There has been a series of transactions for apartments in the prime Draycott Drive-Draycott Park district from Oct 23 to 30. Five apartments in the exclusive neighbourhood located in the vicinity of the American and Tanglin Clubs were sold for prices ranging from $1,762 to $2,303 psf.
The most prestigious development in the Draycott area is the 136-unit Draycott Eight, developed by Wing Tai Holdings and completed in 2006. At end-October, a two-bedroom apartment on the fourth floor of one of the three 24-storey towers was sold for $2.7 million, or $2,301 psf. The seller had purchased the 1,173 sq ft unit in April 2007 for $2.61 million, or $2,225 psf.
The other apartment at Draycott Eight that was sold was on the 13th floor of the same block. It changed hands for $2.75 million, or $1,762 psf. The seller had bought the 1,561 sq ft two-bedroom apartment in May 2007 for $3.5 million, or $2,242 psf.
The $2,301 psf price is the highest transacted at Draycott Eight year-to-date, but it has yet to reach the dizzy heights of $2,445 to $2,752 psf seen at the peak of the property boom in 4Q2007.
Two of the three towers contain four bedroom apartments and penthouses,while the third is made up of two-bedroom apartments and two-bedroom lofts. Patrick Lai, Savills’ associate director of corporate leasing, says owners of apartments at Draycott Eight tend to be investors who lease out the apartments to expatriates. “Usually, these are rented to senior executives of MNCs, who mostly have one or two children,” says Lai. The location, the layout of the apartments, the quality of the fittings, and the facilities make Draycott Eight attractive to these expatriate families, he adds.
As such, four-bedroom apartments at Draycott Eight command the same premium rental rates as those at Ardmore Park, which are in the $18,000 a month range currently, says Lai. Meanwhile, the two-bedroom apartments at Draycott Eight can fetch rentals starting from $10,000 a month.
Boutique developer BS Capital’s 58-unit The Arc at Draycott was completed just last year. It is made up of mainly two- and three-bedroom apartments and is located right where Draycott Drive meets Ardmore Park. Most recently, an apartment on the 16th floor of The Arc at Draycott was sold for $2.92 million, or $2,303 psf. The 1,270 sq ft three-bedroom apartment was first purchased in March 2006 for $2.3 million, or $1,811 psf, hence representing a 27% gain for the seller.
Right next door to The Arc at Draycott is the site of The Ardmore, purchased by luxury boutique developer SC Global Developments in an en-bloc sale in the middle of 2007 for $262 million, which works out to $2,338 psf per plot ratio. The project is said to be in the design and planning stage.
Just opposite The Arc at Draycott is the 35-unit freehold condominium J C Draycott, one of the older developments in the area. It was completed in 1998 by Concorde Realty. An 11th-floor apartment at J C Draycott recently changed hands for $1.55 million, or $1,829 psf. This is the third time the 850 sq ft apartment has changed hands in the resale market in the past decade. The previous owner had purchased the unit for $1.08 million, or $1,270 psf in October 2006. The owner before him had bought the property in 2003 for just $770,000, or $906 psf, hence reaping a 40% capital gain. He had purchased it from the original owner, who had bought it from the developer at the project’s launch in July 1999 for $1.02 million, or $1,199 psf.
In the immediate neighbourhood of Draycott Drive is Ardmore Park, where Wheelock Properties’ Ardmore Park condo and the upcoming Ardmore II are located. Two units recently changed hands at Ardmore II for $2,634 and $2,650 psf last month. On the other side of Draycott Drive, towards Claymore Road, there is The Claymore and Hong Leong Holdings’ Tate Residences, which is expected to be completed in the coming months. The most recent transaction at Tate Residences was in September, when a unit changed hands in a sub-sale for $2,500 psf.
Also in September, a unit at The Claymore, which was completed in 1985, changed hands for $2,327 psf. Meanwhile, Ardmore Park condo’s two most recent transactions were at $3,051 and $3,189 psf. It looks like the older luxury condos featuring large unit sizes are still able to command a premium.
Source: The Edge, 23 Nov 2009
No comments:
Post a Comment