SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) - A bungalow in the landed housing estate along Sunset Way has been the family home for a Permanent Resident and his family for the past 10 years. But the house has recently been put on the market as the owner’s wife and children have returned to their home country.
The freehold bungalow sits on an elevated 10,498 sq ft plot at the end of a cul-de-sac on Sunset Walk in district 21. The property is marketed by Cheong Choon Ghee, associate vice-president at List Sotheby’s International Realty.
The two-storey house has a total floor area of about 7,000 sq ft and it has five bedrooms, including two en suite bedrooms on the first floor and an en suite master bedroom on the second floor. The bungalow also features a 9m swimming pool and a driveway with space for five cars.
The property is priced from $11.5 million which translates to about $1,095 psf on the land area. According to Cheong, “The future owner is likely to be someone who appreciates the charm and character of the house, and is looking for a spacious family home that offers plenty of privacy.”
Sitting on higher ground compared to its neighbours, the back of the house faces a forested hill. The road leading to the house is quiet and does not attract much traffic. The property is less than 200m from Clementi Arcade, a shopping centre with a Cold Storage supermarket, gourmet grocers, an artisan bakery, a butcher, and cafes. The estate also features three parks and is connected to the nearby Ulu Pandan park connector.
Before they lived at this bungalow on Sunset Walk, the current owner and his family rented a black and white bungalow on Mount Pleasant. “We loved that experience, but after moving we appreciated even more what the Sunset Way estate has to offer. It is a wonderful neighbourhood with a community feel, and the area has lots of useful things in walking distance including the supermarket and hawker market,” the owner says.
He adds, “There are several nice parks near to our house which made it perfect for walking the dog, and it was an added bonus to discover the shortcut to Clementi MRT over the nearby Sungei Ulu Pandan canal.”
In the three months since the property was first put up for sale, Cheong has received about 50 inquiries from interested buyers and organised close to 20 separate viewings for potential buyers.
He says that the majority of people enquiring after the bungalow are locals rather than new citizens, and a handful are owners of Good Class Bungalows who want to buy the property for their children. There have also been enquiries from buyers with big families, which often consists of a couple with their children and grandparents.
Yet another group of interested buyers are residents from the surrounding landed neighbourhoods who live in smaller plots and are looking to move into a bigger house, says Cheong.
In fact, having enough space for his four children was one of the reasons why the owner of the bungalow was attracted to the property 10 years ago.
“We have four children who all grew up in our Sunset home. It was important for us to have lots of room for them to go about their activities, both inside and outside the house. There’s space to retreat for homework or quiet time, while another child practises the piano in the music room. Another can be outside with a friend swimming in the pool or on the trampoline. [My wife and I] grew up with space around us and we wanted the same for our children,” the owner says.
Not surprisingly, each member of the family has a preferred spot to unwind. For the owner, it is in the main living room which overlooks the garden and frangipani trees, while his wife enjoys sitting at the deck outside the dining room which faces the pool and green embankment. His children also enjoy spending time in the music room and the outdoor spaces.
According to Cheong, the bungalow is priced very attractively especially given the most recent transactions in the area. Based on URA caveats, the most recent sale in the neighbourhood was the 9,709 sq ft bungalow at 10 Sunset Drive which fetched $10.3 million ($1,061 psf) on Jan 28.
Cheong points out that land prices in district 21 have ranged between $1,100–$1,200 psf over the past two years, and most transactions have involved older houses which often also require renovations.
But buyers who still appreciate the location and intend to build their own home, the elevated bungalow site for sale offers plenty of redevelopment opportunities. “For example, you could build an attic floor which would overlook most of the neighbouring houses. Since this is located in a two-storey bungalow area, an attic can be built and the site will still retain some under-utilised space,” says Cheong.
“In most cases, houses that are priced in the $1,200 psf range are either next to the main road or a utility building like a substation. It is rare to find a property like this one Sunset Walk that is in a quiet location, not West facing, and also close to amenities,” he adds.
According to Cheong, “there is significant pent-up demand for sizeable landed properties” and the sales performance of recent new launches such as Bukit Sembawang’s Luxus Hills Contemporary Collection shows the submarket is healthy as a whole.
At the top end of the segment, new citizens are also house-hunting for available GCBs and there is strong demand for smaller-sized landed properties. This has led to an overall boost in buying interest for larger-sized landed properties on the market, says Cheong.
In fact, he says “the landed property market this year is healthier compared to the same period a year ago, and the improvement in general buying sentiment started from the second half of 2019”.
For the bungalow on sale at Sunset Walk, the owner hopes that a new young family will also get to enjoy the space as much as his family has. “We would love for another young family to have the house. It works so well and we like the idea of them enjoying the estate and all that it has to offer. It would also work well for older families as it’s quiet and there are plenty of key amenities in walking distance.”
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