The plot on Cuscaden Road will be turned into a high-end residential property
Hong Kong’s New World Development and Far East Consortium (FEC) have teamed up with Singapore’s SC Global Developments to win a luxury residential site near Singapore’s prime shopping area Orchard Road, after placing a record S$410 million ($309 million) bid late last month.
Subsidiaries owned by the cross-border trio of developers were awarded the 99-year leasehold property on Cuscaden Road, near Orchard Road, an announcement from the Urban Redevelopment Authority on Thursday shows. The consortium is paying the equivalent of S$2,377 ($1,771) per square foot of gross floor area for the site, marking the highest unit price for a residential government land sale in the city-state — blowing past the previous record of S$1,733 paid by Frasers Property for a residential project on the former Zouk nightclub site on Jiak Kim Street last December.
“We are very pleased to be part of a consortium to win [the] bid for this prime residential site in Singapore and we are excited to be working with SC Global Developments and New World Development to deliver a landmark luxury residential project,” Chris Hoong, Managing Director of FEC said in a statement. “A site in this location is rare and our plan is to deliver a high-end residential scheme which will set a new benchmark in Singapore in terms of quality.”
New World Aims to Add More Culture to Orchard Road
Adrian Cheng of New World said the partners would bring artistic elements to the project
The consortium’s offer topped seven individual bids by Shun Tak Holdings, Bukit Sembawang Estates, Guocoland, Shenzhen-based Logan Property, Far East Organisation, Wing Tai Holdings and Sing Essential, which is believed to be linked to the founders of developer K&K Property Holdings. The site also received a joint bid from the local branch of mainland builder China Overseas Holdings and Singapore’s CSC Land Group.
The 61,596 square foot (5,722 square metre) residential plot can provide a maximum of 172,470 square feet (16,023 square metres) of floor area. Located at the south of Cuscaden Road and the north of Orchard Road, the land parcel is directly opposite from The Regent hotel and is a 10-minute walk from the Orchard MRT station.
The record-shattering site will be developed into a project with “a focus on arts and culture, infusing Singapore’s downtown area with an exciting new atmosphere,” Adrian Cheng, executive vice-chairman and general manager of New World Development added in the statement.
“Bullish” Prices within Reach Amid Housing Rebound
The selling price for units in the future development is estimated at S$3,500-3,700 per square foot, according to a note by Tricia Song, Head of Research for Singapore at Colliers International. Song describes the target price as “bullish but achievable,” given that new launches of freehold luxury projects in the area have achieved average prices of S$3,200-4,000.
The landmark site acquisition comes amid a rebound in Singapore’s residential market. Private home prices climbed by 3.9 percent in the first quarter this year compared to the previous three months and reached their highest levels since the second quarter of 2010. Shrinking inventory, pent-up demand for housing and a buoyant collective sale market have propelled growth in the property market, Colliers noted.
New World and FEC Team up Again
The Orchard Road win marks the second time that blue-chip developer New World has teamed up with Far East Consortium for a project in Singapore. The pair of Hong Kong property firms has previously worked together to develop the Artra Condo residential project in the Southeast Asian city-state, which went on the market in April 2017 and was 60 percent sold as of March. New World took a 30 percent stake in the Artra joint venture, with FEC holding the remaining 70 percent.
Far East Consortium has been active in Singapore this year, with the Orchard Road site marking the Hong Kong group’s third project acquisition in the city state over the last months. In April, FEC revealed that it had teamed with Singapore’s Koh Brothers to purchase a pair of projects in District 10, the Hollandia and Estoril sites, for a combined S$407 million.
The Orchard Road site was awarded to Amberden Pte Ltd, FEC Properties Pte Ltd and Orchard Square Pte Ltd, which are held by SC Global Development, Far East Consortium and New World Development respectively.
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