http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/arch...-sale-20140327

Published March 27, 2014

Kampong Glam shophouse block up for sale

Also for sale are 3 adjoining plots of vacant GCB land along Holland Rise

By mindy tan [email protected]


A DETACHED shophouse block at Kampong Glam and three adjoining plots of prime good class bungalow land were put up for sale yesterday by expression of interest.

The freehold shophouse block - comprising three shophouse units of part one-storey and two-storey shophouses at 32, 34 and 34A Sultan Gate - is currently leased to a tenant in the food and beverage industry. The tenant's lease ends in September 2015.

The indicative price for the property, which is zoned for commercial use, is in the region of $28 million, said Cushman & Wakefield and Historical Land, the joint marketing agents for the property.

Located along Sultan Gate off Beach Road, the property sits on a land area of about 7,401 sq ft and is flanked by a public car park and a side lane. It is designated for conservation under the Kampong Glam conservation area.

The indicative price is a "very palatable investment quantum" to acquire a detached block of conservation shophouses with such a rich heritage, said Shaun Poh, executive director of Capital Markets at Cushman & Wakefield.

"Despite the current overall market slowdown as a result of the cooling measures, conservation of commercial shophouses remains an attractive investment option in view of the limited supply and have also proven to be a highly resilient property class," said Mr Poh. The expression of interest for the subject property will close at 3pm on April 23.

Three adjoining plots of Good Class Bungalow (GCB) land located along Holland Rise and East Sussex Lane were also put up for sale by Cushman & Wakefield. The three plots are vacant and sit on a regular-shaped land totalling 52,992 sq ft.

Plot 1 is 17,422 sq ft; Plot 2 is 18,176 sq ft and Plot 3 is 17,393 sq ft. The indicative price for the plots, which can be sold together or separately, is about $1,500 per square foot (psf).

They are accessible via two cul-de-sacs at Holland Rise and East Sussex Lane. The site is within walking distance of Holland Village and Holland Village MRT Station.

Since the start of the year, sales activities in the GCB market have recorded transactions ranging from $1,401 psf over a land area of 20,344 sq ft for a GCB at Old Holland Road and $1,976 psf over a land area of 15,177 sq ft at Cluny Hill, said Mr Poh.

"Opportunities to acquire large-sized adjoining GCB land plots such as this are very rare in land-scarce Singapore. GCBs have proven to be a highly resilient property class over time and even the current overall market slowdown as a result of the cooling measures have at best only moderated price growth in the GCB market," he added.

The expression of interest for the property will close at 3pm on April 24.