Hong Leong-led joint venture submits highest bid of $1,060 psr ppr for Lentor Hills Road Parcel A

SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) - While the tender for the government land sale (GLS) site at Jalan Tembusu closed with eight bids on Jan 18, the site at Lentor Hills Road (Parcel A) received just half the number of bids.

The top bid of $586.6 million came from a consortium made up of Hong Leong Holdings, GuocoLand and TID (a joint venture between Hong Leong and Mitsui Fudosan). The price worked out to $1,060 psf per plot ratio.

“We are pleased to achieve the highest bid for Lentor Hills Road Parcel A,” says a spokesperson of Hong Leong Holdings. “We plan to build a 600-unit residential development where residents will benefit from the convenience of amenities nearby.” Having Lentor MRT station located across the road “will add to the site’s overall appeal to buyers,” adds the spokesperson.

The Lentor Hills Estate is designed to be a sustainable and pedestrian-friendly neighbourhood in the future. Residents of the new development at Lentor Hills Road Parcel A are expected to enjoy proximity to parks and nature reserves, as well as childcare centre, wide selection of commercial, F&B and retail options.

This is because GuocoLand is developing a new integrated development just across the road. It had won the Lentor Central GLS site last year with a bid of $784.1 million ($1,205 psf ppr). GuocoLand intends to develop three 25-storey, residential towers with 600 units, and a 96,000 sq ft commercial podium with F&B outlets and supermarket. The development will be integrated with the Lentor MRT station that opened last year. The project at Lentor Central is expected to be launched sometime in the second half of this year. (Find Singapore commercial properties with our commercial directory)

For GuocoLand, winning this site strengthens its presence and allows it to develop a large-scale integrated development. The $1,205 psf ppr price was considered a record price for a GLS site in the suburban or Outside Central Region.

There have been no new launches in the area in recent years, notes Tricia Song, CBRE head of research for Southeast Asia. The newest development was The Panorama at Ang Mo Kio Avenue 2, which was launched in January 2014 and completed in 2017. Older projects nearby include 99-year leasehold Castle Green and Seasons Park, both completed in 1997, which transacted at a median price of $939–$950 psf respectively in 2021. Meanwhile, units at the freehold The Calrose, which was completed in 2007, changed hands at $1,344 psf in 2021.

CBRE’s Song estimates that the developer could be looking at launch prices in the $1,800 to $1,900 psf range at the Lentor Hills Road (Parcel A) site.

Nicholas Mak, ERA head of research and consultancy, reckons that the bid of $1,060 psf ppr for the Lentor Hills Road Parcel A, being lower than the $1,205 psf ppr at Lentor Central, provides “a comfortable margin” for GuocoLand. “The new condominium on this new site could be launched in the future at $1,950 to $2,050 psf,” he says. (Discover all Singapore new launch condos in 2022)