Balmoral, Tagore sites for sale

SAVILLS Singapore has launched for sale two residential properties - the freehold No 3 Balmoral Road with an indicative price of $65 million; and an 86,402 square foot plot at No 162 Tagore Avenue, within the Teachers Housing Estate, with an indicative price of $15 million. The latter is being sold on a 99-year leasehold tenure by the Singapore Teachers' Union, which holds the freehold interest in the property.

No 3 Balmoral Road currently comprises a development of 11 apartments, all leased out, but Savills is marketing the property for its redevelopment potential. The property is owned by an investment company and has a land area of 23,821 sq ft, a permissible plot ratio (ratio of maximum gross floor area to land area) of 1.6 and a height restriction of 12 storeys.

The site has been granted written permission by the Urban Redevelopment Authority for the development of 30 residential units. Savills said that such a development would have an estimated total potential saleable area of about 45,000 sq ft. The figure is understood to include bay windows and planter boxes. Development charge has been fully paid, up to a gross floor area (GFA) of about 41,918 sq ft, which includes 10 per cent additional GFA allowed for balconies.

The $65 million price works out to $1,705 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr) based on the 1.6 plot ratio. However, inclusive of the balcony allowance, the land price translates to a lower $1,551 psf ppr. Savills said that the $65 million works out to about $1,450 psf on the 45,000 sq ft potential saleable area.

Market watchers note that Keppel Land's 18-storey Madison Residences on the former Naga Court site along Bukit Timah Road, which starts selling today, is expected to be priced at about $1,700 psf on average.

The Tagore Avenue site, although currently zoned as 'civil & community institution', has approval for a three-storey mixed landed development, allowing a potential development of either 33 landed homes or 40 cluster houses. The tender for this site closes on Sept 1 while the expression of interest for the Balmoral property closes on Sept 3.

Source: Business Times, 6 Aug 2009