Tenders now welcome for three prime freehold residential buildings near Orchard

Total deal value expected to reach $200M.

A group of investment holding companies is offering three properties namely No. 3 Cuscaden Walk, No. 120 Grange Road and No. 8 Hullet Road for sale by public tender.

The properties located close to Orchard Road, is expected to fetch a combined prie of $200M.

JLL and CBRE have been jointly instructed to market the properties.

Separately, the vendor also owns two apartments at The Claymore, for which JLL has been exclusively appointed to sell by private treaty.

Built in the early 1990s, No. 3 Cuscaden Walk comprises a 12-storey block with 11 units of generous sized 4-bedroom apartments, averaging 3,627 sf each. With a land area of 21,560 sf, and zoned ‘Residential’ with a gross plot ratio of 2.8, the development has a height control of up to 36 storeys under the 2014 Master Plan. The plot is located close to Four Seasons Park Condominium, and is between 200 to 300 metres to Ion Orchard and the Orchard MRT station – which connects to both the North-South as well as the future Thomson-East Coast lines. The new line is expected to be operational in 2020.

“Given the age of the building and potential building height and plot ratio, this property is ripe for redevelopment into a modern luxurious high-rise residential tower with, for example, 30 units of 2,000 sf apartments,” said Mr Karamjit Singh, Head of Residential at JLL Singapore. “While we are awaiting the development baseline of the plot, we estimate this property could attract offers in excess of $100 million, which reflects a indicative land rate of $1,900 psf ppr.”

No. 120 Grange Road comprises an 11-storey block of 18 flats each with a strata area of 26,350 sf, sited on a land area of 15,780 sf. It is zoned ‘Residential’ with a gross plot ratio of 2.1 and a height control of up to 24 storeys under the 2014 Master Plan. Located next to Cliveden and directly opposite Gramercy Park, the property is 370 metres away from the upcoming Orchard Boulevard MRT station, which is part of the Thomson-East Coast line.

No. 8 Hullet Road is the smallest and newest amongst the three properties. It is a 10-storey block with 18 apartments with a total strata area of 18,428 sf, built in the early 2000s. There are two types of apartments - nine units of 3-bedroom and 2-bedroom respectively. Its land area measures 10,733 sf. The development is within walking distance of about 350 metres to Somerset MRT station.

“We believe both Grange Road and Hullet Road buildings are excellent fit for investors given their boutique scale and rentability. We expect offers within the ballpark of $50 million and $35 million respectively, which work out to about $1,900 psf on the existing strata areas,” said Mr Jeremy Lake, Executive Director at CBRE Singapore.

The sizes of the two units at The Claymore up for sale by private treaty are 2,680 sf and 3,348 sf. Their asking prices of $7.25 million and $9.2 million respectively reflect approximately $2,700 to $2,750 psf. “The Claymore has a remarkable trading history. While many other well-located projects built during the same time in the 1980s saw considerable loss in value over the years owing to age and market headwinds, The Claymore continued trading at levels close to prices achieved for brand-new projects. Over the last five years, only six units changed hands at an average of $2,600 psf.”

Said Mr Lake, “A bidder can cherry-pick amongst the assets or acquire the portfolio. Either way, we expect very strong interest. Sentiment has improved recently and the demand for prime residential properties has picked up in the last few months with strong sales seen at projects like OUE Twin Peaks, Gramercy Park, Ardmore 3 and Cairnhill 9.”

“The robust response JLL received at the tender of a site at 9 Cuscaden Road in May this year is also a strong validation. Singapore’s high-end homes offer good value despite ABSD as prices here have dropped over the last five years while most major international markets have risen,” comments Mr Singh.

The tender exercise for the three assets closes on Wednesday, 2 November 2016 at 2.30pm.