URA urges showflat viewings by appointments amid Covid-19

Developers must adopt safe-distancing measures at their sales galleries and groups inside should not exceed 10 persons

Sat, Mar 28, 2020

KALPANA RASHIWALA


CHIP Eng Seng's Kopar At Newton condo could serve to be a test case of how developers can launch projects at showflats in the weeks ahead, amid tighter social-distancing measures announced by the Ministry of Health on Tuesday to minimise the further spread of Covid-19.

The sales gallery of the 99-year leasehold project off Newton Circus is the first to open in compliance with requirements stipulated by the Urban Redevelopment Authority's Controller of Housing (COH).

In an advisory issued on Wednesday to licensed housing developers, COH states, among other things, that developers are strongly encouraged to offer viewing at sales galleries by appointment where possible to minimise queues.

The COH has also informed developers to ensure that they put in place safe-distancing measures at their sales galleries which are in line with MOH's March 24 advisory. These include ensuring that there is not more than one person per 16 square metres of usable space in the sales gallery.

So a sales gallery with 1,600 sq m usable space must not have more than 100 persons within the gallery at any one time (including the developers' staff, cleaners, agents, prospective buyers/visitors).

Developers also have to ensure that groups within the sales gallery do not exceed 10 persons (including the sales agent).

Furthermore, developers are required to implement space markings of one metre for queues and relevant areas in the sales gallery such as the place where the model for the project is displayed, ensuring that groups disperse quickly.

They also have to abide by the relevant health advisories, for instance on temperature taking, as updated by MOH.

Developers with show galleries to be opened to public viewing are required to contact the COH's office to confirm the measures that will be put in place before they open the show gallery for public viewing. The COH's staff may visit the showflat to check that these arrangements are in compliance with the requirements.

Developers also have to comply with the advisory for show galleries of earlier-launched projects.

If there is any non compliance with MOH's advisory, a licensed developer may be directed to close the show gallery until the required measures are put in place.

URA's spokesman said: "As the situation is evolving rapidly, developers should keep abreast of the latest developments and take immediate steps to comply with any new requirements."

On Wednesday, Chip Eng Seng opened its Kopar At Newton sales gallery, on a site adjacent to where the actual development will come up.

Entry is strictly via appointments. There are seven slots each day of one-and-a-half hours each. For each slot, entry is limited to no more than 10 groups (with each group comprising a maximum of five persons including the property agent). This translates to a maximum of 50 visitors at any time - within the limit of 80 people based on the show gallery's usable space.

"So far response has been very positive, with all slots fully taken up from Wednesday to Sunday this week.

"It might take us about two weeks to finish our preview before we begin sales," says Michael Ng, executive director of CEL Development.

The fully-owned subsidiary of mainboard-listed Chip Eng Seng Corporation is expected to price the 378-unit project at about S$2,350 per square foot on average. "Prior to the Covid-19 outbreak, we were looking at an average price of S$2,500 psf," said Mr Ng.

Kopar At Newton will have two towers of 23 storeys each. Units will range from one-bedroom to five-bedroom apartments; there will also be penthouses.

Absolute prices start from S$1.09 million for a one-bedder of 517 sq ft. Two bedders start from S$1.35 million for a 614 sq ft unit. There are eight penthouses, all on Level 23, and with prices ranging from S$3.5 million to S$8.2 million; their sizes are about 1,350 sq ft to 2,900 sq ft. Kopar At Newton's attractions include being located within one-km radius of Anglo-Chinese School (Junior and Primary) and St Joseph's Institution Junior. The project is being marketed by ERA, OrangeTee & Tie, PropNex and SRI.

Kheng Leong, will also begin previewing on Saturday its 59-unit freehold project 15 Holland Hill, in accordance with the URA advisory. Viewing is by appointment only. Only four groups (of not more than 10 people per group, including the agents) will be allowed to enter the show gallery every hour.

PropNex Realty CEO Ismail Gafoor said the advisory may not slow down property launches, but is likely to have an impact on sales volume at the launch weekend.

In the past, some developers have attracted a few thousand visitors to their showflats in a single weekend's preview, giving potential buyers an opportunity to make a decision, resulting in, say, more than 300 units being snapped up at the sales launch the following weekend.

But now, developers are giving the various property agencies a limited number of slots during which they may bring in small groups of visitors to the showflat. It would be tough to have 2,000-3,000 visitors pass through a showflat over a two-week preview period.

"As a result, it may be a challenge to achieve high sales volume - with 50, 60 or 70 per cent of, say, a 300-400 units project being moved in the initial launch weekend," said Mr Ismail.