Canberra Drive EC site draws crowd of 13 bids; top offer of S$825 psf ppr from Santarli-led JV sets record
This exceeds analysts’ forecasts for the first EC land tender since the new rules kicked in
[SINGAPORE] A consortium comprising Santarli Realty, Heeton Holdings, Sunray and Kay Lim Realty has set a fresh benchmark for executive condominium (EC) land prices, with its bid for a small Canberra Drive site beating out 12 other bidders in a state tender that closed on Thursday (Oct 1).
At S$163.9 million, the bid translates to S$825 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr), surpassing the S$630 to S$750 psf ppr forecast by analysts.
The bid is about 3.9 per cent above the previous high of S$794 psf ppr set by Sim Lian’s winning offer for a Woodlands EC project in January.
It is also about 19.2 per cent above the S$692 psf ppr that JBE-owned Oriental Pacific Development paid for the last EC site sold in Sembawang in 2025.
The other bids
At Thursday’s tender closing, a consortium comprising Hong Leong Holdings and Mitsui Fudosan came in second with its bid of S$159.4 million, or about S$803 psf ppr – just a shade below the top bid.
A consortium comprising Apex Asia Development, BHCC Construction and Hwa Seng Builder was the third-highest bidder with S$158.6 million or S$798 psf ppr.
Also bidding was CRF Land with S$770 psf ppr. An entity linked to City Developments Ltd offered S$735 psf ppr for the site.
The lowest bid, from Sim Lian, came in at about S$361 psf ppr.
Thirteen bids were submitted in total, far exceeding the three to six expected by analysts polled. Other bidders included EL Development, JBE Capital, Kheng Leong and Master Contract Services.
It was the highest number of bids for an EC site since the Sumang Walk tender in 2018, noted Huttons Asia chief executive Mark Yip.
The Canberra Drive tender is the first to test developers’ appetite for EC land following the recent changes to the housing scheme.
In a bid to cool the EC market, the government in May extended the minimum occupation period to 10 years, removed the deferred payment scheme and raised the proportion of units reserved for first-time buyers in the first two years of launch to 90 per cent.
The government subsequently raised the monthly household income ceiling for ECs from S$16,000 to S$18,000.
Property analysts react
Yip said: “The wide disparity between the top and last bid highlighted the unpredictability in demand over these policy changes.
“Some developers viewed the cooling measures as having a bigger impact on demand in the EC market, while others viewed the revised income ceiling as lifting demand.”
Wong Siew Ying, head of research and content at PropNex, said the higher income ceiling widens the pool of eligible buyers.
The relatively modest investment of about S$164 million also lowers the barrier for mid-sized developers and consortiums, she added.
Nicholas Mak, chief research officer at Mogul.sg, noted that four comparable EC parcels in the north – two in Woodlands Drive 17, one at Sembawang Road and another at Miltonia Close – were sold in the 10 months before the tighter regulations were announced. Their average land rate was about S$750 psf ppr.
With Canberra Drive setting a new record of S$825 psf ppr, he suggested that the tender had “upended the government’s effort to cool the EC property market”.
Mak argued that the government should have waited until at least three EC sites had been sold under the tighter rules before raising the income ceiling, to give the market time to adjust and assess the cooling effect of the May measures.
Based on the top land bid, PropNex’s Wong projected an average selling price of around S$1,900 psf for the Canberra Drive project. Mak estimated a median selling price of S$1,850 to S$1,920 psf, which he said could set a new benchmark for EC prices.
Located in Sembawang, the Canberra Drive site is 11,535 square metres (sq m) in size, with a gross floor area of 18,457 sq m. The 99-year leasehold site is expected to yield some 185 homes.
Its proximity to Canberra MRT station, amenities such as Sembawang Shopping Centre and Canberra Plaza, and schools helped draw keen interest, said Justin Quek, deputy group chief executive of Realion (OrangeTee & ETC) Group.
Despite the strong turnout, ERA Singapore key executive officer Eugene Lim cautioned that developers’ participation in future tenders would still depend on “upcoming supply and site-specific attributes” and the new rules.
He pointed out: “Rising interest rates and a softer domestic job market could likewise dampen homebuying sentiment, which may encourage developers to exercise greater restraint at upcoming tenders.”
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