Kingsford is top bidder for Lentor Gardens private housing site, at S$920 psf ppr
The only other bid, at S$905 psf ppr, is from a tie-up among entities of Hong Leong Holdings, Mitsui Fudosan and China Construction (South Pacific) Development Co
[SINGAPORE] The seventh 99-year leasehold private housing site released by the state in the new Lentor Hills estate has drawn just two bids, with the top bid at a lower land rate than what the earlier six sites had fetched.
Property analysts offered a range of reasons for the outcome – from developers wanting to keep their powder dry for more choice sites coming up at state land tenders, to downside risks from a potential hit on the global economy on the back of the latest import tariffs announced by the US Trump administration.
The top bid in Thursday’s (Apr 3) tender, from Kingsford Group, at S$920 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr), was just 1.7 per cent higher than the only other bid of S$905 psf ppr, from a consortium comprising Hong Leong Holdings, Mitsui Fudosan and China Construction (South Pacific) Development Co.
Tricia Song, head of research for Singapore and South-east Asia at CBRE, said that the trio have “stakes in prior Lentor Hill sites and are likely solidifying their foothold in the location”.
Kingsford’s bid was about 6.3 per cent lower than the most recent site awarded by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) in Lentor Hills: an adjacent plot along Lentor Central, which fetched S$982 psf ppr in a September 2023 tender closing. It is now being developed into the Lentor Central Residences condominium, which sold like hot cakes at its launch last month.
PropNex’s head of research and content, Wong Siew Ying, said that about 94 per cent of the 2,954 units in projects on the earlier six sites awarded in Lentor Hills by the URA had been sold as at Mar 23, based on URA Realis data.
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She said: “We had anticipated the robust sales at the recently launched Lentor Central Residences, and the paring down of unsold inventory in the Lentor Hills estate would have piqued developers’ interest for this latest Lentor Gardens plot.”
Huttons Asia chief executive officer Mark Yip noted: “There are more plum sites like Chencharu Close in Yishun, Hougang Central and Telok Blangah Road, and developers are keeping their powder dry to participate in these tenders.”
Other attractive sites developers will set their sights on are in Lakeside Drive and Lorong Chuan, said market watchers.
Song of CBRE suggested that one reason the latest Lentor Gardens site drew muted interest could be that it is located furthest from Lentor MRT station, relative to the six earlier plots. “The popular CHIJ St Nicholas Girls’ School also does not fall within a 1 km radius of the plot, and there is potential competition from unsold inventory at the existing Lentor launches,” she added.
In a similar vein, CEO of ERA Singapore Marcus Chu said the new project on the Upper Thomson Road (Parcel B), next to Springleaf MRT station one stop away, will also intensify competition with the projects in the Lentor Hills area.
CBRE’s Song expects the future average launch price for the condo on the latest Lentor Gardens plot to range from S$2,100 to S$2,200 psf.
Leonard Tay, research head at Knight Frank Singapore, sees demand for the project coming from Housing and Development Board upgraders from the nearby Ang Mo Kio, Yio Chu Kang and Serangoon housing estates.
“Furthermore, retirees and older residents now living in the landed estates around Lentor and Yio Chu Kang Road, such as the adjacent Teachers’ Estate, might consider downsizing their residences as their space requirements and priorities change,” he added.
The Lentor Gardens site can be developed into a maximum gross floor area of 466,540 sq ft, of which at least 6,458 sq ft has to be for early childhood development centre use.
The URA has envisioned Lentor Hills Estate as a sustainable, pedestrian-friendly neighbourhood amid lush greenery. It is near established schools such as Presbyterian High School, Anderson Primary School and CHIJ St Nicholas Girls’ School.
A spokesperson for Kingsford said: “We would be excited to participate in the development of an approximately 500-unit residential project in the up-and-coming Lentor neighbourhood. If awarded the site, this project would be our seventh residential development in Singapore.”
He added: “The Lentor neighbourhood has been attracting an influx of homebuyers due to the nearby Lentor MRT station on the Thomson-East Coast Line, as well as the development of housing, retail and greenery options in the surroundings.”
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