Archive for category: Executive Condo

The Singapore Pavilion will be open to the public at Expo 2020 Dubai from 1 October 2021. It features a stunning light display that is inspired by nature and thought-provoking conversations about sustainable and liveable cities. There are also films that show Singapore through its people and heritage.

Visitors will be taken on an immersive journey through the lushly-landscaped spaces, which embody Singapore’s vision to become a city in Nature. They will experience a variety of multimedia exhibits as well as engaging programmes that everyone can enjoy.

Canninghill Piers showroom is set to own the hotel featuring between 460 and 470 rooms on a forward purchase agreement with CDL.

Larry Ng, the Commissioner-General of Singapore Pavilion, says, “The realization of the Singapore Pavilion was important for Singapore as it provides us the platform to connect and engage with people from all over the globe. We hope visitors will experience the Pavilion’s welcoming spaces, digital exhibits, and programs. They will be able to gain new perspectives about how nature and technology can integrate into urban spaces. This will allow them to see the potential of cities that can be made sustainable, liveable, and resilient.

Ng elaborated further by saying that Singapore, as a global center, will continue to be connected to the rest of the world. The Pavilion demonstrates our willingness to participate in and lead conversations as well as facilitate the exchange knowledge and ideas among our people, innovators, and businesses. We are looking forward to welcoming the whole world to our Pavilion and sparking ideas through closer collaborations between our countries to address the global challenges we face today.

An exploration of Singapore’s sustainability journey

Echoing the theme “Nature.” Nurture. Future.” The Singapore Pavilion is an architectural marvel – a green and living ecosystem that supports the nation’s quest for growth, sustainability, and resilience, while addressing some of the most challenging urban realities of today.

This guiding philosophy of sustainable development is reflected in multimedia displays, as well as the green architecture at the Pavilion. Visitors will experience an immersive journey at the City Cone with Brian Gothong Tan, a leading Singaporean filmmaker. The panoramic film is projected onto the City Cone’s interior wall. It layers animated matte paintings, drone footage, and hundreds of other videos to show the environmental problems that global urbanization has created and the innovative urban solutions Singapore has found to make the city co-exist with nature.

Visitors will be amazed at the magic of the Singapore Pavilion’s light show as night falls. The Biomorphosis nightly light show was designed by Light Collab in Singapore. It is a display of luminosity and shadows that highlights Singapore’s green and sustainable status. The Pavilion’s green landscape is lit by layers of lights that pulsate to Don Richmond’s soundscape. This creates a feeling of a magical forest, inviting visitors to explore the pavilion.

The six-month-long duration of the daily program highlights includes Stories from Singapore at Sky Market – curated screenings award-winning documentaries, short films, and documentaries that give visitors a glimpse into Singapore’s history, heritage, and culture.

A delightful StoryWalk is a tour that allows visitors to see the inside of the Singapore Pavilion and its design. Storytelling guides are available four times a day on weekday afternoons. They will delight visitors with stories, facts, and figures about Singapore, the Pavilion, and Singaporeans.

The Singapore Film Nightseries will also feature Singapore’s cinematic culture. This monthly showcase of locally acclaimed films will be taking center stage. Visitors will be able to anticipate films like the Ilo Ilo family drama, the first Singaporean feature movie to win an Oscar at the Cannes Film Festival. The documentary The Songs We Sang captures the unique Singaporean genre of Xinyaomusic. There’s also the 7 Letters which is an emotive collection of seven distinguished Singaporean filmmakers’ cinematic “love letters” to Singapore.

Visitor and business delegates are invited to have in-depth discussions about how sustainability and innovation can open up new opportunities at the Singapore Business Series. This series allows enterprises to share their expertise and innovations with a global audience. The sessions will be held in a hybrid webinar format that will allow virtual participants to also participate.

Special Events offer unique experiences during the six-month duration

Singapore’s commitment towards knowledge sharing and international collaboration goes beyond the Pavilion showcase. It also includes participation in international dialogues.

On 4 November 2021, Singapore will co-host a World Majlis panel discussion. The topic is Natural Cities – Preserving a bit of nature in urban spaces. A panel of international experts will discuss how Singapore’s success in incorporating nature into urban spaces and can be replicated elsewhere in the world.

The Singapore Day will follow on 22 January 2022 and World Water Day on March 2022.

The Singapore Pavilion, which is being led by the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Singapore in partnership with other agencies and industry partners will be open to the public from 1 October 2021. Virtually, the Pavilion experience will be available to Singaporeans and international visitors. It will allow people who cannot travel to take part in select festivities. Virtualexpo.world will have more information available from October 1st.

Other owners of older strata-titled mixed-use buildings can look forward to a similar exit with the recent launch of International Plaza at $2.7Billion.

Upon completion of Canninghill Piers CDL & Capitaland will own the commercial and residential components while 192 units of serviced residence with a hotel license will be under Ascott Reit.

Peace Centre/Peace Mansion is making a sixth attempt to sell a collective. It was listed for $650 million in the early part of this month. JLL is the exclusive marketing agent for this mixed-use development. After adjusting for the lease premium, the 99-year leasehold site’s land rate is $1,443 per plot ratio (psf.ppr).

Pick up in en bloc momentum

After Maxwell House sold in May for $276.8million, the collective sale momentum picked-up. In April, the 99-year leasehold development was put up for sale with a reserve of $268 million. Cushman & Wakefield acted as the marketing agent.

SingHaiyi Group and Chip Eng Seng Corp teamed up to bid for the en bloc acquisition. This is the first time that these companies have worked together on a project.

Verdun House is located in Little India. It was opened for collective sale on August 26. Based on the potential gross floor space of 30,727 square feet, the guide price for this freehold property is $55 million. This is $1,790 per plot. The freehold development consists of a four-storey commercial block and 16 strata-titled units. Delasa acts as the marketing agent for Verdun House’s collective sale.

Karamjit Singh (CEO of Delasa) stated that there are three reasons why the commercial property market is experiencing positive sentiment.

Singh says that Singh firstly, “there has been an enormous push by the URA for parts of the CBD to be revitalized and commercial developments in this area have been given incentives. As long as a significant part of the new development includes residential or hospitality components”, Singh.

He also said that the shortage of residential land in Singapore has prompted some developers to seek out other land sources to replenish their land bank.
Third, Singapore’s stability and attractiveness to investors has attracted many family offices and investment firms to set up here. Singh says that this capital inflow will be reflected in the commercial sector. He also notes that asset values have increased in Singapore over the past few decades.

Valuation and apportionment problems

“Commercial En bloc” and mixed-use En bloc are often faced with unique challenges. It is important to find an equitable way of sharing the proceeds between the owners. Singh says that mixed-use and retail can make the problem more severe.

He explains that these retail businesses are often the most affected by disruptions, as it affects both their business and customers’ goodwill.
Jeremy Lake (Managing Director of Investment Sales and Capital Markets, Savills Singapore) agrees with these sentiments.

“We can’t usually rely on the share value and the strata area, so we would need to consider a valuation-based system. Lake says that this requires a valuer who will perform a valuation of all units.

He says that although the process is generally successful, some owners might not be happy with the valuation. Rarely, owners might not accept the valuation report. This can make it very difficult to apportion the property.

Declining leases, ageing properties

Because they are older, strata commercial development owners are more likely to support a collective sale. Lake says this is particularly true for 99-year leasehold strata buildings.

“A lot of mixed-use strata-titled projects with 99-year leases, such as International Plaza or Maxwell House, have short leases. These owners feel that collective selling is the best way to maximize the property’s value, rather than selling individually,” he said.

Lake also notes that strata-titled retail properties should not ignore the negative effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. He notes that owners of strata-titled malls have often seen their vacancy rates rise and their rental rates fall. They are more motivated to look into a collective sale.

Sim Lim Tower’s owners are currently launching a collective sale tender for their freehold development. This is the first time that the owners of the mixed use commercial development, which includes shops and offices, have attempted a collective sale.

Bafna Rajesh (CSC chairman at Sim Lim Tower), says that consumers don’t shop wholesale electronics parts or gadgets in the shops. Rajesh says that although the market for wholesale electronic parts was strong when the Sim Lim Tower shops opened in 1980, it has changed dramatically over the years.
Sim Lim Tower’s strata owners are using their units to run their businesses, while others are renting them out.

Rajesh believes that if the collective sale succeeds, some owners will use the proceeds to fund their retirement while others will reinvest the funds in other areas.
He also said that the CSC is currently appointing marketing agents and has already selected about five consultants. The valuation and apportionment stages will follow, which could take between four and six months. He says that the CSC hopes to be able to get the required 80% consent by March 2023 based on the valuations and apportionment in order to launch the collective sales tender.

More En-Bolt launches and sales

According to Savills Lake, the market for collective sales will continue to be active in the coming months. He says that there are potential launches of collective sales and that many CSCs are in different stages.

As long as developers are still hungry for land, the pace of site sales is likely to rise significantly over the next three to six months. This momentum could be stifled if the owners’ expectations of what they can get for their land are too high.

Lake says that these windows of collective sales activity are often very brief. Therefore, it is crucial that owners get on the wave quickly, be ready quickly, and enter the market in order to not miss the boat.

Read recommended article: 3 Shophouses with a 999-year lease for sale at Tan Quee Lan Street, Haji Lane and Arab Street

A conservation shophouse, which has lived many lives, is located at the corner Everton Road. It was built in the 1940s post-World War II era as a magnificent house for the Liews, a wealthy Cantonese family. In the middle of 1950s, a business partnership purchased the property which had two floors and an attic. The property was originally used to store premium Chinese foodtuffs. It was later used as a warehouse for premium Chinese foodstuffs. However, over the next 30 years it became the KwangChow Sausage Factory. This pioneering factory in Chinese sausage production in Singapore.

This factory was founded in 1959 and closed in the late 1980s. URA designated the shophouses on Everton Road, Blair Road, and Spottiswoode Park Road as conservation areas in October 1991. This largely residential area became the Blair Plain conservation zone.

The corner shophouse at 9 Everton Road, which was preserved, was leased to a Chinese family that opened their home to Chinese students for much of the 1990s. It was later leased to a photographer’s wife and a photographer, who used it as a home and studio for photography.

Expatriate Home

A British lawyer and his partner stumbled upon the shophouse when it was on the market for rent in 2014. They had lived in a condo and fell in love with the idea of living in a terraced conservation house. They accepted the offer immediately. They were willing to spend substantial renovations to transform the interiors into a modern residence where they could live and work, as well as entertain their friends. It is still their home seven years later. (See: Get detailed information about any Singapore condo with our condo directory.
The property has been in the Loh family’s possession for over 60 years, except for the first years when it belonged to the Liew families. The second generation of family now own it. “As much we are reluctant to part it with it, it’s time for us to sell it to effect a division of wealth among family members,” said the patriarch’s son, who is an entrepreneur but only wants to be called Mr Loh.

He believes that Everton Road’s freehold property can be restored to its former glory. He asked a contractor for an estimate of the cost to restore the original architectural features. The cost is approximately $160,000. To help potential buyers visualize what the property might look like after it is fully restored, he also hired an artist to render the facade of his shophouse using URA guidelines and architectural details.

URA claims that some shophouses on Everton Road were built in Art Deco or Modern styles. You can see the Chinese influence in the courtyard plan, the gables at the ends a pitched roof, and the batwing-shaped vents that rise above the first-storey windows. Also, the friezes made of coloured ceramics with dragon, phoenix, and flower motifs. These ornately decorated homes were built for wealthy Chinese merchant families in the early 20th-century. They served as a refuge from the “overcrowded, unsanitary, and disreputable urban areas east Cantonment Road”, URA’s narrative on the history of Blair Plain states. These Peranakan Straits Chinese families made Blair Road, Everton Road and Spottiswoode Park Road their preferred neighborhood.

The shophouse at 9 Everton Road is unique because of its position at a corner. The second-floor has a veranda that can be converted into an outdoor area. It is situated on a 2,023 square foot freehold property with a built-up area totaling 4,000 sq.ft over three levels. It is larger than the intermediate units nearby.

Loh says that although it is at a busy intersection, it doesn’t have all the negative attributes of properties at busy roads junctions. It is situated on an elevated ground that is approximately 3-4 feet (0.9-1.2m above street level) and is located on a quiet street.

High ceilings and many windows and doors make the shophouse a great place to enjoy natural light and cross-ventilation. Loh says that the shophouse is cooler and dryer than the nearby shops because of its corner location. Loh explains that Loh’s father, along with his business partners, thought it was a great warehouse for more expensive Chinese foodstuffs such as oysters, dried sea cucumber, and hasma.

Loh’s father, and his business partners, were the largest importers of Chinese food and products. They also supplied goods to many shops on the island. These Chinese goods were also exported to Malaysia and Indonesia, which had little trade with China at the time.

The headquarters of the import-export wholesale business was located in a five-storey shophouse at Hong Kong Street. The business grew rapidly and needed larger premises to store their goods. The shophouse in Everton Park was therefore considered suitable for the purpose. Loh’s father, Loh, consulted Master Leong Tian Zhi, a respected fengshui master, to confirm their views. Translated as “ruler of measuring the sky”, Master Leong Tian Zhi was then consulted. Loh relates that Master Leong Tian Zhi, a fengshui master, told him straight away that the house’s fengshui was “excellent” — the best in the class.

The Neighborhood

Loh put the property on the market last September through expressions of interest (EOI), conducted by Cushman & Wakefield. Based on the built-up area, the guide price was $7.5million or $1,875 per square foot.

Loh says that the timing of the pandemic meant that the family had to pull the property off the market.

The latest transaction in the neighborhood was the sale of the intermediate shophouse at 8 Everton Road, which sold for $3.8million last August. The shophouse is situated on 1,668 square feet of freehold land. Its gross floor area is 3,100 square feet.

Two other shophouses located along Neil Road were sold in November or December. The shophouse at the 151 Neil Road was valued at $7.4million and the one at the 149 Neil Road went for $7.3 million. Ong & Ong, an architectural firm, renovated the former in 2013. It has a built up area of 5,597 square feet. Based on the built-up area, the price is $1,250 per square foot. The freehold shophouses can only be used for residential purposes and are therefore available to Singaporeans.

CBRE conducted an EOI on May 6 to sell another pair of adjacent shophouses at 73 Neil Road and 75 Neil Road, just one week before Singapore entered Phase Two (Heightened alert). They are situated on an area of 4,439 square feet and a gross floor area 11128 square feet. The shophouses have an 825-square-foot front courtyard. They are zoned for commercial purposes so foreigners can purchase them. Shophouses are currently leased to office tenants. They are listed at $30 million or $2,510 per square foot based on their total floor area. On June 10, the EOI exercise was closed.

The country has now emerged from Phase Two (Heightened Alert), and the Loh family is considering selling the Everton Road property. Loh believes that the property could be given a fresh lease of life by its next owner. He says that the property is ideal for a single family home or co-living space, with multiple bedrooms and shared facilities.

Read related article: 3-storey Freehold Commercial Property for sale at $38 mil along Upper Changi Road North

Frasers Property Retail, the retail stage handling the regional retail sources of Frasers Property Singapore, has fostered its own digital platforms to encourage its tenants involving the tightened safe management steps.

With the cessation of dine-in in F&B sockets from May 16 to June 13, Frasers Property Retail has expanded free delivery alternatives to customers and tenants for all orders placed via its food ordering electronic program, Frasers Makan Master, before June 30.

The launching of this Frasers Expertise (FRx) program in January 2021 is timely as occupancy limitations at shopping malls have been decreased throughout the Stage 2 (Heightened Alert). The program offers store-to-door support for shoppers and tenants, and shoppers may appreciate free delivery for all purchases made via the e-store before June 30.

All vehicles entering towns handled by Frasers Property may even delight in a 30-minute grace period. This supports delivery drivers and riders, in addition to shoppers seeing pick up grocery store or food store orders.

Read recommended article: The uncertainties as a result of the pandemic-led recession had developers looking and waiting at the sidelines

One-North Eden, found in the one-north tech enclave of Fusionopolis, Biopolis and Mediapolis, is place to trailer from April 10.

The 99-year leasehold development will include a total of 165 residential units around two mechanics, along with six restaurant components and a retail area on the initial degree. Units vary from 517 sq feet to get a one-bedroom with research, to 1,410 sq feet for the biggest four-bedroom unit. The development is anticipated to be finished until 2024 ends.

M $995,000 to get a one-bedroom unit using $1.288 million to get a pre-tax, $1.768 million to get a three-bedroom, and $2.288 million to get a four-bedroom.

One-North Eden is located between One-North Gateway and Slim Barracks Rise, also provides its residents with easy accessibility and connectivity to comforts in The Star Vista, Rochester Mall, along with the approaching One Holland Village.

It’s located inside a five-minute stroll into Buona Vista MRT Interchange Station on the East-West and Circle Lines and one-north MRT Station on the Circle Line. The CBD is 15 minutes away through the Ayer Rajah Expressway.

TID and HLHL are associates of Hong Leong Group Singapore.

“There is now a strong demand for residential units at the one-north region, so the launching of the project comes at an opportune moment. It’s been 14 years as a residential job was constructed here and personal residential choices are restricted,” says Yoichi Kaga, managing director of TID.

Fittings, comforts and furnishings

Home buyers in One-North Eden is going to have the ability to select from a palette of cool or warm color tones to the fittings within their various units. Each flat will also be supplied with appliances from Bosch and sanitary products from Zucchetti and Geberit.

Amenities in the evolution comprise a 50m lap pool, child’s pool, cantilever health club, clubhouse, visual skies garden, and various pavilions. There’ll also be a function space, which citizens may utilize as a meeting area or work area.

Other than this, residents may use a facial recognition system installed beyond the lobby, cellar, along with the first and second storeys. Units are also outfitted with an electronic lockset.

All homes will even arrive with a Daikin Smart Hub that incorporates smart devices on a single single-control platform like the remote controlling of air conditioning in the living and master bedroom. The four-bedroom units come paired with a wise mirror with built-in mic and speaker.