The Residences at W sees strong response with 65 units sold at an average price of $1,780 psf

The 228-unit The Residences at W Singapore Sentosa Cove, where 65 of the 203 remaining units were snapped up over two days at an average price of $1,78- psf (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)

Cityview Place Holdings, an associate of Singapore-listed property group City Developments Ltd (CDL), offered 58 units at The Residences at W Singapore Sentosa Cove for sale by placement. The units were open for viewing from April 10 to 14, while bookings began yesterday.

The four days of viewings by appointment only drew 3,200 visitors. PropNex, ERA Realty, Huttons Asia, and SRI were appointed marketing agencies.

As at 10pm on April 15, 45 units were sold, says a Cityview spokesperson. Additional units were released for sale, with another 20 snapped up today [April 16]. The 65 units sold fetched an average selling price of $1,780 psf.

According to Cityview, Singaporeans and Permanent Residents comprised 94% of the buyers, while the remaining 6% were foreigners from China, France and the US.

The two-bedroom and three-bedroom units were the most popular, with the duplex penthouses finding favour with the well-heeled. "The strong response to the special pricing reaffirms the robust demand for Sentosa Cove properties among homebuyers seeking luxurious, high-quality homes in an exclusive waterfront enclave," says the Cityview spokesperson.

The 228-unit, six-storey luxury condo was developed by CDL and completed in 2011. Like all the other bungalows and condos in the upscale 117-ha waterfront enclave, The Residences at W has a 99-year lease. With a lease from 2006, it still has a remaining lease of 81 years.

Prices of the 58 units were offered "for a limited time only", with two-bedroom units of 1,227 sq ft priced from $2.118 million ($1,726 psf). Three-bedroom units from 1,625 sq ft were priced above $2.678 million ($1,648 psf), while four-bedroom units from 2,067 sq ft were north of $3.488 million ($1,687 psf). These prices were effectively 40% below the peak prices when The Residences at W was launched in 2010.

Based on caveats lodged, 20 units were sold at an average price of $2,793 psf in 2010. Another five units were sold on the resale market, with the last, a 1,259 sq ft unit on the fifth storey, changing hands for $2.2 million ($1,747 psf) in September 2023.

With 65 units (32%) sold, 138 of the initial 203 unsold units are still available.

The latest prices at The Residences at W were "substantially lower" than new launches in the suburban or Outside Central Region (OCR), which have seen average prices in the range of $2,100 to $2,200 psf, notes Ismail Gafoor, CEO of PropNex.

"Buyers were wooed by the attractive pricing," says Gafoor. "They see the waterfront property as a value-buy given that it is an upscale project in the Core Central Region [CCR]."

Apart from the competitive pricing, buyers were also drawn by the spacious units and resort-like environment, according to Gafoor. "Post-pandemic, some buyers, particularly owner-occupiers, may be seeking larger homes in a relatively low-density residential area, with a manageable price quantum." He adds that investors were also keen to pick up units at potentially attractive rental yields, given the pricing of these units.