Regent Heights quite impressive

[august]

a 3 bedder at carrotbell is almost twice the cost of a 3 bedder at regent heights. the rental for a $1.4 mil 3 bedder at carrotbell is $3.5k, which is the same as a $7xxk 3 bedder at Regent Heights. Clementi MRT is almost unwalkable from carrotbell. I think the discerning would know which is better.

perhaps is just "cocktail talk".. & not to be discerned in any serious manner?

[fooblackie]

Overall, i think if one is to invest in this development for investment and rental. I think not bad since the rental yield compared to the cost is quite good.

However, for self-stay, I think not a wise choice since the condition of the development is quite bad. I mentioned about the car park lift lobby and common corridor.

Even if you spent a ton renov your unit to make it brand new and comfy, you will still get to use these common facilities, which in my view, is worse than many HDB blocks of the same age (pui chao nua).

It is a clear indication how gd the mgmt is......

[Regulators]

the facts are out there, check the rental yield for the 2 projects and you can discern from those facts. go propertyguru and see what owners are asking

perhaps is just "cocktail talk".. & not to be discerned in any serious manner?

[Regulators]

lol i have thought about that aspect as well, but as an investor, i am not very emotional when it comes to such things

Overall, i think if one is to invest in this development for investment and rental. I think not bad since the rental yield compared to the cost is quite good.

However, for self-stay, I think not a wise choice since the condition of the development is quite bad. I mentioned about the car park lift lobby and common corridor.

Even if you spent a ton renov your unit to make it brand new and comfy, you will still get to use these common facilities, which in my view, is worse than many HDB blocks of the same age (pui chao nua).

It is a clear indication how gd the mgmt is......

[fooblackie]

lol i have thought about that aspect as well, but as an investor, i am not very emotional when it comes to such things

Is this the reason why you had a sharp turn from your earlier post about your reservations of this project? pure investor so hack-care. Just concerned whether can collect rent haha...

cant see your rationale now since earlier you were so against this development....

Post #32 - http://forums.condosingapore.com/sho...?t=9204&page=2

"Be extremely careful about buying Regent Heights. My friend just sold her regent heights 3 bedder and she had been living there for 10 years. The following are the list of problems:

1) the workmanship for the project is poor and she said that partition between certain walls are partition board and not even concrete.
2) the central heater is hidden and unreachable without hacking, a rather strange feature i thought (u need to confirm that)
3) The surrounding area is very poorly maintained and the lifts at the multi-storey carpark have been vandalised without being repaired for some time
4) Too many strange people walking in and out of the condo and you won't feel like you are living in a Singapore property
5) Go to every lift lobby and see the number of bicycles parked there and you will think twice about living there. The bicycles are messily strewn all over the place and many are rusty bicycles. We are not talking about a few bicycles here and there, we are talking about 30-40 bicycles at the lobbies, making the entire place look so cheapskate coz you see parapoondeks and mainlanders paddling to and from work everyday in their rusty 2 wheelers.
6) The last time I went there, the trees in the projects were not well-maintained as well. Sometimes dead leaves everywhere and not swept by the management.

My conclusion for this project.... "

[devilplate]

scary ...reminds me of an agt tat super condemned dakota area when dakota residence was launched and later sing full of praises after he bot a unit at waterbank

[Wild Falcon]

Don't think can walk to bt batok mrt station. maybe can try bukit gombak station.

i also bio the area, the only condo nearest to bukit batok mrt is the jade, regent heights being the 2nd nearest. guilin view and madeira near gombak mrt, which is not an ideal mrt compared to bukit batok mrt. you are probably right, finding the million dollar views in regent hts is a challenge and renovation is definitely needed. The lease for the land starts from 1995 but i think the condo TOP in 2000. i think rental for this project supported by a mixture of japanese, indians, koreans and chinese, quite a good mix i thought.

[Allthepies]

i beg to differ coz a slight distance away from bt batok mrt is still better than being near to gombak mrt. if you compare northvale and regent grove, both projects are near the mrt but yew tee area is always deemed as the less popular part of chua chu kang.

when the foreign talent is hungry will he prefer to go downstairs to get food or walk 700m to buy food? and when he don't have a car, will he prefer to walk 300m to the mrt or walk >700m to the mrt?

for rental, convenience and accessibility is the key

[Regulators]

my past comments about regent heights was made in april 2010 about buying for own stay. the pty market has also defied gravity. i do not deny the interior is poor, but on a purely investment point of view in this current market, i think buying a unit there to rent out is an option that is viable as the quantum is low. putting a 30% outlay for a 3 bedder in regent heights would not cause a ripple in my bank account so why not maximise on the returns? My other friend who sold a unit at regent heights at that time did try to insinuate me into not buying regent heights at all cost for own stay and i agree with her to a large extent. buying for rental is a different ball game and i have learnt not to get too emotional about it. If you can find me another 3 bedroom full condo (must be above 1100sf with no planters and bay windows) within 700m of the MRT and shopping mall and above 20th floor (with panoramic view) selling at 770k and can rent out at $3.5k per month, then i concede defeat.

Is this the reason why you had a sharp turn from your earlier post about your reservations of this project? pure investor so hack-care. Just concerned whether can collect rent haha...

cant see your rationale now since earlier you were so against this development....

Post #32 - http://forums.condosingapore.com/sho...?t=9204&page=2

"Be extremely careful about buying Regent Heights. My friend just sold her regent heights 3 bedder and she had been living there for 10 years. The following are the list of problems:

1) the workmanship for the project is poor and she said that partition between certain walls are partition board and not even concrete.
2) the central heater is hidden and unreachable without hacking, a rather strange feature i thought (u need to confirm that)
3) The surrounding area is very poorly maintained and the lifts at the multi-storey carpark have been vandalised without being repaired for some time
4) Too many strange people walking in and out of the condo and you won't feel like you are living in a Singapore property
5) Go to every lift lobby and see the number of bicycles parked there and you will think twice about living there. The bicycles are messily strewn all over the place and many are rusty bicycles. We are not talking about a few bicycles here and there, we are talking about 30-40 bicycles at the lobbies, making the entire place look so cheapskate coz you see parapoondeks and mainlanders paddling to and from work everyday in their rusty 2 wheelers.
6) The last time I went there, the trees in the projects were not well-maintained as well. Sometimes dead leaves everywhere and not swept by the management.

My conclusion for this project.... "

[pmet]

This project isn't near Bukit Batok MRT and the long slope makes walking up/down even more tiring on the muscles/heals. If anyone is interested in this project because of the "proximity to MRT", try walking in the hot sun and you will discover yourself sweating 3x as much as walking on flat grounds. Not to mention that it's unsafe to walk home from MRT at night, lest that you get robberted or raped.

One thing "good" about this project is that it has an "attached mosque"

Judging on the condition of the facilities/property, no... this project should be avoided

[devilplate]

dun tink can fetch 3.5k

more like 3k-3.2k

http://www.propertyguru.com.sg/listi...regent-heights

[Regulators]

$3.2k rental for a $770k 3 bedder is 4.98% rental yield, almost 5%.

dun tink can fetch 3.5k

more like 3k-3.2k

http://www.propertyguru.com.sg/listi...regent-heights

[land118]

"Be extremely careful about buying Regent Heights. My friend just sold her regent heights 3 bedder and she had been living there for 10 years. The following are the list of problems:

1) the workmanship for the project is poor ......

My conclusion for this project.... "

Wow, list of problems so many..., must check carefully and ask insider b4 buying if still want to. Sometimes, when mkt price is a bargain, must look carefully, since 645 units, so many, surely there must be reason why mkt price not go up....and development has been around for some 10 yrs...if good, maybe in the last 10 yrs would have chance to go up..., seem that only BIG plus is if get high floor Tower A , got damn good view, but have to tahan with poor management council and list of common areas/facilities deficiencies if they are true...

[Rysk]

interesting you mentioned that, but from my friend's living room, i could see the three MBS towers and sky garden quite distinctly even though they are at the distant horizon. the fireworks view would be very clear as the skyline is unblocked at that height over a vast distance. the best part is not looking at MBS, but having bt timah hill facing your living room while you enjoy your meal and if you buy the back of tower A, your living room would be facing little guilin which IMO is not as fantastic as bt timah view. For 7xxk, i can challenge anyone to find me a 3+1 at east coast with comparable views and living space of more than 1100sf with no planter and bay windows be it 99yr or freehold regardless of age

Usually East coast is talking about seaview rather than fireworks view..
Previously I have seen at a close view with sound of the fireworks and plane flying from left to right & right to left during national day when I stay in my previous very high flr unit at Pavilon 11 at Novena.. during F1 also can hear the sweet exos sound coming from Marina bay.. shiok!

[Regulators]

actually no such thing as a perfect development. even The Sail has its shortcomings and you would hear residents there complaining about the poor interior and the redundant pillar in the unit.

[fooblackie]

actually no such thing as a perfect development. even The Sail has its shortcomings and you would hear residents there complaining about the poor interior and the redundant pillar in the unit.

Well, to each his own i guess.

I just cannot reconcile myself with your about-change from a full-turn from a no-no to a resounding yes-yes on this project. Notwithstanding you are putting yourself in the shoes of an investor versus a self-buy. Just the overwhelming amount of red flags by the responses in this thread tells you an interesting picture on this development. It is probably so cheap in bukit batok (2nd cheapest other than parkview - another lousy project) for definite reasons....

but since you have plenty of funds to play with, no harm trying and see if it is really a gd investment.

[Wild Falcon]

If everyone thinks like you, cheap means cheap for a reason, then there is no such thing as undervalued properties already. I recall someone asked about Regent Hts vs Palm Gardens some time back when both were trading at the SAME PRICE. I recalled asking the person to go for Regent Height (if same PSF) but everyone had so much negative to say and the person ended up buying Palm Gardens. Looking at today's price performance, Regent Hts probably trumps Palm Gardens?

Remember - property market is NOT efficient. It is an illiquid market where imperfect information exist. I think individuals also have prejudices that prevent them from evaluating property investments objectively (e.g. only buy "prime" districts" even though yields and returns are not fantastic) - ie they let their emotions rule their buying decision. Therefore, there are always undervalued gems out there - provided you bother to look.

Well, to each his own i guess.

I just cannot reconcile myself with your about-change from a full-turn from a no-no to a resounding yes-yes on this project. Notwithstanding you are putting yourself in the shoes of an investor versus a self-buy. Just the overwhelming amount of red flags by the responses in this thread tells you an interesting picture on this development. It is probably so cheap in bukit batok (2nd cheapest other than parkview - another lousy project) for definite reasons....

but since you have plenty of funds to play with, no harm trying and see if it is really a gd investment.

[Regulators]

i agree, some people can make more money buying OCR properties compared to CCR, it all depends on making the right judgements most of the time. I used to like only central properties, but the changes in the market movements means we have to alter our perspectives. I used not to like Hillview, but I am having second thoughts about that area as I see the potential of some undervalued projects there as well. As for Jurong, I can argue till the cows come home that Caspian is a crap project becoz jurong sucks as a location, but if i had bought a 2 bedder there last year when i was at the showflat, I would be $250-300k richer now, so sometimes we do have to go where the market leads us. The rationale is actually quite simple, Bt Batok has all along been more expensive than Jurong (using HDB as a price indicator), Jurong has caught up in prices for private, but hillview and bt batok are still lagging behind somewhat. my advice is to buy into the latter two areas before the prices start to climb to a level it becomes not worth chasing. Another area to watch is bukit panjang and reason is obvious.

If everyone thinks like you, cheap means cheap for a reason, then there is no such thing as undervalued properties already. I recall someone asked about Regent Hts vs Palm Gardens some time back when both were trading at the SAME PRICE. I recalled asking the person to go for Regent Height (if same PSF) but everyone had so much negative to say and the person ended up buying Palm Gardens. Looking at today's price performance, Regent Hts probably trumps Palm Gardens?

Remember - property market is NOT efficient. It is an illiquid market where imperfect information exist. I think individuals also have prejudices that prevent them from evaluating property investments objectively (e.g. only buy "prime" districts" even though yields and returns are not fantastic) - ie they let their emotions rule their buying decision. Therefore, there are always undervalued gems out there - provided you bother to look.

[fooblackie]

If everyone thinks like you, cheap means cheap for a reason, then there is no such thing as undervalued properties already. I recall someone asked about Regent Hts vs Palm Gardens some time back when both were trading at the SAME PRICE. I recalled asking the person to go for Regent Height (if same PSF) but everyone had so much negative to say and the person ended up buying Palm Gardens. Looking at today's price performance, Regent Hts probably trumps Palm Gardens?

Remember - property market is NOT efficient. It is an illiquid market where imperfect information exist. I think individuals also have prejudices that prevent them from evaluating property investments objectively (e.g. only buy "prime" districts" even though yields and returns are not fantastic) - ie they let their emotions rule their buying decision. Therefore, there are always undervalued gems out there - provided you bother to look.

Price performance-wise, I admit R Hgts is doing slightly better than P Gardens. Partially because the units size of R hgts is typically smaller - ard 1000 sq ft for 2 bedder and 1163 sq ft for 3 bedder. P gardens is majority 1200 sq ft 3 bedders. There is actually not much difference between the transacted prices if you compare 3 bedder to 3 bedder price for R Hts and P gardens and you do away with < 50 sq ft diff.

It is 1000 sq ft units (2 bedders) of R hgts which are propping up the average PSF of the development. i believe R hgts has more of these 2 bedders than 3 bedders....

Guess why i overlooked R hgts is cos of self-stay. I dun feel sorry that I missed R hgts. You can give me another huge capital appreciation (undervalued gem whatever you call it), but at the day, it cannot solve the daily issues of staying there... maybe tahan then sell off for another move haha....

[rattydrama]

i agree, some people can make more money buying OCR properties compared to CCR, it all depends on making the right judgements most of the time. I used to like only central properties, but the changes in the market movements means we have to alter our perspectives. I used not to like Hillview, but I am having second thoughts about that area as I see the potential of some undervalued projects there as well. As for Jurong, I can argue till the cows come home that Caspian is a crap project becoz jurong sucks as a location, but if i had bought a 2 bedder there last year when i was at the showflat, I would be $250-300k richer now, so sometimes we do have to go where the market leads us. The rationale is actually quite simple, Bt Batok has all along been more expensive than Jurong (using HDB as a price indicator), Jurong has caught up in prices for private, but hillview and bt batok are still lagging behind somewhat. my advice is to buy into the latter two areas before the prices start to climb to a level it becomes not worth chasing. Another area to watch is bukit panjang and reason is obvious.

I kind of agree with you cos I know these 3 places pretty well. To give more clue, Jurong East, Jurong West (not extension), Bt Batok and Bt Panjang are "immigrants" from Lim Chu Kang, Ah Ma Keng, Chua Chu Kang in the 80s. (their landed LH were acquired by Government for military use) They are not speculators. Most of them are staying there for as long as they could and thats is why the prices are depressed. Married children moved out but not the parents. So it is highly possible for the price to go up in these areas. That is why I am still positive with OCR near amenities.

[rattydrama]

I have not view any of them. Just like to comment that it will not consider these 2 areas for stay or investment.

I will go for warren instead - 2 MRT stations away.

For own stay, there are other cheaper options.

[Regulators]

warren does not have that good an orientation compared to northvale. at least northvale is not beside hdb. only thing warren can scream about is that it is 5-6 years newer than northvale, but if you buy a 2 bedder for rental yield at northvale and warren, northvale will stand as the winner hands down. between warren, northvale and regent heights, the rental yield for regent hts will beat both the two

I have not view any of them. Just like to comment that it will not consider these 2 areas for stay or investment.

I will go for warren instead - 2 MRT stations away.

For own stay, there are other cheaper options.

[Geylang OKT]

Your tenants will die from smoke pollution at The Warren

[Regulators]

what smoke pollution? from smokers or chimneys?

Your tenants will die from smoke pollution at The Warren

[Geylang OKT]

what smoke pollution? from smokers or chimneys?

Where do you think all the tonnes of buses at the Choa Chu Kang end originate/terminate?

[fooblackie]

warren does not have that good an orientation compared to northvale. at least northvale is not beside hdb. only thing warren can scream about is that it is 5-6 years newer than northvale, but if you buy a 2 bedder for rental yield at northvale and warren, northvale will stand as the winner hands down. between warren, northvale and regent heights, the rental yield for regent hts will beat both the two

northvale is not bad... esp in terms of pricing. It should be pretty close to R hgts. Not sure of the floor layout but I suspect R Hgts may win easily cos that is its strongest pt.

i personally the premium units at Northvale are the unit facing the park and high floor. It may compensate the noise of heavy traffic at the KJE exit. The KJE exit is just at the doorstep of northvale.

If i am a tenant, i may choose Northvale as it is nearer to amenities and rent is comparable to R Hgts. Unless one love Bukit batok deep deep... which has its strong pts since it is nearer to town and bukit timah area...

[fooblackie]

one more thing.. i was checking out the caveated rental rates at R hgts. Latest is $2.5k for 2 bedder (1023sqft)

Though units are asking around $3-$3.2K for 3 bedders (1163 sq ft) in propertyguru, I believe the actual rental recorded is closer to $2.8k.

Maybe one should check it out whether the market really moved > $3k?

[Wild Falcon]

Regulators, Regent Heights is not within walking distance to Bukit Batok MRT station. If it's Bukit Batok and within walking distance to MRT station, the price wouldn't be like that. Check out The Jade - $800+psf. Bt Batok will always fetch a premium to CCK or even Jurong, all else being equal. Even looking at new launches, you can see developers price Bt Batok (e.g. Park Natura or Hillview Lanai or Hillvista) very differently from CCK. But when comparing one without MRT station vs another with MRT station, the premium will be diminished. Many of the Bt Batok condos (other than The Jade or Guilin View) are pretty far from MRT stations.

[kingkong1984]

if can wait... many many new projects in D23... many many...

These older condo's are value for money in terms of space.. other than that... you will need a car. That will solve some of the problems.

[Regulators]

i was taking a leisurely walk from regent heights to west mall for lunch when i visited my friend the other day. If not within walking distance, how did I get to my destination without much sweat?

Regulators, Regent Heights is not within walking distance to Bukit Batok MRT station. If it's Bukit Batok and within walking distance to MRT station, the price wouldn't be like that. Check out The Jade - $800+psf. Bt Batok will always fetch a premium to CCK or even Jurong, all else being equal. Even looking at new launches, you can see developers price Bt Batok (e.g. Park Natura or Hillview Lanai or Hillvista) very differently from CCK. But when comparing one without MRT station vs another with MRT station, the premium will be diminished. Many of the Bt Batok condos (other than The Jade or Guilin View) are pretty far from MRT stations.