UOL, CapitaLand move to buy Thomson View Condo for S$810 million
Deal subject to owners’ consent to lower reserve price; sale would be biggest en bloc acquisition since 2023
UOL , Singapore Land and CapitaLand Development (CLD) have signed an option to acquire the 99-year leasehold Thomson View Condominium for S$810 million in a collective sale, the companies said on Saturday (Oct 26).
The deal would be struck at a price 12 per cent lower than the condo owners’ original reserve price of S$918 million. It is conditional on consent from at least 80 per cent of owners at the Bright Hill Drive development.
The property, on a sprawling 5-hectare site, was put up for tender this year in February with a guide price of S$918 million. The en bloc sale was relaunched in July at the same price, before owners moved to reduce the price on the sale earlier this month.
Two previous attempts were made in November 2021 and May 2022 when the site was marketed at S$950 million.
The sale of Thomson View Condo, marketed by Edmund Tie & Co, would be the largest en bloc deal done in Singapore since Chuan Park’s collective sale got the go-ahead in May 2023.
The move to lower the reserve price brings the unit land cost down to S$1,178 per square foot per plot ratio, after including land betterment charges to intensify the land use and a lease upgrading premium to top up to a fresh 99-year lease. The current lease starts from 1975. At the previous reserve price of S$918 million, the site was valued at S$1,275 psf ppr.
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The lower offer saw renewed interest from developers, said Swee Shou Fern, head of investment advisory at Edmund Tie, leading to discussions with “several interested parties”.
“The proposed realignment of the reserve price sets the stage for a compelling win-win opportunity that not only appeals to developers but also allows the owners to cash out an attractive en bloc premium,” said Swee on Oct 18.
UOL, SingLand and CLD are eyeing a massive 1,240-unit project on the land. Thomson View Condo now houses 200 apartments, 54 townhouses and a shop unit.
In a joint statement sent on Saturday (Oct 26), UOL group chief executive Liam Wee Sin and CLD Singapore chief executive officer Tan Yew Chin said: “If 80 per cent consent is secured, this acquisition adds another prime land parcel into our portfolio of joint venture sites with its strategic location and exceptional attributes.
“We will leverage our combined expertise to transform the site into a 1,240-unit condominium, capitalising on the limited supply in the vicinity.”
The proposed acquisition of Thomson View is by a 50:50 joint venture between UOL Group and CLD. UOL and its unit SingLand hold 50 per cent of the joint venture on a 80:20 basis, while CLD holds the other 50 per cent stake.
Together, the three partners have been actively building up land bank for joint projects in the last two years. UOL group units and CLD topped bids for a Holland Drive state land site in May with a S$805.39 million bid. At S$1,285 psf ppr, the bid was below expectations for the large, prime piece of land.
The same three partners also bagged a mixed-use plot in Tampines for S$1.21 billion or S$885 psf ppr last year. Some 1,200 residential units are planned on the site.
If concluded, the S$810 million acquisition of Thomson View will be financed mainly from bank borrowings and internal resources, UOL said on Saturday. The deal is expected to be completed “no later than February 2026”.
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