Unit at ClementiWoods sold for $870 psf

Once seen as a poor cousin to the prime East Coast area, the West Coast is gaining in popularity, with transformation of the entire western region underway.

There are one-north, with Biopolis, its biomedical research cluster, and Fusionopolis, its infocomm and media cluster; wellknown tertiary institutions like the National University of Singapore (NUS) and INSEAD; parkland and green lungs like West Coast Park and Hort Park nearby; and the Clementi MRT station and the Ayer Raja Expressway, which are also located nearby.

ClementiWoods condominium, located along the quiet West Coast Road neighbourhood near NUS, has been enjoying an uptrend in the prices of units since last June. A high of $974 psf was achieved when a 560 sq ft unit was sold for $545,000 last November, surpassing the peak of $819 psf in 2007. The 240-unit condominium, developed by Frasers Centrepoint Homes, is due to receive its temporary occupation permit (TOP) in 1H2010.

For the period of Feb 4 to 12, there were three transactions at ClementiWoods in the price range of $836 to $870 psf, according to caveats lodged with URA Realis.

The owners, who had purchased the units at the launch in 2007, made significant gains. On Feb 11, a 1,130 sq ft unit on the fifth floor was sold for $950,000, or $841 psf, netting a 55% gain for the original owner, who bought
the unit for $612,000, or $541 psf. On the second floor, two units changed hands. A 1,076 sq ft unit was sold for $900,000, or $836 psf. The previous owner had purchased it for $592,000, reaping a gain of 52%. The other sale was for a larger 1,388 sq ft unit, which fetched $1.2 million, or $870 psf, translating into a gain of 45%.

Adjacent to ClementiWoods is the 530- unit Varsity Park condominium developed by CapitaLand and completed in 2008. On Feb 11, a 1,991 sq ft unit on the fifth floor was sold for $1.6 million, or $828 psf — a 106% gain for the previous owner, who had purchased the unit a year after it was launched in 2005 for $800,320, or $402 psf.

In the Buona Vista area, there has been strong interest in One-North Residences, located within a 200ha development funded by the government for growing the biomedical, infocomm and digital media industries. Prices of the 405-unit condominium, which received TOP last year, have seen strong support at the $1,000 psf level since last July. They hit a high of $1,280 psf last October when a 570 sq ft unit on the fourth floor was sold for $730,000.

For the period of Feb 4 to 12, two units were sold. It was the second time both units changed hands since the launch of the project in 2007 by the consortium of developers — Kheng Leong, United Overseas Land, and Low Keng Huat. A 592 sq ft unit on the fifth floor was sold for $735,000, or $1,242 psf, and prior to this sale, it had changed hands for $645,000 or, $1,089 psf, last August. In 2007, it was sold for $518,914, or $877 psf.

A 1,420 sq ft unit on the 10th floor was sold for $1.5 million, or $1,056 psf. The original buyer had purchased the unit for $1.36 million or $957 psf, in June 2007. Before this, it had been sold for $1.15 million, or $814 psf.

Property agents say interest in the West Coast area has also spiked in the run-up to the private preview of Cheung Kong (Holdings)’s The Vision, its highend condominium on West Coast Crescent that is expected to be priced above $1,000 psf.

Source: The Edge, 11 Mar 2010