Tenders closing for URA sale sites at Champions Way and Lentor Central

SINGAPORE, 12 September 2023

Tender closed today for two Government Land Sales (GLS) sites at Champions Way and Lentor Central.

^{Source: URA, JLL Research}

谢岫君, 私宅市场研究部主管 (新加坡) commented:

The Champions Way site garnered a healthy level of interest in a six-way tender and resulted in a top bid of $904 psf ppr from City Developments Limited. Although the top bid exceeds the next highest bid of $835 psf ppr by 8.3%, and the third highest offer by 22.9%, it is at the lower range of expectations. This signals developers’ cautious stance towards price offers despite their interest in attractive sites and the need to replenish their land banks.

The recent market cooling measures, which were aimed at curtailing investment and foreigner demand, did not temper developers’ interest in the subject site. The positioning of the future development as a suburban housing project is expected to draw local and resident owner-occupiers rather than investors and foreign buyers.

The site's palatable size also enhances its appeal and manageability for developers, particularly given the current cautious business environment.

Developers also identified an opportunity to tap on pent-up demand caused by the lack of new private residential property launches in the area. Notably, the subject site is the first private residential GLS site launched in Woodlands since the Woodlands Avenue 2/Rosewood Drive plot was sold for $151.5 million ($367 psf ppr) to the joint venture between Fragrance Group and Aspial Corporation in June 2011. It had been developed into the 689-unit Parc Rosewood.

The subject site is also conveniently located near Woodlands South MRT station on the Thomson-East Coast Line within the Woodlands Regional Centre that offers a wide range of amenities. It will also be supported by the nearby integrated healthcare complex comprising an acute care hospital, community hospital and nursing home due to open progressively over the next two years.

The future development on the site will benefit from strong demand from upgraders given the high concentration of HDB flats in Woodlands, as well as the nearby Sembawang and Admiralty housing estates. Located near the upcoming Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System, it can also tap into potential demand from Malaysian expatriates working in Singapore and those who frequently commute between Singapore and Malaysia.

At a bid price of $904 psf ppr, we estimate that the developer could look to launch the future development at $1,850 to $1,900 psf.

The bid price put in by the joint venture (JV) between Guocoland, Hong Leong Group and CSC Land Group topped the two bids received for the Lentor Central site. Its offer of $982 psf ppr surpasses the next highest bid of $927 psf ppr by 5.9%.

With this bid, GuocoLand and Hong Leong Group, who had also partnered earlier, and have stakes in three of the five Lentor sites previously tendered, will secure an even stronger foothold in the locale. This will enable them to better manage competition.

The top bid of $982 psf ppr for the subject site, the sixth GLS site tendered in Lentor since 2021, is also the lowest psf ppr land price recorded compared to the range of $985 to $1,204 psf ppr achieved by the previous five plots. The last site at Lentor Gardens was awarded to the JV between GuocoLand and Hong Leong Holdings at a marginally (0.3%) higher land price of $985 ppr in April 2023.

The lukewarm tender participation and conservative price bids reflect the cautious market sentiment and reduced risk appetite of developers amid a potential supply glut in the Lentor locale and heightened market risks.

In addition to the large pipeline supply of more than 3,000 private in the vicinity, several factors also subdued interest in the site. These include high development costs, modifications to the gross floor area definition, which reduces the amount of sellable space and potential profits for developers, as well as the recent market cooling measures. The dominance GuocoLand and Hong Leong Group in the area has also likely steered some developers away.

The selling price for the new project is anticipated to be in the range of $1,950 psf to $2,050 psf.