http://www.straitstimes.com/archive/...e-new-20140405

Latest property market offerings include the old and the new

Published on Apr 5, 2014

By Tee Zhuo


A RANGE of properties has hit the market this month, from heritage shophouses to sleek new strata shops.

Buyers with a taste for old- world elegance may be attracted to the adjoining two-storey conservation shophouses near the junction of East Coast and Joo Chiat roads. They were built in 1939 and have a combined gross floor area of 5,705 sq ft and a total land area of 3,791 sq ft.

The vacant shophouses, which are zoned commercial, are being sold together with an indicative price of $10 million.

A 1,442 sq ft shophouse in nearby East Coast Road sold for $5.7 million in January last year.

Ms Mary Sai, executive director of investment and capital markets at marketing agent Knight Frank Singapore, said the area is "steeped in heritage and old-world charm" and is close to eateries and retail outlets.

Buyers cannot alter the facades due to their conservation status, although internal improvements and rear extensions up to a plot ratio of three are possible.

The sale is via expression of interest, closing at 3pm on April 24.

Another sale is under way a five-minute drive from Joo Chiat Road.

Five strata shops that cover the entire 12,110 sq ft ground floor of the four-storey Springvale condominium in East Coast Road are up for bulk purchase for about $60 million.

The shops, priced between $5,000 and $5,500 per sq ft, are all leased, mostly to food and beverage (F&B) tenants, including restaurant Thai Express and The Coffee Club cafe.

The sale, also via expression of interest, closes at 3pm on April 30.

Ms Sai said that "freehold retail space with large floor plate is rarely available for sale".

"The property presents a good investment opportunity for both investors and F&B operators who want a presence in the East Coast Road area," she said.

Sales of strata shops in nearby new shopping malls such as The Flow and East Village have been between $4,500 and $6,000 per sq ft.

A three-storey freehold corner terraced unit is up for a mortgagee sale at 34 Eng Kong Drive, which can be reached through Jalan Jurong Kechil off Upper Bukit Timah Road.

The 2,830 sq ft unit has five bedrooms, three bathrooms, a kitchen and a storeroom. The indicative price is $3.6 million.

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