Check out these two small CBD projects that have amazingly high take-up rates

One of them even sold office units at prices that were 16% higher than their counterparts in a neighbouring project.

According to Maybank Kim Eng, two mixed developments were launched in April this year in the Central Business District — Eon Shenton and Oxley Tower. Both projects are considered to be boutique office buildings, comprising a mixture of small formatted commercial and retail units, as well as residential units in the case of Eon Shenton.

Here's more from Maybank Kim Eng:

Oxley Tower has sold 63% of the 56 office units launched, at an average price of SGD3,252 psf. Units from the 19th to the 32nd floors have been held back for the moment. Oxley Tower’s office units were sold at prices that were 16% higher than their counterparts in a neighbouring project, Robinson Square. Oxley Tower sold all of its 121 shop units that range in size from 118–409 sq ft for SGD3,800–6,000psf. All eight street-level cafés with sizes of 398–807 sq ft were also sold for SGD6,200–7,200psf.

Extending our analysis further, we studied Robinson Road’s office rentals over the past six years. Apart from the peak that almost reached SGD12psf pm in mid-2008, rentals have ranged between SGD4–8 psf pm. Using the 1Q12 median rental price as a reference point, median rental now stands at SGD5.50 psf pm, implying a 2.0% yield. Again, given the smaller office sizes, rental psf could be even higher in the case of Oxley Tower. Nonetheless, rental yield would still be fairly low, at a mere 2.4%, even if it were to increase to SGD6.50 psf pm.

Thus far, 97 apartments have been sold between SGD2,200 and SGD2,750 psf for sizes ranging from 527 to 1,249 sq ft. The take-up rate of the 60 office units launched is 60%. Four office floors - levels 15, 17, 19, and 21 - will be kept by the developers for investment purposes. Retail units were fully sold on the first day of the launch at an average ASP of SGD4,525 psf. Assuming a monthly rental of SGD14.00 psf pm, rental yields could potentially fall in the region of 3.7%.

The closest transactions we could find on retail units as a means of comparison are the conservation shophouses in Tanjong Pagar district near Tras Street, Cantonment Road, Keong Saik Road, and Duxton Hill. However, conservation shophouses may not be a direct comparable, as they also offer the option of residential use. While we believe that investors should not use the capital gains of conservation shophouses as a reference for the future performance of strata-titled retail units, this should serve as a good reference. Holding period averages around 20 months and capital value gains are at least 40%.