A three-storey corner terrace house on a unique wedge-shaped site in Hougang is up for sale below the valuation price, reported The Straits Times.

Offered on a 99-year lease and completed in 2002, the 6,813 sq ft property has remained unsold for the last 11 years due mainly to its odd shape. Aside from the land parcel, the rooms are also irregularly shaped.

The report added that one section of the house faces Hougang Avenue 2 with a catchment drain flanking the other side. A nearby overhead bridge looks directly into the second floor of the property.

Owned by YHS Hougang, a unit of Far East Organization, the house is part of Henley Gardens, a 36-unit terrace house project at Jalan Arif.

Last weekend, a swarm of property agents were at the site, with many carrying placards showing a price of S$470 psf.

Source – PropGuru – 20 May 2013

Prices of resale landed homes grew faster than their non-landed counterparts during the first half of 2013, according to survey conducted by DTZ.

In prime Districts 9, 10 and 11, prices of freehold landed homes rose 3.1 percent while those of freehold apartment increased only by one percent. For leasehold landed homes, resale prices rose 5.1 percent in suburban districts compared to only 2.2 percent for apartments.

However, suburban freehold landed homes rose by only 2.6 percent — the lowest increase in the landed segment although still slightly higher than suburban freehold apartments.

“In general, landed prices have risen more strongly than non-landed,” said Lee Lay Keng, DTZ’s head of Singapore research.

Meanwhile, terrace homes, both leasehold or freehold, were the most popular choice in the landed home market. Resale prices of these home types climbed between 4.1 percent and 5.6 percent both in prime and suburban areas, while resale prices of semi-detached and detached homes posted an increase of 0.5 percent to 2.7 percent across the board.

DTZ expects landed home prices to continue to increase at a faster rate than apartment prices in 2H 2013.

The URA data revealed that around 495 landed homes could be available for sale in prime districts 9, 10 and 11, which translates to only 4.5 percent of the overall number of landed homes within the said districts, noted DTZ.

Around 33,000 non-landed homes are anticipated to be launched nationwide compared to only 2,000 landed homes, based on the various GLS sites sold or available as well as projects that are still on the board.

“On the back of a limited pipeline supply (of landed homes), we expect the outperformance to continue into the second half of 2013,” said Lee.

Source – PropGuru – 25 Jun 2013

A 150,000 sq ft colonial bungalow in the Holland Road area has been launched for tender with a guide rental of S$50,400 per month, according to media reports.

The 106-year-old property was once occupied by the French Ambassador and is now a state building managed by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA). The two-storey black and white bungalow comprises four bedrooms and three maid’s rooms.

Despite its rich history and proximity to Orchard Road, the property isn’t likely to attract aggressive bidding, analysts said.

“It is not launched at a right time. With such a big plot and quite a high rental when the economy is not really performing that well, I don’t foresee a lot of bids,” said David Poh, Senior Director at PropNex.

Source – PropertyGuru – 3 Jul 2014

Sales of landed properties in Singapore have fallen in the last few years as a result of the government’s cooling measures, according to analysts.

Landed homes comprise approximately five percent of all residential properties in Singapore. As such, these units are highly-sought-after by buyers and investors due to their scarcity.

Despite this, the sales value and transaction volume of landed properties have been falling in recent times.

In 1H2013, the total number of transactions in this segment fell by 49 percent to 737 units compared to the same period a year ago. This also translates to a significant 67 percent decline compared to the first half of 2011, noted HSR Property Consultants.

Total sales also fell more than 70 percent in the first half to nearly S$500 million.

Moving forward, sales are expected to slow further due to the new mortgage rules introduced by the central bank. Nonetheless, Knight Frank feels that prices in this segment will stabilise, with a one to two percent year-on-year gain by end-2013.

And while most purchases of landed homes are by high-net-worth individuals, one in five own HDB flats.

“This year, we have a HDB addressee who bought a property located in Windsor Park, Upper Thomson. He spent about S$25 million and that transaction was done sometime in January this year,” said Donald Han, Special Adviser at HSR.

“One of the second highest transactions from that base was Oei Tiong Ham Park. It was bought by another HDB buyer at a price of S$20 million in April this year.”

Source – PropertyGuru – 4 Jul 2013

The second quarter of this year could have seen at least S$221 million worth of deals in Good Class Bungalow Areas (GCBAs), according to The Business Times.

Based on CBRE’s analysis of caveats data, the figure would be higher than the previous quarter’s S$180.5 million worth of deals.

A freehold property in Holland Park comprising a restored conservation bungalow connected to a newly built house is one of the latest deals transacted at S$28.8 million or S$1,893 psf.

The combined two-storey property has a land area of 15,210 sq ft and features four bedrooms, a guest room, study room, wine cellar, swimming pool and entertainment room, and a garage for three cars.
Source – PropertyGuru – 5 Jul 2013

The number of permanent residents (PRs) granted approval to buy landed homes in mainland Singapore has dropped significantly on the back of government efforts to set aside more of these types of properties for Singaporeans, media reports said.

The government further tightened the eligibility criteria for PRs in 2011 to ensure that Singapore citizens receive priority for such homes.

According to the Singapore Land Authority (SLA), the number of approvals granted to PRs looking to purchase landed homes fell from 145 in 2010 to 117 in 2011 and to just 31 last year.

In fact, only six applications were approved during the first half of 2013.

Back in October 2011, Law Minister K Shanmugam revealed that the number of approvals given to PRs buying landed homes would decline by over 50 percent to not more than 50 approvals each year.

Due to tight supply of landed homes, this segment could see a smaller price drop compared to overall private housing market, according to media reports quoting property experts.

Landed home prices could dip two to six percent this year, while the private property market is expected to fall by five to eight percent.

Notably, these homes only account for 3.2 percent of the 76,300 private homes that are anticipated to be ready between 2014 and 2017, said SLP International’s Research Head Nicholas Mak.

“This indicates that the prices of landed homes could increase rapidly again when property prices recover in the future,” he noted.

GPS Alliance Chief Executive Jeffrey Hong added, “Genuine landed home buyers could come back in the second half of this year as prices bottom out.”

The prevailing scenario also offers buyers a chance to benefit from bargains in suburbs such as Loyang, Jurong, Bukit Batok and Sembawang, Hong added.

Due to their lower prices, terraced homes could see more transactions versus bungalows or semi-detached houses, added the experts.

Based on Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) data released in April, landed homes saw a smaller dip of 0.7 percent compared to the 1.3 percent drop for overall private home prices in Q1 2014.

Source : Property Guru – 16 May 2014

Practical Tips

Introduction
A landed property differs from a condominium unit in many aspects. Firstly, when one buys a landed property, he gets the land that the property sits on, on top of the property that comes with it.

Secondly, a landed property may have gone through a major ‘makeover’ with substantial addition and alteration (A&A) works done. As such, it is only logical that there are different issues that one has to address when an agent attempts to market a landed property.

Basic Due Diligence
Needless to say, one should always do a title search to determine:
a. Legal ownership of the property
b. Size of the unit
c. Tenure of the property
before one starts marketing the property.

Depending on the situation, in certain cases, the agent may even want to conduct a bankruptcy / litigation search on the Vendor if he has reasons to believe that the Vendor may be facing impending bankruptcy / litigation suits.

An experienced agent should be able to pick up tell tale signs in the course of his interaction with the Vendor. Most agents, given a choice, will not want to take on such a listing given the potential complications arising from a case of such nature.

For the rest of this article, I will focus on 3 major legal pitfalls that agents need to be mindful of:
a. Size of the land
b. Built in / built up area of the property
c. Illegal alterations / additions

Land Size
A simple title search will reveal the stated land size. The question is this— can you confirm that the property you are selling indeed is as big as the land area indicated in the Certificate of Title.

For example, a semi-detached property is supposed to have 4000 sqft of land, but short of you measuring it, can you confirm that it’s 4000sqft?

I want to share a case study that we have encountered some years ago. We represented a buyer for a semi-detached property purchase. Our buyer wanted to tear down the old house on the property to re-build. Now, typically most layman will take things at face value and take the land size for what it is. However, our client happens to be in the property development business.

Shortly after the option was exercised, he sought permission to bring in a surveyor to carry out a survey because he wanted to submit plans earlier for reconstruction.

Guess what? The survey revealed a shortfall of about 100 sqft of land. How did this happen?

It turned out that the neighbor, in the course of rebuilding the perimeter fence years ago, had inadvertently move the boundary line into the Vendor’s land, thus resulting in the shortfall.

We immediately notified the Vendor’s lawyers and demanded rectification of the problem. As our client still wanted to proceed with the purchase, there were only 2 options we were looking at.

It was either that the Vendor had to get the neighbor to surrender back the strip of land or to seek compensation in the form of a reduction in the purchase price.

Eventually, after much protracted negotiations, including the threats of legal action with all parties concerned (including the errant neighbor), the case was resolved on the basis of the neighbor giving back the strip of land.

So what is the lesson drawn from here? It is not practical to have a land survey carried out in every case before the sale or during the sale. Perhaps the practical approach is to draw a distinction between new and old properties.

If the property is relatively new, the risks of such issues arising will be correspondingly lower as the land survey would have been done not too long ago.

On the other hand, if it’s an older property, then the risks would logically be higher. This is of course by no means foolproof. As such, if an agent is dealing with a potential buyer who is very particular about the accuracy of the land size, you may want to be mindful of this issue.

Built in / Built up Area
A lot of buyers do not realize this, but the fact is the built in / built up area of a landed property is nowhere to be found in the Certificate of Title or any Developer’s Sale & Purchase Agreement.

As such, how then can the agent confirm an essential piece of information like the built in / built up area of a landed property?

More often than not, the agent tends to rely on the information provided by the owner. But the question is, can this be reliable? And what is the legal basis for the owner to say so?

The simple answer is that it is risky to rely on the seller’s unsubstantiated information.

Typically, the seller may rely on the Developer’s brochure / price list at the time of original purchase. Or worse still, based on his recollection of what he believed he has been told from years ago. The problem with the information given in the brochure / price list is the fact that the built in / built up area is not subjected to a survey being carried out eventually, unlike the land size.

In other words, while a survey will be carried out to confirm the size of the land, there are no legal requirements for the built in / built up area to be verified. In fact, the Certificate of Title only shows land size, without any indication of the built in / built up area.

Thus, the only way for the agent to confirm conclusively is to engage a surveyor to confirm this important piece of information. This is of course not a practical solution as the survey cost is not cheap, not to mention that it’s time consuming. On top of that, who is going to pay for the costs?

As such, the agent should learn to qualify the built in / built up area each time he has to put this information into an advertisement or answer a potential buyer’s query. For example, he should always state that it is approximately or ‘about’ xxx sqft and educate the buyer that the built in / built up area is not reflected in the Certificate of Title. Otherwise, an unqualified statement as to the built in / built up area could potentially be a misrepresentation if it turns out to be wrong.

Illegal Alterations / Additions
One common question that a lot of clients ask is, “how do I know if there are illegal alterations / additions carried out to the unit concerned?”

Frankly, the solution does not lie in relying on the searches (legal requisition replies from URA / BCA) alone. The reply may indicate that the TOP / CSC has been issued, but the fact remains that a lot of the unauthorized works are carried out only after CSC has been issued.

If so, the legal requisition replies will not capture this. My best practical advice is to use a two-pronged approach towards solving this problem:
a. Do a visual comparison with the neighbouring unit. While this may not be applicable for a bungalow, it is a very practical thing to do if you are selling terraces / semi detached houses. If both units under comparison are identical (front, back and height) with the rest of the units in the estate, then the risks are somewhat lowered that there might be unauthorized A&A works done on the external structure. However, if for example, your unit has a longer car porch, bigger extended kitchen in the back that pushes out the structural wall, or even a taller height structure, then we would need to consider whether all these A&A works are done with the necessary approvals.

b. If there are indeed dissimilarities with the neighbouring units, or if there is a mezzanine floor, then we need to ask for the written approvals to be produced. If in doubt, then the only solution would be to call in a building surveyor / qualified architect to lend their professional opinion.

Conclusion
I hope this article has been useful for you. Please feel free to write in if you have any queries for us.

The above article is intended to provide general information. Although we endeavour to ensure that the information contained herein is accurate, we do not warrant its accuracy or completeness or accept any liability for any loss or damage arising from any reliance thereon. The information herein should not be treated as a substitute for separate legal advice concerning particular situations.

UOB’s non-performing housing loans soared to 34.2 percent in Q2 2014, or its highest level since Q4 2004, reported the media.

The sharp spike surprised Maybank Kim Eng given the perception that UOB is one of Singapore’s more conservative home lenders, with only a slight year-to-date correction in Singapore’s house prices.

“We understand its NPLs were isolated to a group of borrowers who had invested in Turquoise, a high-end condominium project in Sentosa,” said Maybank in a report.

URA data showed that two units there changed hands in Q2 2014 at 45 percent discount to their launch prices.

The report noted that the transactions “stoked fears that it is a matter of time before default cases become widespread, undermining Singapore banks’ profitability that has been propped up by low charge-off rates.”

To ascertain sentiment on the Sentosa micromarket, Maybank examined recent transactions of non-landed properties there.

It found that there are nine condominium projects in Sentosa. The first four, launched during the nascent recovery of Singapore’s property market in 2004 to 2005, had an average selling price of below $1,600 psf, while the remaining five, which were launched later, were priced above $2,600 psf.

“In our view, the large losses at Turquoise can be partially explained by the project’s higher launch price,” said Maybank.

Notably, Turquoise’s launch price of $2,605 psf is about 75 percent higher than the average price at The Oceanfront ($1,360 psf) and The Coast ($1,592).

“These two were launched one year ahead of Turquoise. This could mean that higher-priced projects at Sentosa are at greater risk of a price correction,” said the report.

Investment outlook remains encouraging

LANDED homes are taking more of a hit than apartments in the lacklustre property market, with prices falling and demand drying up.

The price index for landed property has fallen 5.1 per cent over the past four quarters, well in excess of the 3.3 per cent slide in the non-landed index, according to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).

“It was previously thought that the landed segment, which has so little new supply and strong demand, might be more resilient than other segments,” said Mr Ong Teck Hui, JLL national research director.

“The effect of the Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR) on the landed segment has turned out to be worse than anticipated… now, with severely constrained borrowing, there are probably much fewer potential buyers of landed homes. Or if they are still in the market, their budgets would have been substantially cut.”

The transaction volume for landed properties in the five quarters after TDSR was imposed at end-June last year is 65 per cent lower than that of the five quarters before TDSR, Mr Ong added. Non-landed property recorded a 57 per cent decline in sales volume over the same period.

Buyers’ preferences are also changing, moving towards smaller, more modern-looking living spaces found in the private apartment market, said Mr Ong Kah Seng, director of R’ST Research.

“Savvy property buyers feel there is less value in buying a landed home in Singapore where costs are high and designs tend to be older,” he added, noting also that buyers are looking to the Johor housing market for more affordable landed property.

Mr Ong said suburban areas, especially in the northern and western regions, have seen more of a pile-up in completed and unsold landed homes due to their outlying locations, which “would not reflect much prestige or exclusivity in owning a private property”.

In Sembawang and Canberra, demand from HDB upgraders would have been substantially absorbed by some non-landed projects as well, including the One Canberra executive condominium, SkyPark Residences, Canberra Residences and The Nautical, said Mr Ong of R’ST Research.

Another factor is that it has become harder to get approvals for Singapore Permanent Residents (PRs) to buy landed homes, said Mr Nicholas Mak, SLP International executive director.

Buying landed homes is limited to Singaporeans and PRs, but PRs can buy only one landed home for their own occupation, with the purchase subject to government approval.

The Singapore Land Authority (SLA) further tightened eligibility criteria over the past two years. The number of approvals a year fell from 145 in 2010 to 117 in 2011, and 31 in 2012 – the first full year after tightening – and 11 last year. Nine approvals were granted in the first three quarters of this year, and eight in the same period last year, an SLA spokesman said.

Developers of landed projects with slow sales say they are concerned about how the measures are biting.

“Our agents are also suffering. We have taken steps to offer some discounts and, hopefully, buyers will see the value. Where (else) can you get a new landed house with a park or sea view?” said Mr Sam Chong, senior manager at Sunway, which developed Avant Parc in Sembawang. The completed project is selling at an average of $570 to $590 per sq ft (psf) of built-up area, with quantums from $2.488 million for a terrace home.

Mr Victor Ow, chairman and chief executive officer of Clydesbuilt Group, said the company is prepared to hold on to unsold homes at its completed Eleven @ Holland just as it held on to Lornie 18 residences during the 2009 recession.

It has started renting out Eleven @ Holland homes, with tenants for about eight homes already moving in. By the third quarter of next year, Mr Ow expects at least 75 per cent of homes to be taken up. Pricing at the project is an average of $1,050 psf, unchanged from its launch in June 2011.

“Despite cooling measures, good-quality projects in prime locations won’t be affected in the long term,” said Mr Ow.

At Belgravia Villas on Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5, which was launched a year ago with completion due in 2018, 31 of 118 landed homes have been sold at prices from $800 to $850 psf.

“Given recent government rules for strata-landed homes, future supply will be limited. We are confident our project will do well,” said Mr Darren Lim, assistant marketing manager at Tong Eng Brothers. Tong Eng’s unit Fairview Developments is building the project.

Consultants say the investment outlook for landed property remains encouraging. The vacancy rate for such homes was 3.5 per cent as at the third quarter while that for apartments was 8.2 per cent.

The average upcoming supply of 710 landed properties per year from 2015 to 2018 could be “easily taken up during a buoyant market”, said Mr Mak.

Mr Ong of R’ST Research expects resale prices for landed homes in the central region to be flat or fall up to 5 per cent next year while prices at suburban locations will continue to dip, falling up to 7 per cent next year.

Those in city fringe locations are likely to see flat pricing next year as those areas have become established as the “best of both worlds” with convenience and reasonable pricing.

“Investment yields are generally lower than for private condominiums, with gross yields of 2.5 to 3.5 per cent… Landed homes are better products to buy for long-term capital appreciation,” he said.

SOME members of the Song family behind Nanshan Group Singapore, which has been increasing its presence in the Singapore property market, are said to have bought a brand-new Good Class Bungalow (GCB) in Holland Park sold recently by Frasers Centrepoint for S$30 million.

Talk in the market has it that the purchase was made through Sui Yongqing, wife of Song Jianbo, eldest son of China-based Nanshan Group founder Song Zuowen.

The group, which is headquartered in Longkou City, Shandong Province, has interests as diverse as aluminium and golf courses to education, wine and real estate.

Ms Sui is understood to have become a Singapore citizen a few years ago. Her husband is believed to have become a Singapore citizen very recently.

Ms Sui, a director of Nanshan Group Singapore, is said to be an authorised signatory for the group’s business in Singapore. The couple, along with three of their four children, are said to currently reside in a condo in the Newton area. Their eldest daughter is in university in the US, according to a recent article in Lianhe Zaobao.

The S$30 million price of the freehold GCB translates to about S$1,991 per square foot (psf) on land area of 15,070.54 sq ft. The two-storey property has a pool, lift, five bedrooms, family area and a helper’s room.

Last week, Nanshan is said to have completed its S$270 million purchase of the former Midlink Plaza site in Middle Road on a turnkey basis. The site, which has a balance lease term of about 65 years, is being redeveloped into a 396-room boutique hotel, with some strata retail space. Nanshan has acquired all the shares of 122 Middle Investment Pte Ltd – which holds the project – from a consortium including Lian Beng Group, Centurion Properties, coffeeshop operator Chang Cheng Group and a vehicle controlled by Jason Lee, founder of the K Box chain.

Over in the Tai Seng MRT Station vicinity, Nanshan Group is said to have signed an agreement, subject to approval by the Strata Titles Board, to buy Irving Industrial Building through a collective sale.

This follows the requisite 80 per cent majority consent secured recently from the owners through a supplemental agreement to lower the reserve price to S$160 million, translating S$930 psf per plot ratio (psf ppr) including development charges, from the S$200 million (S$1,079 psf ppr) reserve price agreed in the collective sale agreement.

“We are in the midst of preparing an application for the en bloc sale to the Strata Titles Board,” said Shaun Poh, executive director (capital markets) at Cushman & Wakefield Singapore, when contacted. The group is handling Irving Industrial Building’s collective sale.

The 65,309-sq-ft freehold site can be redeveloped into a new project with 228,581 sq ft maximum gross floor area (GFA). It is zoned for Business 1-White use, with a 3.5 maximum gross plot ratio. Of this, at least 2.5 plot ratio (translating to 163,272-sq-ft GFA) shall be for Business 1 use and the remaining GFA of up to 65,309 sq ft will be for white uses.

Last year, Nanshan paid about S$250 million for the Park Regis Singapore hotel and the adjoining office block. The group also owns some space at GB Building in Cecil Street, where its office is located.

Last month, the group made its maiden purchase of a Singapore private residential site. It paid S$173.57 million or S$731 psf ppr for the 99-year leasehold plot in Lorong Puntong off Sin Ming Avenue.

A terrace housing development in Serangoon Gardens has become the first landed residential estate to achieve the Building and Construction Authority’s (BCA’s) top-tier Green Mark Platinum award.

HAUS@SERANGOON GARDEN, which comprises 96 landed terrace houses located at Serangoon Garden Way, is developed by City Developments Limited (CDL) and is slated for launch in the middle of the year.

The development uses both passive and active green building approaches to ensure that a comprehensive sustainable design is incorporated from the beginning.

Each house is equipped with state-of-the art green technology for energy and water efficiency.

It is the first landed housing development in Singapore to have a one kilowatt-peak photovoltaic (PV) system.

The solar power generated by the PV system helps to offset the grid electricity consumption by the refrigerator and reduces utility bills.

Rainwater will also be collected for gardening use.

The project also features an innovative air-conditioner heat recovery system, in which waste heat generated by the air-conditioner is used to provide house owners with hot water in the bathrooms.

Approximately four per cent of the total construction cost was invested into the development of the estate’s green innovations, which is expected to result in up to 40 per cent energy savings for each house.

Mr Kwek Leng Joo, managing director of CDL, said, “HAUS@SERANGOON GARDEN is a landmark residential development for us as we are able to deliver significant measurable and direct cost benefits to individual homebuyers over a long-term period.

“Through the extensive “greening” of each and every house within HAUS@SERANGOON GARDEN, we seek to create an integrated community of green homes that will inspire greater eco-consciousness across the larger Serangoon Garden residential enclave.”

Commenting on HAUS@SERANGOON GARDEN, Dr John Keung, CEO of BCA said, “This is a first time we have awarded the Green Mark Platinum rating to a landed housing estate in Singapore.”

“We are indeed encouraged to see developers like CDL and Hong Realty making the effort to bring environmentally sustainable designs to not only high-rise buildings but individual landed homes.”

“This project would serve as a good prototype for green landed housing in future and even for reference by existing homeowners who are looking to retrofit and improve the energy efficiency of their landed homes,” he added.

Source : CNA – 2012 May 22

Three adjoining landed properties at Amber Road in the East Coast district have been put up for sale by tender.

Marketing agent Credo Real Estate said the three plots of land are owned by separate owners, who have consented to sell collectively in a joint tender exercise.

The freehold sites have a combined land area of approximately 28,400 square feet (sq ft).

Credo said the sellers are expecting offers in the region of S$73 million to S$80 million.

This reflects a land rate of about S$1,243 to S$1,318 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr) for redevelopment up to a gross plot ratio of 2.8 and after factoring an estimated development charge in the region of S$25 million.

Credo’s executive director, Yong Choon Fah, said the “entire plot may be redeveloped into a high-rise residential development of over 20 storeys with partial sea views”.

She added that the potential gross floor area of about 79,500 sq ft may accommodate some 75 apartments with an average size of 1,000 sq ft.

According to Ms Yong, these three plots at Amber Road are the last standing landed properties in the area, which is a well-known address for high-rise condominiums that have command views of the sea.

Ms Yong added: “District 15 has always been a traditional favourite amongst both foreign and local homebuyers due to its proximity to the airport, East Coast Park, reputable schools and established amenities at Parkway Parade and East Coast Road.”

The tender closes at 2.30pm on June 22.

Source : CNA – 2012 May 23