Macly Group buys freehold Chiku Mansions en bloc for over $22 mil
The freehold Chiku Mansions, located at the junction of Joo Chiat Place and Chiku Road was built in 1983 (Photo: Jeremy Rikas Chiu)
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En bloc sales of freehold boutique redevelopment sites are becoming increasingly rare, says Jeremy Rikas Chiu, group division director at ERA Singapore. He brokered the recent sale of Chiku Mansions, at the junction of Chiku Road and Joo Chiat Place in District 15.
Built in 1983, the freehold Chiku Mansions is a four-storey walk-up block with just nine apartments. It was sold en bloc for over $22 million, or $1,180 psf per plot ratio (ppr), slightly above the reserve price of $22 million ($1,168 psf ppr). No land betterment charge is payable.
The buyer is Macly Group, a privately held Singapore developer founded in 1987 by Herman Chang. The firm has developed residential, commercial and mixed-use projects.
Chiku Mansions has just nine apartments across a four-storey block and has the potential to be redeveloped into a new apartment block with under 20 units (Photo: Jeremy Rikas Chiu)
Although Macly entered the tender exercise late, the developer “showed their confidence by edging out the other competing bids”, says ERA’s Chiu. The tender drew two formal bids and two additional expressions of interest, with attention from both developers and serviced apartment operators.
Macly is expected to redevelop the 13,453 sq ft freehold site into a new boutique residential project of fewer than 20 units. Its recent residential project launches include The Ivera at River Valley (51 units), Jansen House (21 units), and Koon Seng House (17 units). Macly is also part of a consortium with Roxy-Pacific Holdings and LWH Holdings that developed the 72-unit Hill House at Institution Road and the 87-unit Neu at Novena (87 units).
“In today’s market, most land parcels offered for collective sale are larger and face stiff competition from government land sale (GLS) sites,” ERA’s Chiu observes.
Chiku Mansions’ location in prime District 15 is another draw, given its proximity to popular schools such as Haig Girls’ School and CHIJ Katong Convent, which appeal to families with school-going children.
Nearby, several new freehold boutique projects have been built on former en bloc sites. Claydence on Still Road is an upcoming 28-unit, high-end apartment block. It is a redevelopment of the former Malacca Hotel. Launched in May 2024, Claydence is 46% sold, with recent transactions ranging from $2,402 to $2,551 psf.
Macly’s own Koon Seng House is on the site of the former East Court Apartments, which the developer acquired en bloc in 2022. Launched in March 2024, Koon Seng House is 59% sold, with units transacting at $2,235 to $2,362 psf in recent months.
Another example is La Mariposa, a 17-unit project located on Mangis Road, which was developed on the site of the former Tian Court. Completed in 2022, La Mariposa’s latest resale involved a 1,130 sq ft, three-bedroom unit, which changed hands in January this year for $2,035 psf.
At nearby Lorong K Telok Kurau, the newly completed 19-unit K Suites was a redevelopment of the former Li Jiang Gardens, a row of six terraced houses. Launched in April 2023, K Suites is about 58% sold, with units fetching between $2,323 and $2,354 psf.
Check out the latest listings for Chiku Mansions, Koon Seng House properties
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