Last month, a one-bedroom loft unit on the seventh storey of Up@Robertson Quay was sold for $1.11 million ($1,946 psf), resulting in a loss of $403,000. The seller had purchased the 570-sq ft unit in January 2016 for $1.513 million ($2,652 psf).

We used our analytics tool, Is it a Good Deal?, to assess whether the buyer of the 99-year leasehold condo unit in District 9 secured a good deal.

Prime location by the Singapore River

Up@Robertson Quay is located along Robertson Quay within District 9. The condo obtained its temporary occupation permit (TOP) in 2015, making it 10 years old. However, the land lease of the 99-year leasehold condo started in 2011, leaving it with a remaining lease of 85 years (see Screenshot 1).

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The prime location of Up@Robertson Quay means that it is within walking distance of many amenities, including M Social Singapore, New Bahru, The Quayside, Tan Boon Liat Building and the Singapore River. Primary schools within a 2km radius include Alexandra Primary School, Cantonment Primary School, River Valley Primary School, St. Margaret’s School (Primary) and Zhangde Primary School. The condo is also a short drive from Orchard Road and the CBD.

The main drawback of the condo is the lack of MRT stations within walking distance. Havelock MRT Station (Thomson–East Coast Line) is the nearest station, but it is approximately 560m away. However, this could be mitigated by the Central Expressway, which is a short drive away (see Map 1).

There are only 70 units in Up@Robertson Quay, comprising a mix of one-bedroom and two-bedroom properties. The majority of the units range in size from 463 sq ft to 1,152 sq ft. At 570 sq ft, the subject unit is one of the smaller units in the condo.

Our tool also indicated that the transacted price of $1,946 psf for the subject unit is below the average price for Up@Robertson Quay. The transacted price is also below the average prices for District 9 as well as several nearby resale and new condos (see Screenshot 2).

Price fell 18.5% since launch

Despite its prime location and long remaining lease, the average price of Up@Robertson Quay has declined by 18.5%, from $2,520 psf in 2012 to $2,053 psf this year (see Chart 1).

Furthermore, the average resale price of the condo has decreased by 12% since 2023. In contrast, the average resale price for 99-year leasehold condos in District 9 that are 10 years old or younger has inched up by 0.7% to $2,734 psf, while the average for similar condos in the Central Region has risen by 10.8% to $2,395 psf (see Chart 2).

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Second highest loss

Given its price decline since launch, it is hardly surprising that Up@Robertson Quay has chalked up 10 unprofitable transactions, with losses ranging from approximately $89,000 to $690,000. To date, only one profitable transaction, with a profit of approximately $48,000, has been reported for the condo.

At the time of writing, the $403,000 loss for the subject unit is the second-highest for the condo. The seller bought the unit from the developer in January 2016 for $1.513 million ($2,652 psf) and sold it last month for $1.11 million ($1,946 psf).

The 570-sq ft unit on the seventh storey features a master bedroom, a common bathroom and a study (see Floor Plan 1). The unit also has a balcony that is accessible from both the living area and the study. The unit also features a loft that is accessible via the stairs adjacent to the kitchen.

The most unprofitable transaction took place in September last year, when a 753-sq ft two-bedroom unit on the seventh storey was sold for $1.4 million ($1,858 psf), resulting in a loss of $690,000. The seller had purchased the unit from the developer in November 2012 for $2.09 million ($2,774 psf).

The two-bedroom unit features an en-suite master bedroom, an additional bedroom and a common bathroom (see Floor Plan 2). The second bedroom is partitioned with folding doors, allowing residents to open them to create a larger living and dining area. Similar to the above-mentioned unit, this unit also features a loft that is accessible via the stairs adjacent to the kitchen.

A reason for both losses could be that the average price for the condo fell by 18.5% from $2,520 psf in 2012 and by 11.5% from $2,319 psf in 2016 to $2,053 psf this year (see Chart 1). Furthermore, the sellers bought their loft units at higher-than-average prices and sold them at lower-than-average prices (see Table 1).

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To date, four unprofitable transactions have been recorded for the condo this year, with losses ranging from approximately $89,000 to $403,000. Hence, the loss for the subject unit is the highest for this year (see Table 2).

Only one profitable transaction since launch

To date, there has been only one profitable transaction for Up@Robertson Quay. The seller bought a 463-sq ft unit on the sixth storey from the developer in June 2012 for $1.141 million ($2,465 psf) and sold it in February 2018 for $1.189 million ($2,569 psf), resulting in a profit of approximately $48,000.

The seller managed to turn a profit because they bought the unit at a lower-than-average price of $2,465 psf in 2012 and sold it at a higher-than-average price of $2,569 psf in 2018. The average price for the condo was $2,520 psf in 2012 and $2,373 psf in 2018 (see Chart 1).

The unit involved features a master bedroom and a common bathroom, along with a balcony accessible from both the master bedroom and the living area (see Floor Plan 3).

Five 99-year leasehold condos within 500m radius

There are 31 condos, comprising approximately 5,800 units, within a 500m radius of Up@Robertson Quay. Of these, only five have 99-year leases, namely The Quayside, River Place, Gambier Court, Martin Modern and Riviere (see Map 2). The remaining 26 are freehold or 999-year leasehold condos.

Of the five 99-year leasehold condos, only Martin Modern (TOP in 2021) and Riviere (TOP in 2023) are of a similar age to Up@Robertson Quay (TOP in 2015). River Place obtained its TOP in 2000, while Gambier Court (TOP in 1999) and The Quayside (TOP in 1998) were completed earlier.

However, both Martin Modern (450 units) and Riviere (455 units) are larger developments compared to Up@Robertson Quay (70 units).

Neighbours report stronger price growth and profitability

Despite their close proximity, Riviere is in District 3, while Martin Modern and Up@Robertson Quay are in District 9. Riviere is located along Jiak Kim Street, while Martin Modern is along Martin Place.

Despite not being in a prime district, the average price of Riviere ($2,944 psf) trends above that of Martin Modern ($2,761 psf) and Up@Robertson Quay ($2,053 psf) (see Chart 3). In fact, Riviere has achieved the highest average resale price among 99-year leasehold condos in the Rest of Central Region (RCR).

Notably, the average price of Up@Robertson Quay has declined by 1.6% y-o-y since last year, while prices at Riviere and Martin Modern have risen by 2.5% y-o-y and 2.7% y-o-y, respectively.

The stronger price growth for Riviere and Martin Modern could explain their stronger profitability. At the time of writing, 16 profitable and two unprofitable transactions have been recorded for Martin Modern this year. Meanwhile, Riviere has chalked up eight profitable and one unprofitable transaction. In comparison, only four unprofitable transactions have been recorded for Up@Robertson Quay (see Table 2).

This year’s profits for Martin Modern range from approximately $18,000 to $1.082 million. The million-dollar profit is the third-highest for Martin Modern, which has chalked up four such profits since its launch (see Table 3).

The seller had purchased the 1,399-sq ft unit from the developer in July 2017 for $3.018 million ($2,157 psf) and sold it in January for $4.1 million ($2,930 psf), resulting in a profit of approximately $1.082 million.

Meanwhile, this year’s profits for Riviere range from approximately $89,000 to $622,000. The top profit of $622,000 is a record high for the condo. It is also one of only two transactions at Riviere that have yielded profits above $500,000 (see Table 4).

The seller had bought the 2,002-sq ft unit from the developer in March 2022 for $5.428 million ($2,711 psf) and sold it in August for $6.05 million ($3,022 psf), resulting in a profit of $622,000.

Conclusion

The loss of $403,000 experienced by the seller of the subject unit is the second-highest for Up@Robertson Quay. Furthermore, the condo has recorded 10 unprofitable transactions and only one profitable transaction since its launch in 2012. In contrast, neighbouring Martin Modern and Riviere have reported more profitable than unprofitable transactions. Both nearby condos have also achieved higher average prices and stronger price growth compared to Up@Robertson Quay.

A reason for the weak profitability of Up@Robertson Quay could be its average price decline of 18.5% since launch. Another factor could be the unit mix of the condo, which comprises mostly one-bedroom and two-bedroom units. Furthermore, the majority of units are under 1,000 sq ft, and their compact sizes may be less appealing to families, thereby limiting demand.

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