to command a premium to less well connected homes. But if 80% of

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 131 Lots of new homes but who will live in them? term development as the southern coastline will only be freed up when the ports move from Pasir Panjang and Tanjong Pagar by 2027 thats one or two property cycles away, so no need to worry about it for now. For the latter, the plans to create a car-free environment and community in the Marina South area are interesting. But with nearby developments costing close to $3000 per square foot, will it be a community just for the rich? Also with an upcoming record completion of homes coming in the next few years that will weigh on the rental and resale markets, and the curbs on foreign workers and slowing population growth weighing on housing demand, will there be enough demand for homes in all of these new areas?

Figure 2: Artists impression of Marina South urban village (source: URA) How about new areas like the Greater Southern Waterfront and Marina South? For the former, I believe this will be a very long

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 131

Singapore Property This Week

Residential
Upper Paya Lebar Rd private house and 3 EC sites rolled out under GLS A private housing site in Upper Paya Lebar Road and three executive condominium (EC) sites have been rolled out for November under the second half of 2013 Government Land Sales (GLS) Programme. According to DTZ head research Lee Lay Keng, the government is trying to strike a balance between adequate supply for current demand and being mindful of upcoming supply of private homes. The market would expect a pullback of supply of private homes for the confirmed list in the next half-year. Jones Lang LaSalle national director Ong Teck Hui said the supply of private homes by the Ministry of National Development has decreased from 8,000 in H2 2010, H1 & H2 2011 to 7,000 for 2012 and H1 2013, and eventually standing at just 6,000 in H2 2013. DTZs Lee Lay Keng predicted that the government could release 5,000 to 6,000 private homes in the next-half confirmed list, with a shift towards more ECs. (Source: Business Times)

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 131 Marina South to house 9,000 private homes 21.5 ha of development area in Marina South will house 9,000 private homes with development starting after 2017/2018 when the Thomson Line is completed. This is part of the Draft Master Plan 2013 of the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) to create the next major growth area. There will also be an 800-metre long underground mall between two Thomson Line stations serving the area Marina South and Gardens by the Bay. The ground-level space above the mall will be used for pedestrian walkway. A separate elevated landscaped walkway would take pedestrians from the Bay South Gardens to the seafront, and cycling path would cut through other parts of Marina Bay. (Source: Business Times)
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Paterson Hill: worlds 5th priciest street According to Billionaire.com report, Singapores Paterson Hill, located in District 9 close to Orchard Road and international schools, has been ranked the worlds fifth priciest street, with an average price of $4,990 psf. Prices along the road have increased 6.5 percent in 2012. The Marq, the most expensive condo on this road, is worth a record $6,859 psf for a 3,003 sq ft unit in Nov 2011. The local purchase of the condo is about $20.5 million. Standing at the top spot for worlds priciest street is Hong Kongs Pollock Paths with an average price of US$11,148 psf the highest point on Hong Kong island and a stomping ground of Hong Kongs super-rich. (Source: Business Times)

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 131 Holland Village to be extended under Draft Master Plan 2013 Under the Draft Master Plan 2013 of URA, Holland Village will be extended 6 ha more for a mixed use development and a basement parking station. Another two residential plots which could yield 1,500 units will also be identified, although it has not yet been announced to be designated for private or public housing. The mixed-use plot is likely to be the first to be implemented at the start of 2015. The developer who wins the tender is required to build a basement carpark big enough to serve Holland Village. (Source: Business Times) Draft Master Plan 2013 focuses on green townships Under the Draft Master Plan 2013 of the URA, more townships that are green, healthy,
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connected and strong in community interaction will be built. Holland Village, Kampong Bugis and Marina South will be the districts with 14,500 new homes and ecofriendly spaces. The 18-ha Kampong Bugis will offer 4,000 more private homes. The 21.5-ha Marina South area will be turned into a mixed-use residential district with 9,000 more private homes. A new commercial area at Woodlands Regional Centre will be rolled out to create 100,000 more jobs. A new retail belt will also come up at Marina Bay. In decentralising work space area, more regional centres such as Jurong Lake District, Tampines Regional Centre, Paya Lebar Central and one-north will be opened. Industrial parks including Seletar Aerospace Park, Defu Industrial Estate and Lorong Halus Industrial Park will continue to be developed. Along with these decentralization plans,
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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 131 the city centre will continue to grow. (Source: Business Times) Kampong Bugis: new development by URA The URA is reported to develop Kampong Bugis, located at the convergence of Rochor Canal and Kallang River, into an area with fewer cars and more public transport and pedestrian walkways after 2016. 80 percent of the 18-ha Kampong Bugis area will be used to house 4,000 private housing units. It would also be piloted for high-density, watersustainable practices to incorporate effective stormwater management, vegetated swales, bio-retention basins and detention ponds to manage rainwater runoff. (Source: Business Times) The Draft Master Plan 2013: more peoplecentric It is reported that the Draft Master Plan 2013 is taking a more people-centric approach to develop new activity clusters and encourage green spaces, beyond just numbers and land allocation for various uses. It would focus on quality of life, a more livable environment and more sports and recreation. However, some consultants were surprised that plot ratios were largely unchanged in the plan despite the possibility of the population hitting 6.9 million by 2030. A sampling of 22 private residential developments launched or sold via en bloc sales in 2013 did not show any increase in plot ratios, yet the Holland Village area which will be further developed under the plan had their plot ratios raised from 2.8 to 4.6 and 3.6 for two residential plots.

(Source: Business Times)

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SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 131 Commercial JTC-owned factories to relocate As a result of a new Master Plan still in a draft stage, JTC-owned factories in Sungei Kadut, Yew Tee and Kranji areas may have to relocate. JTC is reported to be assisting the firms in the process of relocation, with practical and sufficient timing. As the review of the Plan is still taking place, clarity on what the Master Plan entails for the three industrial sites would only be made in 2015. (Source: Business Times) OUE Ltd to sell OUE Bayfront for at least $1 billion Property group OUE Ltd is reported to be selling its office and retail development OUE Bayfront for at least $1 billion to the commercial real estate investment trust to be
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listed on the Singapore Exchange. The sale may comprise $696.9 million in cash and units in OUE Commercial Real Estate Investment Trust of $308.1 million. In fact, OUE Bayfront would be one of two assets to form the initial portfolio of OUE C-Reit. The 50-year leasehold Lippo Plaza in Shanghai is also said to be injected into the Reit. (Source: Business Times)

SINGAPORE PROPERTY WEEKLY Issue 131

Non-Landed Residential Resale Property Transactions for the Week of Nov 6 Nov 12

Postal District 4 4 4 5 5 9 10 10 10 10 10 10 11 11 11 12 12 12 14 14 15 15 15 15

Project Name CARIBBEAN AT KEPPEL BAY CARIBBEAN AT KEPPEL BAY CARIBBEAN AT KEPPEL BAY PASIR VIEW PARK PALM MANSIONS ESTILO CUSCADEN RESIDENCES THE MONTANA THE MARBELLA THE MARBELLA SHEARES VILLE TANGLIN PARK THE LINCOLN RESIDENCES NEWTON EURO-ASIA SOLEIL @ SINARAN THE CENTRIO TREVISTA CASA FORTUNA GROSVENOR VIEW CASA SARINA THE SEAFRONT ON MEYER THE ATRIA AT MEYER HAIG COURT CANTIZ @ RAMBAI

Area Transacted Price Tenure (sqft) Price ($) ($ psf) 1,335 2,130,000 1,596 99 1,227 1,950,000 1,589 99 1,206 1,880,000 1,559 99 990 1,230,000 1,242 FH 1,130 1,080,000 956 FH 657 978,000 1,489 FH 1,238 2,800,000 2,262 FH 1,206 2,188,240 1,815 FH 1,582 2,700,000 1,706 FH 1,076 1,820,000 1,691 FH 1,475 2,200,000 1,492 FH 1,765 2,500,000 1,416 FH 1,841 3,357,000 1,824 FH 1,184 1,890,000 1,596 FH 1,485 2,000,000 1,346 99 614 990,000 1,614 FH 1,270 1,866,900 1,470 99 1,076 1,380,000 1,282 FH 883 1,066,000 1,208 FH 1,184 1,080,000 912 FH 1,604 2,980,000 1,858 FH 1,345 1,750,000 1,301 FH 1,550 1,900,000 1,226 FH 872 960,000 1,101 FH

Postal District 16 18 19 19 19 19 19 21 21 21 22 23 23 23 23 25 25 26 27

Project Name SUNHAVEN OASIS @ ELIAS KOVAN RESIDENCES CHUAN PARK COMPASS HEIGHTS EVERGREEN PARK RIVERVALE CREST THE NEXUS FREESIA WOODS SYMPHONY HEIGHTS PARC OASIS MI CASA CHESTNUT VILLE HILLVIEW REGENCY PALM GARDENS ROSEWOOD CASABLANCA BULLION PARK YISHUN SAPPHIRE

Area Transacted Price Tenure (sqft) Price ($) ($ psf) 2,077 1,700,000 818 FH 1,410 1,350,000 957 99 1,776 2,280,000 1,284 99 710 840,000 1,182 99 1,055 930,000 882 99 1,345 1,150,000 855 99 1,367 1,130,000 827 99 1,485 2,200,000 1,481 FH 1,421 1,950,000 1,372 FH 1,206 1,370,000 1,136 FH 1,378 1,400,000 1,016 99 1,259 1,335,000 1,060 99 1,658 1,532,000 924 999 1,173 1,010,000 861 99 958 815,000 851 99 1,173 1,050,000 895 99 1,195 985,000 824 99 1,259 1,270,000 1,008 FH 1,378 988,000 717 99

NOTE: This data only covers non-landed residential resale property transactions with caveats lodged with the Singapore Land Authority. Typically, caveats are lodged at least 2-3 weeks after a purchaser signs an OTP, hence the lagged nature of the data.

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