Car dealers race to secure S$68m to renew lease for Singapore’s largest used-car hub

[SINGAPORE] All 76 owners of units at the Automobile Megamart (AML) in Ubi have until May 15 to pay S$68 million to renew the site’s lease until 2040, The Straits Times has learnt. If they do not do so, they will have to vacate the premises by July 18.

Located in the Ubi industrial area near Paya Lebar Air Base, the eight-storey complex is the largest dedicated used-car centre in Singapore, housing 121 showrooms and offices. The occupants are mostly dealerships for new and used cars, as well as related businesses such as vehicle leasing and financing.

The 30-year lease for the land that AML sits on was awarded to a group of car dealers in 1996. The building was officially opened in 2000.

If the lease renewal is successful, the occupants can remain until the end of 2040.

The May 15 deadline was a final four-week extension given by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) after earlier rounds of extensions.

At several junctures of the renewal process, the owners were unable to come to a unanimous agreement, leading to the lease renewal offer lapsing once before SLA revised it and issued a second offer.

SLA said it had been working with the owners of AML since March 2024 on the renewal of the lease, which expires on Jul 18.

It issued a renewal offer on Jun 16, 2025, following which the owners asked for multiple extensions to consider it. The offer lapsed on Nov 20, 2025, when the owners failed to come to a unanimous agreement.

SLA then issued a second lease renewal offer on Jan 7, 2026, which the owners had to accept by Feb 17.

The second offer is higher by S$1.9 million, according to the owners of AML. Upon their request, SLA later extended the deadline by two months to Apr 17.

A final extension was granted following a meeting on March 20 between SLA and representatives of the owners, who said some of the units had recently changed hands.

The representatives said some of the new owners need time to secure financing for the lease renewal.

The lease renewal offer must now be accepted by May 15 and the premium fully paid, said SLA.

“After the acceptance of the lease renewal offer, there are follow-up actions that need to be carried out by the owners, such as the survey of land and strata lots, which will take time and have to be completed before the expiry of the current lease,” it added.

The authority said that if the lease renewal does not go through, owners and businesses will have time to vacate and reinstate the units before the lease expires.

Commercial land leases typically last 30, 60 or 99 years. Renewal is subject to SLA’s approval on a case-by-case basis.

The total bill of the lease renewal is shared among the units. The split depends on factors such as their size and location.

For instance, ST found that some showrooms on AML’s ground floor will shell out a larger share, at nearly S$1 million, while those on the higher floors will pay around S$500,000. The office units from the sixth to eighth floors can expect to chip in up to S$200,000.

Dealers told ST that AML is ideal for their business, as other used-car centres tend to be less accessible to buyers and do not have as many used cars available under one roof.

While some unit owners said they are confident they can secure the financing needed for the renewal by the deadline, Raymond Tang, chairman of the building’s lease renewal committee, was more cautious.

He said: “The committee is thankful to the SLA for the lease extension and giving us more time for the payment. But you don’t know until the final day.” He noted that the renewal will fall through if even one of the owners fails to make full payment.

Mike Wee, chairman of the management corporation strata title of AML, said a surveyor has already been engaged as required by SLA. Wee, who has a dealership on the fifth level of AML, said that once the lease renewal is settled, needed overhauls to the building’s electrical and various systems can then take place.

Vincent Tan of Vincar, a motor dealer group that owns two units on level two of AML, said some units in the building are empty because, without lease renewal, their owners were unable to rent them out for such a short period.

Some older owners, who were not keen on renewal because they do not see themselves being in the trade for much longer, also sold their units, said Neo Tiam Ting, a director of Think One Group, which owns four units in AML.

Tan Wee Yong of MyCar, a car importer and retailer, took over a unit on the fifth floor in March, in addition to his existing ground-floor unit. Even though he has a showroom in West Coast Car Mart, he said AML is still his preferred place of business as it is well known among car buyers.

Describing AML as the only “proper” used-car centre in Singapore because of its tenant mix and features such as convenient access to parking and displaying cars, Henry Heng from Prime Car Traders said he does not have a fallback plan if the lease renewal fails. “I just assume that it will go through.”

In the vicinity of AML is 20 Ubi Road 4, occupied by Think One Group, which deals in vehicle import, sales and leasing. Neo, its director, said the site has been on a rental arrangement with SLA since the lease expired in December 2024, and he is hoping to renew it.

Similarly, 7 Ubi Close, which is occupied by Alpine Group and a BYD showroom by Harmony Auto, has been on a rental arrangement since 2025.

SLA said it is “prepared to consider extending the tenancy”.

However, the Mazda showroom and service centre by Eurokars Group at 5 Ubi Close will vacate the premises once its lease ends in mid-2026.

Speaking to ST, Karsono Kwee, executive chairman of Eurokars Group, said the authorities had offered to renew the lease until 2040. But instead of renewing, he will be investing in one of his other properties along the Leng Kee belt, where the majority of new car dealerships are located. The Leng Kee location also has a longer remaining lease of 20 years.

He said: “Leng Kee Road is still the more premium motor belt in Singapore.” THE STRAITS TIMES