Northumberland Road GLS site drew strong interest from developers
- By administrator
- 2 mins read
- Press Room
- 28 Apr 2021
SINGAPORE, 27 April 2021 – The Government Land Sales (GLS) tender for the private residential site with commercial space on the first storey at Northumberland Road closed on 27 April. The site was under the 2H 2020 Government Land Sales programme Confirmed List and was the tender launched was launched in October 2020. The land parcel could yield about 405 housing units.
The details for this site are included in the table below:
Table 1: Details of the private housing site at Northumberland Road
| Location | Northumberland Road |
| Site Area | 8,732.9 sqm |
| Maximum Permissible Gross Floor Area | 36,679 sqm |
| Estimated Commercial Space | 1,500 sqm |
| Estimated number of dwelling units | 405 |
| Lease Period | 99 years |
Source: URA
The land parcel is conveniently located next to Farrer Park MRT station, which is only two stops away from the Dhoby Ghaut MRT interchange along the Orchard Road shopping belt. The subject site is also within close vicinity to medical institutions like Farrer Park Hospital, KK Women’s and Children Hospital, and shopping malls such as City Square Mall and Mustafa Shopping Centre.
The commercial space on the first storey of the development is likely to be used for shops and food & beverage (F&B) outlets which would attract certain young and mobile residents and tenants.
Moreover, the estimated size of 405 dwelling units is rather manageable for most developers to build and sell all the units within five years, thus minimizing the risks of exceeding the ABSD (Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty) deadline.
Comparable residential development
The last residential GLS site that was sold around this location was the site for Uptown @ Farrer on Perumal Road. This land plot was sold in January 2017 at a land rate of $1001 psf per plot ratio (ppr).
Uptown @ Farrer is also the only new residential project with units available for sale in the Farrer Park area. As of the end of March 2021, about 70% of the total number of units are sold. By the time the new development at Northumberland Road is launched for sale, probably in 2022 or 2023, all the units in Uptown @ Farrer would be sold.
The median transacted prices for the comparable condominiums in that location are stated below:
Table 2: Comparable residential projects to Northumberland Road GLS
| Project Name | Road name | Tenure | Year of completion | Total no. of units | Median price $psf* |
| Uptown @ Farrer | Perumal Road | 99 years | Uncompleted | 116 | $1,929 |
| Eight Riversuites | Whampoa East | 99 years | 2016 | 843 | $1,445 |
| City Square Residences | Kitchener Link | Freehold | 2009 | 910 | $1,614 |
| Citylights | Jellicoe Road | 99 years | 2007 | 600 | $1,514 |
| Kerrisdale | Sturdee Road | 99 years | 2005 | 481 | $1,183 |
*Note: Median price is based on reported transactions from January to March 2021
Source: URA, ERA Research & Consultancy
Tender results
The strong take-up in the recent launches, from Midtown Modern to one-north Eden, had increased the confidence of real estate developers to acquire development land, especially GLS sites.
The tender for this site attracted 10 bids. The highest bid was submitted by a JV between City Developments Ltd and MCL Land at $445,888,000 or at the land rate of $1,129 psf ppr.
The robust tender participation rate for the Northumberland Road GLS tender could be due to the diminishing private housing supply in the city-fringe area. The only new project that is not yet launched in the RCR is the 388-unit Liv @ MB located in District 15. Hence, some property developers are eager to replenish their land bank.
This is the first residential GLS tender to close this year and it would set the tone for the other two GLS tenders that will close on 25 May 2021.
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