Hoi Hup, Sunway clinch keenly contested Tengah EC site for S$348.5 million
HOI Hup Realty and Sunway Developments have bagged an executive condominium (EC) site in Tengah for S$348.5 million, with the S$703 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr) rate marking a record high for EC land.
The tender for the site in Plantation Close, which closed on Jun 27, drew nine bids from entities linked to heavyweights City Developments Ltd (CDL), Hong Leong, CapitaLand Development and Frasers Property.
On Monday (Sep 11), the Housing and Development Board (HDB) awarded the tender to Hoi Hup and Sunway, which had submitted the highest bid. No details on the other bids were given.
The Hoi Hup-Sunway bid was about 6.2 per cent higher than the S$661.7 psf ppr paid for an EC site in Bukit Batok West Ave 8; it was also 17 per cent higher than the S$603 psf ppr price at which CDL and MCL Land acquired the site for Copen Grand in Tengah Garden Walk, an EC near Plantation Close.
Copen Grand was fully sold within a month of its launch in October 2022, at an average price of S$1,300 psf.
Another EC project, Tenet, sold 93 per cent of its 576 units after balloting by second-time buyers, said Lee Sze Teck, Huttons Asia’s senior director of data analytics. Tenet, located in Tampines North and developed by Qingjian and Santarli Construction, was launched at about S$1,360 psf.
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The 99-year leasehold Plantation Close plot, which can yield an estimated 495 EC units, will sit between the future Tengah Park MRT station and Bukit Batok West MRT station.
The land parcel is 16,441.2 square metres (sq m) in size, with a maximum gross floor area of 46,036 sq m; the maximum building height will be 70 m to 80 m above mean sea level.
Wong Siew Ying, PropNex’s head of research and content, said the record-high land rate for the Plantation Close EC smashed the previous record held by the EC site in Bukit Batok West Ave 8, which has since been developed into Altura EC. It sold 61 per cent of 360 units at an average price of S$1,433 psf on its launch weekend in August.
Lee said the top bid of S$703 psf ppr reflected developers’ confidence in the EC market and in Tengah. This was “higher than anticipated”, added Justin Quek, deputy chief executive officer of OrangeTee & Tie.
Eugene Lim, ERA’s key executive officer, said the estimated launch price of the Plantation Close EC could fall between S$1,450 and S$1,550 psf.
Lee said: “With the recent increase in Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty for a second property purchase, ECs are likely to see more interest, as buyers are given upfront remission.”
That the EC will be near the future Tengah Park MRT station means residents will have easy access to Jurong Lake Gardens, Jurong Innovation District and Nanyang Technological University, Lim noted.
Bids received for the site were evaluated under a modified concept and price revenue tender system. Under this system, tenderers submit their concept proposals and tender prices separately.
Bidders for the Plantation Close parcel also had the option to submit an alternative bid on top of the one they made for base prefabricated, pre-finished volumetric construction (PPVC).
PPVC is a building method in which large modules, complete with finishes, are manufactured in factors and assembled on-site. The alternative bid developers could choose to submit could use non-PPVC technology or a hybrid of technologies to potentially enhance the project’s productivity.
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