4 Sentosa Cove bungalow plots up for grabs

Sentosa Cove is offering four 99-year leasehold seafront bungalow plots with reserve prices of $1,000 per sq ft of land area. But property consultants expect top bids of around $1,500 to $2,000 psf because of the fast-increasing rarity value of such plots.

The total development cost per bungalow could be about $17 million to $24 million, the consultants say.

These prices are higher than those transacted for freehold bungalows in traditional Good Class Bungalow (GCB) districts on the mainland, and with bigger land areas too. For instance, a bungalow on a 15,080 sq ft site at Glencaird Residences in Dalvey Road fetched about $16.5 million in March this year, says Credo Real Estate managing director Karamjit Singh. But no one expects any dearth of takers for the Sentosa Cove plots - even if they cost more.

‘The intangibles are entirely different - having a bungalow facing the ocean is no comparison to any other bungalow in Singapore,’ Mr Singh said. ‘In addition, the absence of restrictions for foreigners to buy landed homes on Sentosa Cove will be a draw.’

While Mr Singh expects the four seafront bungalow sites to fetch top bids of around $1,500 psf, Colliers International associate director (residential sales) Vincent Chong pegs their value even higher, at $1,800 to $2,000 psf. Based on this range, the all-in development cost could come in around $20 million to $24 million per bungalow.

Expressions of interest in the four plots must be submitted by May 22. The land areas range from 9,732 sq ft to 10,692 sq ft. The plots have a 0.77 plot ratio - the ratio of maximum potential gross floor area to land area - and can be built up to two storeys with an attic provided the building height does not exceed 11.7 metres. A basement is also allowed.

The benchmark for seafront bungalow land at Sentosa Cove was set for a nearby plot that fetched $1,308 psf in November last year.

Meanwhile, Sentosa Cove Pte Ltd (SCPL) will put Pearl Island up for sale again in the next few months after the man-made island failed to fetch a high-enough price in a tender that closed in November last year.

Pearl, with 159,737 sq ft of land, can be developed into 19 bungalows. It is next to Sandy Island, which was sold to YTL Corp and LP World Sdn Bhd for about $89.7 million or $617 psf of land area in March this year. The tender for both islands closed on Nov 22 last year.

SCPL, the master developer of the luxury waterfront housing precinct at Sentosa Cove, says only eight seafront bungalow plots are left there. In addition, 54 waterway and fairway facing bungalow sites are still available, excluding Pearl Island.

‘Currently, over 83 per cent of Sentosa Cove has been sold, with close to 70 families having moved into their new homes,’ SCPL said in a statement yesterday.

Source : Business Times - 9 May 2007