Source : Straits Times - 10 Sep 2008
A TENDER for a choice residential development site right next to Tanah Merah MRT station has attracted a healthy seven bids - proving that even in a subdued market, location is king.
TID placed the highest bid - $84 million, or $282 per sq ft (psf) of potential gross floor area, the Urban Redevelopment Authority said yesterday.
The firm is a partnership between the Hong Leong Group and Japan’s leading real estate company Mitsui Fudosan.
Its bid is 12 per cent above the second highest bid - from Sim Lian Land - at $75 million or about $252 psf of potential gross floor area.
Boon Keng Development was third at $61.88 million or about $208 psf of potential gross floor area.
Other bids were much lower, with First Changi Development coming in last at $44.63 million.
The seven bids were a strong showing. ‘It’s a positive shot in the arm for the property market where sentiment is concerned,’ said Knight Frank’s head of research and consultancy Nicholas Mak.
He said the 99-year leasehold Tanah Merah Kechil Avenue site generated healthy interest as it is next to an MRT station.
‘In light of the current cautious sentiment in the residential market, the amount of interest that this site has generated provides evidence that land parcels in good locations with immediate accessibility to transport links are still sought after by developers,’ said CBRE Research director Leonard Tay.
TID’s bid is lower than the $318.50 psf per plot ratio price achieved for the nearby Casa Merah site back in 2006.
Property consultants said the breakeven cost of a condo at the Tanah Merah site should be at $700 psf to $750 psf, based on the top bid. This means that TID, if awarded the site, would be able to sell condo units at between $800 psf and $850 psf, they say.
Source : Straits Times - 10 Sep 2008
Posted in Developer News, General, Land Sales | Tagged: Developers, Hong Leong, Land Sales, Mitsui Fudosan, New Upper Changi Road, URA, TID, Tanah Merah | No Comments »
Holland Village valets not leaving
Posted by luxuryasiahome on September 10, 2008
THE valets at Holland Village have been operating without a licence for more than a year now, the Housing Board has said, and yesterday, they continued flouting the rules despite the presence of wardens who warned them to stop.
The parking wardens, contracted by the HDB, started acting from 6pm. They issued verbal warnings to employees of the two valet service operators in the open-air carpark there.
Each time a valet parked a car for a customer, a warden approached him and warned him to stop.
Despite being told that they could be fined $400 if they continued, the valets ignored the warnings and went about their business.
A warden said that they would keep issuing warnings for up to three days before ‘action’ is taken.
In a response to queries from The Straits Times, the HDB said yesterday that the temporary occupational licence issued to the valet service operators in Holland Village had been revoked in April last year.
A spokesman said the operators had been advised to cease their business, but the HDB did not take any action.
He added that the board only decided to act after an amendment to its rules in June made it illegal for anyone to conduct a business in HDB carparks.
The spokesman said that another reason it decided to take action now was that it had received negative feedback on the valets from both motorists and residents.
For instance, he said, there were complaints that valets parked cars at lots reserved for season ticket holders.
Some customers of the shops and restaurants in the area had also said the valets sometimes reserved empty lots by standing in front of them and waving away motorists who wanted to park there.
The two valet operators, who have been there for several years, maintained that they were told only on Monday that they could no longer operate there.
Bright red signs stating that such services were illegal were erected at the two entrances to the carpark on Monday evening.
When asked if they would stop operating now that wardens are in the area, one valet, who wanted to be known only as Mr Ray K., said business would go on.
He said that they could not stop now because of the tie-ups they have with businesses which offer their customers free valet services.
Both operators are awaiting further notice from the HDB.
Since the signs went up, however, some drivers have steered clear of the valets, fearing that they would break the law.
Sakthya Services, which normally parks 40 to 50 cars a night, had only about 20 customers yesterday.
The other operator, Purple Valet Services, had fewer than 10, down from 30 to 40 a night.
Wardens who spoke to The Straits Times, however, said no action would be taken against motorists.
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