Unit at The Trumps sold for $952 psf

Recently, apartments at the 189-unit The Trumps have increasingly crossed the $800 psf level, even surpassing the 2007 peak of $896 psf. Last August, a high of $975 psf was achieved when a 1,270 sq ft unit on the 16th floor sold for $1.24 million.

Located a street away from the Kembangan MRT station, the five-year-old condominium is attractive to families with young children as it is a short drive to good schools like Victoria School and St Stephen’s Primary School as well as offices at Chai Chee Technopark. The condo is also within walking distance of the community centre and a short drive to eateries at Siglap and the East Coast Beach. Homeowners on the higher floors looking out from their full-length glass windows also enjoy a relatively unobstructed view as the neighbouring areas comprise mainly low-rise houses in the Changi, Telok Kurau and Frankel area.

The Trumps could be on the radar of homebuyers lately due to the launch of Kembangan Suites early last year. The two adjacent developments are separated by the Siglap park connector and a canal. Kembangan Suites is a five-storey development consisting of eight commercial units on the first floor and 60 residential units. The upcoming condo has been sold at an average of $910 psf since its launch last April, according to caveats lodged. The three latest transactions were priced between $1,065 and $1,102 psf.

Sales at The Trumps had been slow in 1H2009, hovering in the price range of $509 to $786 psf before picking up in 2H2009. From Jan 22 to 26, there were three transactions, priced between $885 and $952 psf, according to caveats lodged with URA Realis.

A 1,356 sq ft unit on the 11th floor went for $1.2 million, or $885 psf. That represents an attractive 60% gain for the seller, who purchased the unit for $750,000 in 2006. Another unit of the same size on the 13th floor went for $1.18 million, or $870 psf. This translates into a 36% gain for the original owner, who had purchased the unit for $870,000 in April 2009. Prior to that, the unit changed hands for $759,360, or $560 psf, in 2006.

Condos in the vicinity are also enjoying an uptrend in prices. For instance, units at Astoria Park, which is located right next to the MRT station, breached the $800 psf level in December. A high of $829 psf was achieved last month, when a 1,001 sq ft unit on the eighth floor was sold for $830,000.

Source: The Edge, 22 Feb 2010