BT : Top bid for Pasir Ris site from Frasers Centrepoint, Far East

Business Times - 01 Oct 2010

Top bid for Pasir Ris site from Frasers Centrepoint, Far East

FRASERS Centrepoint and Far East Organization have jointly put in the top bid of $151.4 million, or $335 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr) for a residential site at Pasir Ris.

Just four bids were received for the 99-year leasehold site at the junction of Pasir Ris Drive 3 and Pasir Ris Drive 4 at close of the state tender yesterday.

Frasers Centrepoint and Far East plan to build a project with 400-450 units through a 50:50 joint venture if the site is awarded to them. The project, which will be completed in about five years, will target HDB upgraders in the east and the vicinity.

The offer by the two developers was 8 per cent above the second-highest offer of $140.7 million or $311 psf ppr from Hoi Hup Realty, Sunway Developments and SC Wong Holdings.

The two other bids came from Allgreen Properties ($131.9 million or $292 psf ppr) and Meadows Investment ($106 million or $234 psf ppr).

The tender result mirrors that for an executive condominium site at Punggol which closed on Sept 23 and drew just four bids.

Since the government introduced new measures to cool the property market on Aug 30, developers have been increasingly cautious with land tender bids, said Nicholas Mak, executive director of SLP International Property Consultants.

He also noted that in the current second half-year, no Reserve List site has been triggered for tender as the government is pushing out a large supply of land under the Confirmed List.

The top bid of $335 psf ppr for the Pasir Ris site translates to a breakeven cost of $650-$680 psf, said Li Hiaw Ho, executive director of CBRE Research. He expects that units in the new residential project could sell for about $800 psf.

CBRE's data shows that private homes nearby have been selling for around that price.

Around 350 units at the nearby NV Residences have reportedly been sold at an average price of $835 psf in the past month. And units at Livia, adjacent to NV Residences, went for between $720 psf and $840 psf between July and September. Over at Elias Road, units at Oasis@Elias sold at between $650 psf and $740 psf in the same period.

Separately, the Urban Redevelopment Authority yesterday released detailed sale conditions for an industrial site at Woodlands Avenue 12.

Developers interested in purchasing the site can now apply to URA for it to be put up for tender.

The 60-year leasehold parcel - the first of four new sites to be released for sale under the Reserve List of the government's H2 2010 industrial land sales programme - covers about 2.1 ha and has a gross plot ratio of 2.5.

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