Gerald Crescent bungalow on offer at over S$35m

Singapore

A HOUSE that was at the centre of a high-profile dispute - between a former tour guide from China and a Singaporean widow who owns it - has been put up for sale with an expected price of above S$35 million or S$1,100 per square foot on land area.

Madam Chung Khin Chun's bungalow in Gerald Crescent sits on a plot that is about half the size of a football field.

Her niece Hedy Mok, the appointed deputy public trustee for the estate's administration, reportedly said earlier that the bulk of the proceeds from the land sale would go to charity.

A single-storey bungalow now sits on the freehold site spanning 31,882 sq ft.

Handling the sale is Suzie Mok (who is no relation), senior director of investment sales at Savills Singapore.

"A substantial 999-year or freehold landed residential pocket such as 2F Gerald Crescent is a scarce find in the Seletar area given that such plots are tightly held and seldom made available for sale," she said.

"It is also a rare opportunity to secure a decent size plot under single ownership for immediate redevelopment."

Located in the landed neighborhood of Seletar, the site is zoned for three-storey mixed-landed residential use.

It can potentially accommodate 11 landed properties comprising two detached houses, a pair of semi-detached and seven terrace houses.

Extolling the attributes of the site, Savills said Seletar Hills is fast transforming and gaining popularity given the nearby amenities and recreational options.

The site is also near reputable schools while the neighbouring Seletar Aerospace Park is expected to boost housing demand from both local and foreign professionals.

Ms Mok said she expects interest from a diverse group of buyers, including developers who may sub-divide the site into landed conventional housing schemes, investors or high- net-worth individuals.

With a 45-metre frontage along Gerald Crescent, the site is about one-and-a-half storeys below road level. Ms Mok noted that this could be an advantage for the incoming developer as that creates a natural basement and may result in lower construction costs.

If the developer builds three storeys above this basement, future residents will have a decent view of the surroundings, she said.

The tender for the property will close at 2.30pm on March 22.

Madam Chung was previously embroiled in a bitter dispute with former China tour guide Yang Yin, who got the widow to make a will where he stood to inherit all her assets, including the bungalow.

But the will has since been thrown out by the courts. Yang was sentenced to jail in 2016 for cheating the widow of S$1.1 million and duping the authorities into granting him permanent residency.

Madam Chung and her late spouse had originally bought the 71,000 sq ft site from Bukit Sembawang Estates for S$40,000 in 1961, and built a bungalow and garden on it. The sprawling garden, spanning 39,000 sq ft, was later sold.

Christopher Marriott, CEO of Savills South-east Asia, said: "We recognise the importance of this conclusion for the vendor and will endeavour to have this instruction handled sensitively and appropriately - in the maximum interest to both the family and the site."