GuocoLand sells 84% of units at Lentor Modern on launch day
By Cecilia Chow
/ EdgeProp Singapore |
The model of the 605-unit Lentor Modern across three 25-storey residential blocks (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) - Singapore-listed property group GuocoLand announced that it sold 508 units out of a total of 605 at Lentor Modern on the first day of the project’s launch on Sept 17. The sales translate to a take-up rate of 84%.
According to GuocoLand, Singaporeans made up 92% of the total buyers, with permanent residents and foreigners accounting for the remaining 8%. The buyers are predominantly owner-occupiers, with upgraders constituting the majority, says GuocoLand.
Units sold on Sept 17 at Lentor Modern, with all the one- and two-bedrooms snapped up, along with 75% of the three-bedders and more than half of the four-bedders (Source: Agents)
Prices of units sold at Lentor Modern during the launch ranged from $1,856 psf to $2,538 psf, says GuocoLand.
“At such prices, we anticipate that Lentor Modern is likely to set the benchmark for subsequent projects to be launched in this area,” says Ismail Gafoor, CEO of PropNex.
As the largest private non-landed residential project rolled out this year, the number of units sold at Lentor Modern on its launch weekend makes it “the best-selling project in 2022”, says Mark Yip, CEO of Huttons Asia.
“Buyers have also accepted that $2,000 psf or higher will be the norm for Outside Central Region (OCR) projects going forward,” adds Yip. “It reflects buyers’ interest to be among the first to gain a foothold in this new private residential enclave.”
All 63 one-bedroom units and 231 two-bedroom units (showflat of a two-bedder) in Lentor Modern were the first to be snapped up and fully sold (
Lifestyle, flexibility of space
The 63 one-bedroom units and 231 two-bedroom units in Lentor Modern were the first to be snapped up and fully sold. In addition, 182 units, or more than 73% of the 248 three-bedroom units, were sold; and over 50% of the 63 four-bedders were taken up.
The one-bedroom and two-bedroom units were favoured by couples and smaller families, while larger families seeking larger living and entertainment spaces favoured the three- and four-bedroom units, says GuocoLand.
As the only integrated, mixed-use development in the upcoming Lentor Hills estate, Lentor Modern attracted many homebuyers who are willing to pay a premium for the convenience. Both the 96,000 sq ft retail mall and the Lentor MRT Station are just one elevator ride from their home. “For example, they really liked the lifestyle concept of ‘one-lift-ride’ to all the amenities such as F&B, supermarket and the MRT station,” says Dora Chng, general manager, residential at GuocoLand.
Doris Ong, deputy CEO of ERA Singapore believes the lifestyle presented by the integrated development also drew many young couples. “Instead of buying a car, they would rather channel their money into buying a property where they can enjoy the lifestyle in this up-and-coming estate,” she adds.
One of the attractions of the units, especially the two- to four-bedroom types, is the flex room, which they can use to fit their lifestyle, notes Lee Sze Teck, senior director of research, Huttons Asia. “This resonates well with homebuyers,” he says.
Lentor Modern’s sales gallery had been abuzz since the project opened for preview on Sept 2. About 1,641 cheques were collected by the developer over the past fortnight as expressions of interest from interested buyers prior to the public launch. “The number of cheques collected during the preview period was a strong indicator of the project’s excellent sales,” says Huttons’ Lee.
At the VIP preview on Sept 16, the eve of the public launch, a total of 111 units were taken up, including those by multiple-unit purchasers, made up of family members who wanted to buy two or more units together. The more than 500 units sold translates to a sales conversion rate of 31%, based on the number of cheques received.
Two- to four-bedroom units come with flexi-space which proved to be popular with homebuyers. At the four-bedroom showflat, the flexi-space turned into a workspace for two (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
‘From all around Singapore’
The last time a project saw more than 500 units sold on the first weekend of launch was last November. It was the launch of CanningHill Piers, an integrated mixed-use development located at Clarke Quay, by CapitaLand Development and City Developments Ltd, where 538 out of a total of 696 units in the project were sold at an average price of around 3,000 psf.
“The strong response at Lentor Modern is akin to that achieved at CanningHill Piers,” says Ken Low, managing partner of SRI. However, Lentor Modern had a good balance between homeowners and investors. He attributes this in part to the fact that about 80% of the units were a mix of two- and three-bedroom types, with one- and four-bedroom units accounting for just 10% each.
Besides residents from the surrounding neighbourhood of Lentor estate, Seletar, Ang Mo Kio and Thomson area, SRI’s Low saw buyers “from all around Singapore”. He adds: “Homebuyers are willing to move to Lentor because the completion of the Thomson-East Coast Line will mean that the Stevens MRT Interchange is just seven stops away, and Orchard Road MRT Interchange is just nine stops away.”
The tender closing of two government land sales (GLS) sites at Lentor Hills estate on Sept 13 has “further cemented the prices at the Lentor locale”, notes Low.
Lentor Hills Road (Parcel B) saw TID, a joint venture between Hong Leong Group and Mitsui Fudosan, submitted the top bid of $1,130 psf per plot ratio (psf ppr) for the tender of Lentor Hill Road (Parcel B). This was 6.6% above the $1,060 psf ppr for Lentor Hills Road (Parcel A) which TIID, together with Hong Leong Holdings and GuocoLand had won in January this year.
The top bid of $1,108 psf ppr for the Lentor Central site came from a consortium comprising China Communications Construction Co, Soilbuild Group Holdings and United Engineers, a unit of Yanlord Land.
GuocoLand purchased the Lentor Modern site in July 2021 for $1,204 psf ppr given that it’s the only site for an integrated mixed-use development of the four GLS sites launched for sale to date. Two other sites are for sale on the Reserve List.
“In fact, the bid prices received for the GLS sites [on Sept 13] had partly contributed to the strong sales at Lentor Modern,” says Nicholas Mak, head of research & consultancy for ERA Realty Network.
Lentor Modern is the only integrated mixed-use development at the Lentor Hills estate (Source: EdgeProp Landlens)
‘Underlying confidence’
ERA’s Mak believes there must be “an underlying confidence” in the location among the buyers of Lentor Modern given that close to 85% of the total units were sold on the first weekend of launch.
“The strong buying interest in Lentor Modern reflects its status as the only integrated development in the Lentor Hills estate and a future community focal point within the upcoming Lentor Hills estate,” notes PropNex’s Gafoor.
GuocoLand has a strong track record of transforming neighbourhoods through its integrated mixed-use developments, such as Guoco Tower at Tanjong Pagar and the upcoming Guoco Midtown on Beach Road. “Lentor Modern demonstrated once again our acumen to spot new locations with great potential, and our ability to introduce innovative and exceptional developments to anchor a new district identity,” according to Cheng Hsing Yao, CEO of GuocoLand in a statement.
There haven't been many new condominium project launches in the Lentor-Upper Thomson enclave for over a decade. The last new project launched in the area was the 479-unit Meadows @ Peirce back in July 2009, says PropNex’s Gafoor.
Prior to the launch of Lentor Modern, units at Meadows @ Peirce have changed hands at prices ranging from $1,087 psf for a 2,852 sq ft, four-bedroom unit to $1,575 psf for a 635 sq ft, two-bedroom unit, based on caveats lodged from May to August to date.
Two existing private condos located closest to the upcoming Lentor Hills estate are the 116-unit, freehold Thomson Grove developed by Far East Organization and completed in 1984; and the 421-unit The Calrose, a freehold development by MCL Land that was launched in 2005 and completed in 2007. Both are located along Yio Chu Kang Road.
Units at The Calrose, a low-rise five-storey development, have changed hands at prices from $1,292 psf for a 2,142 sq ft, three-bedroom unit to $1,569 psf for a 926 sq ft, two-bedroom unit, according to caveats lodged from February to April this year.
At the eight-storey Thomson Grove, the only unit that changed hands in the resale market this year was for a 1,485 sq ft, three-bedroom unit on the sixth floor that fetched $1,528 psf, based on a caveat lodged in July.
Lentor Modern is the third project to be launched for sale in the OCR this year, adds Gafoor, following AMO Residence in July (98% of 372 units sold) and Sky Eden@Bedok earlier this month (75% of 158 units sold). “All three projects were well-received by buyers amid the dwindling stock of new private homes in the OCR,” he points out.
Check out the latest listings near Lentor Modern, Ang Mo Kio, CanningHill Piers, Guoco Tower, Guoco Midtown, Meadows @ Peirce, Thomson Grove, The Calrose, Sky Eden@Bedok, Lentor MRT Station, Stevens MRT Interchange, Orchard Road MRT Interchange
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