Prime freehold corner terraced house off Paterson Road sold for $3,030 psf

Prime freehold corner terraced house off Paterson Road sold for $3,030 psf

By Cecilia Chow / The Edge Property | July 14, 2017


Located off Paterson Road is a quiet L-shaped street called Lengkok Angsa with just four corner terraced houses. Two of them, at 14 and 16 Lengkok Angsa, were developed by listed property developer Bukit Sembawang Estates, which also built the two neighbouring condominiums on either side of the street — the fully-sold 102-unit Paterson Suites and the 85-unit Paterson Collection.

The two freehold, corner terraced houses were designed by AR43 Architects and completed in 2015. Both sit on a land area of 2,475 sq ft. The house at No 16 Lengkok Angsa has a slightly bigger built-up area of 3,412 sq ft, while that at No 14 has a built-up area of 3,100 sq ft. Both houses have three levels and are designed with courtyard water features, a vertical garden and a covered outdoor area that links the front and rear end of the house. There is also a roof terrace, which is ideal for those who like to entertain and enjoy the view.

The house comes fully fitted with Miele kitchen appliances in the wet and dry kitchen, kitchen cabinetry and a built-in wardrobe in all the bedrooms. There are five en suite bedrooms, including the guest room or granny room on the first level, and the master and junior master suites.

The house at 16 Lengkok Angsa was sold a week ago for $7.5 million, which translates into $3,030 psf, based on the land area. Bukit Sembawang has tagged the other house at $7.5 million as well.

“Activity in the landed housing market seems to have picked up, and prices are stabilising,” says Ng Chee Seng, CEO of Bukit Sembawang Estates.

New benchmark price

The price of $3,030 psf for a newly completed corner terraced house is likely to set the benchmark for Lum Chang Holdings’ upcoming landed housing development at One Tree Hill, says Samuel Eyo, managing director of Singapore Christie’s International Real Estate.

In early May, listed property group Lum Chang Holdings acquired One Tree Hill Gardens in an en bloc purchase for $65 million. The land price Lum Chang paid translates into $1,664 psf per plot ratio (ppr), based on the freehold site area of 39,063 sq ft.

The existing One Tree Hill Gardens is a three-storey development with seven apartments and six maisonettes. However, it is located within the One Tree Hill landed housing estate, which has predominantly freehold detached and semi-detached houses. The housing estate is accessible from both Grange and Paterson Roads.

One Tree Hill Gardens — located at the junction of One Tree Hill and Jalan Arnap — is close to Orchard Road and just 300m from the upcoming Orchard Boulevard MRT station on the Thomson- East Coast Line, says Lum Chang in an SGX announcement on its acquisition on May 5. Lum Chang also said that it intends to redevelop the site into residential landed homes for sale.

Within the One Tree Hill landed housing estate, the most recent transaction of a landed property to have crossed the $3,000 psf threshold was in May 2015, says Christie’s Eyo. It was for the sale of a newly built semi-detached house by Wah Khiaw Developments for $8.8 million, or $3,414 psf based on the freehold land area of 2,578 sq ft.

Wah Khiaw had purchased an old detached house on Jalan Tupai, which sat on a 10,473 sq ft freehold site, for $21 million ($2,005 psf) in 2012. It subsequently built four semi-detached houses on the site. The three other semi-detached houses are still available for sale.

Prior to that, in October 2014, a detached house on Kim Lin Park at One Tree Hill was sold for $17.2 million ($3,826 psf). It was a new house that sat on a freehold site of 4,499 sq ft.

Scarcity of freehold landed houses in prime districts

“Buyers are recognising the scarcity of such freehold landed houses in the prime districts, and are therefore willing to pay prices upward of $3,000 psf for brandnew houses,” observes Christie’s Eyo.

The two corner terraced houses on Lengkok Angsa are part of the larger 44,663 sq ft freehold site on Paterson Road and Lengkok Angsa that Bukit Sembawang had purchased collectively in July 2006 for $102.7 million. The owners of the 14 houses on the site received $4.5 million to $12 million each at the time. The site was then redeveloped into the two corner terraced houses on Lengkok Angsa and the 85-unit Paterson Collection.

Bukit Sembawang had purchased a plot of 32 landed houses at Lengkok Angsa a year earlier in July 2005. That plot was then redeveloped into Paterson Suites, which is fully sold.

From 2005 to 2007, Bukit Sembawang acquired nine freehold sites, says Bukit Sembawang’s Ng. They include Woodleigh Grove, Carlton Terrace in Holland Road, Chez Bright Apartments and the neighbouring Air View Towers on St Thomas Walk as well as The Vermont and Peck Hay Mansion in the Cairnhill area.

They have since been redeveloped into seven condo projects, which have been launched and completed, adds Ng. The projects are the 100-unit Parc Mondrian (a redevelopment of Woodleigh Grove); the 75-unit Verdure (the former Carlton Terrace) on Holland Road, the 123-unit Vermont on Cairnhill (the former The Vermont and Peck Hay Mansion) as well as the 283-unit Skyline Residences.

‘Pent-up demand for a new development on St Thomas Walk’

Construction is well underway at No 8 St Thomas Walk, which is a redevelopment of the two amalgamated freehold sites of the former Chez Bright Apartments and Air View Towers. The new development will comprise twin 36-storey towers with a total of 250 units when completed at year-end. The units are a mix of one- to four-bedroom units of 441 to 1,755 sq ft and two penthouses of 2,422 to 2,659 sq ft.

About 50% of the units are one- and two-bedroom apartments, says Ng. “Such units have proven to be popular with investors, owing to their absolute prices.” The project also has dual-key units, he adds. The development is within walking distance of the Somerset MRT station and the Orchard Road shopping strip. “I foresee pent-up demand in the St Thomas Walk neighbourhood as there hasn’t been a new launch in the area for some years,” says Ng.

Joseph Tan, executive director of residential services at CBRE, agrees. “[No 8 St Thomas Walk] is the only new freehold development in the St Thomas Walk neighbourhood,” he says. “Developers are recognising the scarcity of prime, freehold condo developments in the vicinity of Orchard Road and are therefore not in a hurry to sell their new projects.”

The pricing of the new development at No 8 St Thomas Walk is likely to be benchmarked against Martin Modern, GuocoLand’s 450-unit luxury condo at Martin Place that was previewed on the weekend of July 8 and 9 and is expected to be launched for sale a fortnight later, adds Tan.