Twelve years ago, Melvin Poh gained fame as the founder of Fission Group and developer of Alexis on Alexandra Road, which was developed in a joint venture with Yi Kai Group. The project fuelled a wave of shoebox apartment projects when all 293 units at Alexis were snapped up within three days of its launch in 2009.
He also co-founded Centra Group of Companies with his brother, Jason Poh, who joined as a director of the company in late 2014. The niche developer had started by developing several boutique apartment and condominium blocks, such as Centra Loft, Centra Suites and Centra Residences, which are located in the city-fringe neighbourhoods of Geylang and Ang Mo Kio, and completed in the 2013 to 2015 period.
Owing to the successive rounds of property cooling measures, Centra Group has shifted its focus to landed property over the past two years. These are predominantly freehold, semi-detached or bungalow developments in prime Districts 9, 10 and 11.
The projects included a pair of Good Class Bungalows (GCBs) on Belmont Road, one of which was sold for $33.8 million ($2,243 psf) in August last year; a newly completed detached house at One Tree Hill that fetched a record price of $13.88 million in December 2017; two detached houses in Chancery Hill area that fetched more than $24 million in total; as well as a pair of semi-detached houses in Binjai Park and another pair of semi-detached houses on Stevens Road that were sold for an aggregate amount of $30 million.
“Over the last two years, we have sold more than $100 million worth of landed property alone,” notes Melvin. In the pipeline are another 10 landed property sites in prime Districts 9, 10 and 11, which are at various stages of development. They have an aggregate gross development value of close to $100 million, he estimates.
Of the 10 landed property developments, six are bungalows, which include two newly completed detached houses at 6 and 6A Holland Grove Lane. Both detached houses were completed in June 2019, and have already obtained Certificate of Statutory Completion (CSC).
The two newly completed detached houses are a redevelopment of a former bungalow sitting on a freehold land area of 8,504 sq ft at 6 Holland Grove Lane, which Centra Group purchased for $11.5 million ($1,352 psf) in October 2017, according to a caveat lodged then.
The land parcel was subsequently sub-divided into two smaller sites: the slightly bigger of the two is at No. 6 Holland Grove Lane, with a site area of 4,306 sq ft and built-up area of 8,321 sq ft; while the other, at No. 6A Holland Grove Lane, has a site area of 4,198 sq ft and built-up area of 8,138 sq ft.
Edmund Ng Architects, famous for designing private houses for those who want “a bespoke, luxury home”, was engaged as the architect and interior designer of the two houses on Holland Grove Lane. They were designed as a mirror image of each other, says Ng. The houses each have three levels including the attic, a home lift that serves every floor, a master suite and five en suite bedrooms, as well as a 17m lap pool.
On the first level is a spacious living and dining area. The enclosed kitchen is generous in size and fully equipped with top-end Gaggenau appliances in addition to the Viking stove, which is one of the best when it comes to cooking with a gas flame, says Jason of Centra Group. The bathrooms feature Villeroy & Boch sanitaryware and sanitary fittings from Italian brand Gessi.
The second level has three en suite bedrooms, including the master suite. One of the bedrooms has been turned into a family room and comes with a pantry and en suite bathroom. According to Jason, it could be turned into a junior master suite if needed. “It depends on how a family evolves,” he says.
Ng envisions the second floor as an ideal self-contained apartment for a young family who wants to live with their parents, as it has a pantry in the living room, and two other en suite bedrooms on the level, including the master suite. Alternatively, to create a loft-style apartment on the second level, all the walls can be knocked down to create one big space, he adds.
The master suite on the second level occupies at least 1,000 sq ft, with a walk-in wardrobe, en suite bathroom and spacious bedroom, says Jason. A concealed doorway from the walk-in wardrobe leads to a private balcony. There’s also a second entrance from the master bedroom to the walk-in wardrobe to access the balcony easily.
The master bedroom is spacious enough to carve out additional wardrobe space for handbags and shoes, in addition to clothes, says Ng.
The third level or attic has three en suite bedrooms, one of which has been converted into a lounge and bar. If the owner does not need the two additional bedrooms, one can be converted into a private gym and the other, a home office, hobby room or art studio, adds Ng.
The two houses at Holland Grove Lane are also equipped with solar panels on the roof. “As an experiment, we fitted solar panels in my parents’ house,” says Melvin. “The electricity bill dived to less than $300 a month for five adults living in the house. While the solar panels may be rather costly to fit out, it makes sense to install them in the long term, as they generally last for 20 years and are friendly to Mother Earth.”
The showhouse at 6 Holland Grove Lane is furnished with furniture pieces from Italian brand Poliform, selected by Ng. He has designed the house as a multi-generational family home. However, given the spacious living and dining area and the master suite, the house has the flexibility to be turned into “something radical, like a party house”, adds Ng. The entire first level can be turned into a massive dining area; the master suite on the second level can be converted into a living room; and the attic level can be converted into a grand master suite, he suggests.
While each individual’s taste is different, the showhouse is furnished to have universal appeal, says Melvin. “Everyone wants a house with a spacious living room that can accommodate a 12-seater sofa, a grand piano as a centrepiece, and a mega master suite, which at 1,000 sq ft, is equivalent to a three-bedroom apartment.”
The property at No. 6 Holland Grove Lane has a price tag of $11.98 million or $2,782 psf based on land area; and No. 6A, which is slightly smaller in size, is priced at $11.88 million or $2,811 psf. The selling prices are pegged close to valuation, says Melvin.
In the vicinity of the landed housing estate are public gardens and playgrounds, as well as park connectors. “I love the location too for its proximity to Ghim Moh and Holland Drive Wet Markets as well as Henry Park Primary School, which is just a few hundred metres away,” he adds.
Another advantage of the site is that it’s elevated above street level, notes Jason. “You can see the nearby Dover MRT Station from the second-level balcony of both houses,” he adds. “From the front, the houses have a clear view of Star Vista at one-north, which is within walking distance.”
The two houses developed by Centra Group are marketed by ERA and Realstar Premier Group. “There’s interest in the two detached houses on Holland Grove Lane as bungalows are rarely available in this area,” says Bernard Wu, deputy head of GCBs and group division director of ERA. “Most of them are semi-detached houses, especially in the Moonbeam, Mount Sinai and Jalan Jelita areas.”
Holland Grove Lane, as well as the neighbouring streets of Holland Grove Drive and Holland Grove Walk, have predominantly bungalows. “It’s believed to be the premium row and preferred location in the Holland Grove-Mount Sinai enclave,” notes ERA’s Wu.
There are only an estimated 25 bungalows on these three streets in Holland Grove. “I love the low-density ambience of the Holland Grove Lane,” says Melvin of Centra Group.
William Wong, founder of Realstar Premier Group, has witnessed a surge in demand for bungalows in the $10 million to $15 million price range over the past four months. Such detached houses, sitting on freehold land size of 4,300 sq ft to 6,000 sq ft each in the Central areas, are limited in number, he adds.
Wong sees interest in such detached houses from upgraders of smaller landed properties or those downsizing from GCBs. There are also those who are living in landed properties in the east and northeast and want to move to the Central area, mainly because of the prestigious schools in the enclave, he says.
According to Wong, the past 12 months have seen landed property prices stabilising, while transaction volume has contracted by about 10% to 20%, especially since July 2018, when new cooling measures were introduced.
ERA’s Wu sees the location of Holland Grove Lane as a main draw: In addition to the prime District 10 address, the detached houses are less than 1km from the Henry Park Primary School, and are near bus stops and multiple MRT stations, namely Dover, Holland Village and Sixth Avenue stations.
Besides the elevated site and landscaped gardens, the houses offer “breath-taking views from the second and attic levels, as well as a grand and wide frontage with parking space for three cars”, adds Wu.
For price trends, recent transactions, other project info, check out Holland Grove Lane project research page
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