Author: PropInvestSG

Rivercove Residences balloting day In this blog series, we invite real estate industry professionals to share their personal experiences. Names and identifying details have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals. In December 2017, I received an enquiry from a client by the name of Claire. She and her husband had just met their 5 year minimum occupancy (HDB) at their HDB in Fernvale and wanted to upgrade from their HDB to a condo. Eventually after much deliberation, they decided to try for Rivercove Residences. In the context of Singapore public housing, an executive condominium caters to a...

Sumang Link EC is near the Punggol Waterway Sumang Link EC Land Parcel details The top bid of S$509.37 million for the Sumang Link EC site was won by City Development (CDL) and TID Residential. This works out to a record S$583 per square foot per plot ratio, which translates to a selling price of above S$1,000 per square foot. Launching in 2019, it is likely to be the only executive condominium (EC) to be launching in 2019. We explain the 5 reasons why it will be another sell-out like Rivercove Residences, which was fully sold out in a...

Can divorcess get an EC/BTO? In this blog series, we invite real estate industry professionals to share their personal experiences. Names and identifying details have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals. As a real estate agent, I face different client scenarios daily. I had a client by the name of Ms C, who approached me in January 2017. She was initially rather secretive at first but after much follow up, she revealed that she is going through a divorce and has intention to sell her share of her current HDB flat to her ex-spouse. At that point...

Aug private home sales showed selective buying post cooling measures, in our view. We think that fast asset turn and good sell-through rates are key to margin preservation. Stay sector Neutral. Our sector top picks are City Dev, UOL and HoBee Land. Aug monthly private home sales came in at 639 units (616 units excluding executive condominiums), down 60% yoy and 64% mom, reflecting a much quieter residential market post cooling measures. New launches such as The Tre Ver garnered 22% sales (out of a total of 729 units) within the first month of launch at an average of...

“If I could put all my money into Myanmar, I would,” veteran U.S. investor Jim Rogers declared in 2012. Rogers, who co-founded the Quantum Fund with hedge fund billionaire George Soros, has lived in Asia for many years and knows a bargain when he sees one. When Myanmar opened up to the world after decades of military rule, hopes were high that democracy would be restored and the economy invigorated. From tourism to telecoms, business opportunities abound as industries that had long languished in the absence of private competition were roused out of their slumber. Local consumption soared amid...

According to SRX’s price index, HDB resale prices rose 0.1% on month in August compared to July 2018. The increase marks a reversal of 2 months of decline (-0.2% in May to June and -0.3% in June to July). Nevertheless, resale prices are down 1.6% in Aug 2018 compared to the same period last year (2017 Aug index: 134, 2018 Aug index: 131.8), on the back of cooling measures imposed on the private property market which has hit sentiment in the entire housing market. On a flash basis, HDB resale volume has also dropped in Aug 2018 compared to...

The second project to be launched after 5-Jul-18’s cooling measures, The Tre Ver, sold 140-150 units during its first weekend of launch, with average pricing of S$1,500-1,600 psf in line with our estimates and should yield a solid PBT margin of 17-22% for UOL. However, we are slightly disappointed at the take-up, given over 300 cheques collected beforehand and its competitive pricing vs. recently launched Park Colonial. We believe prospective buyers are maintaining their wait-and-see approach, with an eye on two upcoming nearby launches (Jadescape and Jui Residences) which have a lower land cost and imply an even lower...