CDL, Hong Realty trump 3 other bidders with S$542.4 million offer at S$1,865 psf ppr for Peck Hay plot

[SINGAPORE] A tie-up between City Developments Ltd (CDL) and Hong Realty has placed the top bid of S$542.4 million for a 99-year leasehold private housing site in Peck Hay Road, a short walk from Newton MRT interchange station.

The top bid works out to S$1,865.15 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr). It is 2.5 per cent higher than the nearly S$1,820 psf ppr fetched for a nearby site in Bukit Timah Road next to the Newton MRT station, at a tender that closed in November last year.

Both sites are part of the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s (URA) plans for a new neighbourhood in Newton unveiled last year.

The latest government land sales (GLS) tender, for the 59,347 sq ft Peck Hay Road site, closed on Thursday (Jun 11) with just four bids, against eight for the Bukit Timah Road plot.

The number of bids for the Peck Hay Road plot was at the lower end of the three to eight forecast by property consultants polled by The Business Times earlier this week. However, the top bid exceeded the S$1,600 to S$1,850 psf ppr predicted by the consultants.

The 80:20 joint venture between CDL and Hong Realty plans to develop a 39-storey residential tower with about 380 units.

The number of units is significantly higher than the estimate of 315 indicated by URA when it launched the site’s tender in April.

“We look forward to shaping the precinct’s next phase of transformation with a distinctive residential landmark,” said CDL Group CEO Sherman Kwek.

The proposed scheme will incorporate lush greenery and communal spaces to support urban liveability, the group said.

SEE ALSO

Land for 4,745 private homes supplied in H2 2026 GLS confirmed list, including Jurong Lake District white site

URA puts up two prime condo sites in Newton, River Valley for sale

Plum Newton site garners 8 bids, topped by HH Investment at S$566.29 million or S$1,820 psf ppr

New private homes planned in Paterson, Newton areas

More

Analysts see the bullish bid by the consortium as a strong vote of its confidence in the URA’s plans to transform the Newton area into a “vibrant, mixed-use urban village”.

The top bid at about S$1,865 psf ppr was 8.4 per cent higher than the second highest of about S$1,720 psf ppr from a tie-up between Sunway MCL and CSC Land Group (Singapore).

The third-highest bid at S$1,582.69 psf ppr came from a unit of China Overseas Land & Investment.

The lowest bid, from an Intrepid Investments and TID Residential tie-up, was about S$1,580 psf ppr.

What is noteworthy is the significant gap between the highest and lowest bids, and that too coming from members of the Hong Leong Group.

Nicholas Mak, chief research officer at Mogul.sg, said the “aggressive” top bids for both the Bukit Timah Road and Peck Hay Road sites show that “the developers are highly confident of the northward trajectory of high-end condominium prices”.

Property consultants estimate the average launch price for the condo on the Peck Hay Road site to be somewhere between S$3,400 psf and S$3,900 psf.

ERA Singapore chief executive officer Marcus Chu said the Peck Hay Road plot offers developers the “opportunity to enter the Core Central Region (CCR) market at a palatable scale”.

“Keeping their powder dry”

Mak said the lower number of bids for the latest plot compared to the Bukit Timah Road site could be reflection of some developers “keeping their powder dry for other asset acquisitions”.

A state tender for a site in River Valley Green will close on Jun 18.

Knight Frank Singapore research head Leonard Tay said: “Developers are not chasing every opportunity indiscriminately, but rather picking their favoured parcels deliberately.”

The Peck Hay Road site is near Anglo-Chinese School (Junior), St Joseph’s Institution Junior, Singapore Chinese Girls’ School (Primary), River Valley Primary School, St Margaret’s School (Primary) and Farrer Park Primary School.

It offers a combination of attractive attributes in its central location, MRT connectivity and proximity to amenities at Orchard Road and the Newton Food Centre, noted PropNex head of research and content Wong Siew Ying. Healthcare services are nearby in the Novena medical cluster, which is one MRT stop from Newton.

There have been no recent launches of 99-year leasehold condominium projects near the Peck Hay Road site, which is in the CCR.

Some analysts pointed to sales evidence at 99-year projects in or around the Orchard area within the CCR that have been launched since last year – such as UpperHouse at Orchard Boulevard, and River Green and River Modern (both at the doorsteps of Great World MRT station).

URA Realis data on new sales in 2026 (downloaded on Jun 10) showed that at UpperHouse, which is being built next to Orchard Boulevard MRT station, 19 units have been transacted since the start of the year at an average price of S$3,554 psf.

At River Green, 11 units have been sold over the same period at an average price of S$3,488 psf. Both projects were launched last year.

At River Modern, which was launched earlier this year, 423 units have been sold at an average price of S$3,278 psf, based on URA data on Jun 10.

Huttons Asia CEO Mark Yip highlighted that the average number of bids received at GLS tenders for sites in the CCR rose from an average of three bids a site in 2024 to 5.7 bids a site from January 2025 to May 2026. “This strong interest from developers boiled down to the robust sales of CCR projects in 2025 and 2026,” he added.

“Hungry to replenish depleted landbanks”

In a similar vein, CBRE’s head of research for Singapore and South-east Asia Tricia Song noted that at their respective launch weekends last year, River Green and Skye at Holland sold like hot cakes, with 88 per cent and 99 per cent of their units taken up.

This year, 90 per cent of the units in River Modern and 57 per cent of Newport Residences found buyers during their launch weekends.

“Developers are hungry to replenish their depleted landbanks, and may place more competitive bids to secure sites they find attractive,” Song added.

The successful bidder of the Peck Hay Road site will have to build covered linkway access for pedestrians to Newton MRT station.

The winning bidder will also be required to build a proposed extension of Peck Hay Road, relocate an existing bus stop along Scotts Road and widen a part of Anthony Road. “All these will add to the development cost, especially when bitumen prices have gone up substantially,” noted Yip of Huttons.

The Peck Hay Road site is the second GLS plot launched for tender in the new Newton neighbourhood. URA has plans for about 5,000 new private homes to be introduced progressively over a 10 to 15-year period around Newton Circus, Scotts Road and Monk’s Hill.