Keen interest in high-end properties

[mr funny]

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stori...045546/1/.html

Keppel sells 98% of 700 launched units at Reflections at Keppel Bay devt

By Georgina Joseph | Posted: 24 March 2010 1615 hrs


SINGAPORE: Demand for a new waterfront development, Reflections at Keppel Bay, has been positive, with 98 per cent of the 700 launched units sold as at the end of last month.

This was disclosed as the developer Keppel Land topped out the first tower today.

It's the first of the six glass towers to be completed in the waterfront residence development.

Keppel Land chairman Choo Chiau Beng, who is also CEO of the parent Keppel Group, said positive economic sentiments, an improved job market and the buzz generated by the two integrated resorts, contributed to the return of buying interest in the residential market.

Keppel Land also disclosed that it launched another 30 units at the development for sale over the last weekend due to strong buyer interest.

Reflections at Keppel Bay has been billed as being ecologically responsible, achieving the Green Mark Gold Award by the Building and Construction Authority in 2008.

Reflections at Keppel Bay is master architect Daniel Libeskind's first residential showcase in Asia. - CNA/vm

[mr funny]

http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sub/...78370,00.html?

Published March 25, 2010

Reflections: All but one unit sold at latest launch

By FELDA CHAY


WATERFRONT apartments at Reflections at Keppel Bay are riding high on the property wave, with 710 of the 740 units launched at the 99-year leasehold project already sold.

At the latest launch at the weekend, 29 of 30 units released in tower block 2B - touted as the block with the best view - were bought. The average selling price of these units - two to four-bedroom apartments, one penthouse and a 13,300 sq ft super penthouse - was $2,200 per sq ft, with the highest price hitting $2,600 psf. Market sources say the lowest price was about $1700-1750 psf.

Keppel Corp owns 70 per cent of the development, while its property arm Keppel Land owns the other 30 per cent.

At the topping out ceremony for the first tower yesterday, KepLand's Singapore residential chief executive Augustine Tan said Keppel is looking to release another 20 more units in tower 2B, and may launch between 100-200 apartments for the entire year, depending on demand.

Sale of the remaining units will be paced, he said. 'We are not really rushing to sell them. We have another two years of construction to go.'

Reflections at Keppel Bay will be completed by the first half of 2012. It comprises six towers and 11 villa apartment blocks, featuring a total of 1,129 waterfront apartments along a 750-metre shore line.

Mr Tan said three other plots of land at Keppel Bay are in the design development stage. It will take at least a year or two before development plans for them can be firmed up, he said.

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http://www.straitstimes.com/Money/St...ry_506286.html

Mar 25, 2010

Keen interest in high-end properties

Prices tipped to rise though they are still below 2007 boom levels

By Esther Teo


POSH property seems to be back in vogue, with one recent launch snapped up and new high-end developments slated for previews in the coming days.

Home-hunters showed keen interest in Keppel Land's Reflections at Keppel Bay over the weekend, and projects in Sentosa, Nathan Road and Shenton Way are also apparently generating interest.

But while prices are robust and tipped to move up, they are still below the boom-time levels with some experts suggesting that developers are keen to cash in on the buoyant market while they can.

Reflections at Keppel Bay, a development of 1,129 apartments on the southern coast, saw a strong weekend response with 29 of the 30 units launched sold. Prices averaged $2,200 per sq ft (psf) although they hit as high as $2,600 psf.

That priced two-bedders at about $2 million, a three-bedroom unit at $2.5 million and a four-bedroom apartment at $6 million. This was the first time two-, three- and four-bedroom units were being sold from the centre tower, known for having the best waterfront views.

The 99-year leasehold development has six glass towers of 24 and 41 storeys and 11 shorter blocks of villa apartments.

Keppel Land chairman Choo Chiau Beng said yesterday that positive economic sentiments, the improved job market and the buzz sparked by the integrated resorts have helped re-ignite the property market.

Since Reflections' launch in 2007, almost 98 per cent of its 700 released units had been sold as of last month. It is expected to be completed in 2012.

Keppel Land's chief executive of its Singapore residential unit, Mr Augustine Tan, said the weekend response had been very good and that 20 more units are being slated for release.

He expects to launch a total of 100 to 200 units this year. About 70 per cent of buyers were Singapore citizens while the rest were permanent residents and foreigners, he added.

Although the luxury segment has not moved as much as the mass market, Mr Tan expects demand to pick up this year with prices increasing by about 5 per cent to 10 per cent.

City Developments is having a media preview of the 228-unit Residences at W in Sentosa Cove today. Industry sources say that it could be priced for about $2,500 psf to $3,000 psf. Developer TID will release the 65-unit freehold development Nathan Suites on Nathan Road, in the prime District 10, at the end of the month at an average price of $2,100 psf.

The 39-storey 76 Shenton downtown condo developed by Hong Leong Holdings also previews today. Prices range from just below $1,700 psf to $2,500 psf.

However, Chesterton Suntec International's research and consultancy director Colin Tan said the luxury end is still struggling to reach its peak, with prices about 20 per cent lower than in 2007.

'(Developers) might have thought the optimism in the mass market would spread to the luxury end, but that has not been the case. They know that good times won't last forever so they might just be trying to get what they can now,' he said. He also noted that the slew of luxury projects being launched might not necessarily mean sustainable recovery.

Rather, it could be a sign of developers getting nervous since the market share for high-end residences is limited. They might just be jostling to get their slice of the pie, he added.

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