ANALYSIS: Lessons learnt from the success of CanningHill Piers
By Elizabeth Choong
/ EdgeProp Singapore |
CanningHill Piers (Picture: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Where river and hill meet
SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) - CanningHill Piers is a 99-year leasehold mixed development built on the site of the former Liang Court. When completed in 2025, the development will have two residential towers with 696 units, CanningHill Square (three levels of shops and restaurants), Somerset Serviced Residence and Moxy Singapore Clarke Quay (hotel).
The residential units sold extremely well with 563 units sold during November 2021 when it was launched. Main pull factors include being within walking distance of Singapore River, Fort Canning Park, Clarke Quay and Raffles Place as well as direct access to Fort Canning MRT station. Orchard Road and Great World City are a short drive away. Being a mixed development with a variety of amenities also helped boost sales. In addition, CanningHill Piers is developed by City Developments Limited (CDL) and CapitaLand; two of Singapore’s most prestigious developers with impressive track records for luxury homes.
Attractive pricing
CanningHill Piers was one of the top 10 best-selling projects when it launched. The attractive average price of $2,902 to $3,075 psf, impeccable reputation of the developers and lack of new nearby projects contributed to its popularity. At the time of writing, CanningHill Piers had a take-up rate of 85.5%.
The super penthouse (#48-08) was also sold in November 2021 at $48.0 million ($5,360 psf); just under the asking price of $50.0 million thus making it one of the largest deals for penthouses in 2021. The 8,956-sq ft unit is also the only penthouse in CanningHill Piers that is sold. Four smaller penthouses are still up for sale.
The next two largest deals (in terms of price per square foot) are for #44-08 ($3,481 psf) and #48-06 ($3,454 psf). #44-08 is a 732-sq ft two-bedroom unit while #48-06 is a 409-sq ft one-bedroom unit. The high level and small size translated to the higher price.
The average price for CanningHill Piers has stayed largely unchanged since launch; a testament to the developers’ commitment to maintain their well-deserved stellar reputation over short-term profits.
Small is still beautiful
An analysis of the sales transactions captured by Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) indicates that #04-06 fetched the lowest total price of $1.160 million in November 2021. The property is a one-bedroom 409-sq ft unit on a low level which accounted for the low price. The next 15 transactions with the lowest total price are also one-bedroom units from the same stack and sold during the same month. Prices for these 16 transactions ranged from $2,836 to $3,039 psf which is on par with the overall average of $2,937 psf for the development. (Check all latest property transactions in Singapore)
One-bedroom showflat (Picture: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Unfortunately for investors, all one-bedroom units in stack 6 have been snapped up. Two-bedroom units are also moving fast. Despite numerous recent reports that buyers are on the hunt for larger homes due to work-from-home arrangements, smaller units are still popular with investors, especially for developments in centralised locations.
The demand for one and two-bedroom units in CanningHill Piers are likely from investors planning to capitalise on the project’s proximity to Raffles Place to attract tenants. Interested investors may wish to consider one-bedroom plus study units but they will have to act fast as very few of such units are still unsold.
Height matters
Units at higher levels usually cost more than those at lower levels. But how much more for CanningHill Piers? We examined stacks 3 and 4 from levels 4 to 39 which comprise one-bedroom plus study units that are almost sold out. The units in stack 3 are slightly larger by 11 sq ft at 549 sq ft and both stacks have views of UE Square. Levels 23 and 40 to 48 are excluded from the analysis because they have different unit types.
From Graph 2, it is obvious that units from both stacks from levels 25 to 39 sold for $169 to $192 psf more than their counterparts from levels 4 to 22; a good indication of the additional amount that buyers are willing to pay for units at higher levels.
View commands higher prices
Trophy homes with beautiful views are highly sought-after assets. Buyers of CanningHill Piers are able to choose from views of the historical Singapore River, tranquil Fort Canning Park and vibrant Clarke Quay. Most would agree that the Singapore River is the most ideal view and assume that units with that view sold out quickly. Our analysis reveals otherwise.
Stack 1 offers the best view of the river while stacks 11 and 10 on higher levels offer partial view. At the time of writing, take-up for stack 1 is 47.6% because it comprises large units that are less popular with buyers. Stack 10 fares much better with a take-up of 97.5% but only one unit was sold from stack 11.
Stack 10 outperformed the other two stacks because it comprises one-bedroom plus study units from levels 4 to 23 and four-bedroom premium units from levels 25 to 44. The smaller units are all sold and there is only one unsold larger unit. The four-bedroom premium units in stack 10 are popular because they are on high levels while similar units are on levels 4 to 23 for the other two stacks.
A total of 19 four-bedroom premium units in stack 10 sold for an average of $3,335 psf while 14 similar units in stack 1 fetched an average of $2,861 psf. Stack 11 is not used as a comparison because there is only one transaction. Therefore, we can infer buyers are willing to pay about $474 psf more for stack 10 despite having only a partial view of the Singapore River.
Four-bedroom premium showflat (Picture: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Some might argue that the buyers are paying more for higher levels and not the view so we examined stacks 20 and 22. Both stacks comprise three-bedroom units from levels 4 to 23 thus eliminating higher levels from the analysis. Stacks 22 have views of Fort Canning Park while Stack 20 have an additional view of the serviced apartment. Stack 20 is slightly larger at 1,259 sq ft compared to 1,130 sq ft for stack 22. Stack 22 with a full view of Fort Canning Park is fetching $2,861 psf compared to $2,604 psf for stack 20. Hence, we can surmise that buyers are willing to pay at least $257 psf more for views of nature.
Willing to pay for privacy and space
There are three-bedroom units in stack 20 (1,259 sq ft) and 22 (1,130 sq ft). Three-bedroom premium units with a private lift lobby (1,313 sq ft) are found only in stack 23 which has sold out because it offers more privacy and space. This is despite the units in stack 23 costing at least $83 psf more.
Usable space is important even for large units
Four-bedroom premium units are found in stacks 1, 10 and 11 with stack 10 performing the best and stack 1 bringing up the rear. This is despite stack 10 having the smallest units (1,755 sq ft) and stack 11 having the largest (1,959 sq ft). Those in stack 1 are 1,948 sq ft. The units in stack 10 are the most popular because they are at higher levels while those in the other two stacks are at lower levels.
The unpopularity of four-bedroom premium units in stack 11 can be explained by its inefficient floor plan. With a private lift lobby in the middle of the unit (Floor Plan 1 below), there is much unusable space from two corridors. The four-bedroom units in the other two stacks have less wasted space because the private lift lobby is tucked away in a corner (Floor Plans 2 and 3).
The four-bedroom premium units in stack 10 are almost sold out so interested buyers may wish to consider the next best alternative; namely stack 1 which is still a good buy because of its lower per square foot price and better view of the Singapore River. The main drawback would be the units are on a low level.
Lessons to be learned
- Smaller units are still popular among investors especially if the development is in a centralised location. Larger units may take longer to sell especially if they are on lower levels.
- Buyers are willing to pay more for units at higher levels and they are willing to pay even more if it comes with an excellent view. Buyers are also willing to pay for privacy and space.
- Size and usable space are important to buyers even for large units.
- Owner-occupiers looking for larger units may be able to pick up a good deal if they are willing to compromise on level.
- CanningHill Piers is developed by CapitaLand and CDL; two of Singapore’s largest and most prestigious developers. Their impressive track record and reputation have given the development a strong branding and helped boost sales.
Check out the latest listings near CanningHill Piers, Fort Canning MRT station
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