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A look at the Singapore housing market has proven to be a paradise for the extremely wealthy with rents and prices reaching new heights. Recently, a Good Class Bungalow (GCB) located in Queen Astrid Park is being leased to one of the Chinese national for the rate of $200,000 per month or $2.4 million per year.
The access is by Sixth Avenue and Coronation Road West It is accessible via Coronation Road West and Sixth Avenue. The GCB located at Queen Astrid Park sits on an elevated freehold site that covers 25,439 square feet and is completely hidden from view from the street. The GCB is a new construction.
“It’s it’s the Chinese who rent GCBs at this level,” says Jacqueline Wong the executive director of Savills Private Office. “Some wait for Singapore permanent residency or citizenship prior to purchasing their own house.”
The word on the street is that the proprietor of the newly completed GCB created by Guz Wilkinson who is the principal and director Guz Wilkinson, principal and founder of Guz Architects, received an unannounced rental price of $380,000 per monthly for the property. The owner however turned down the offer because the plan was to relocate into the recently completed home, which has been named “Water Courtyard House”. The offer was uninvited by an Chinese resident.
“It’s the huge and luxurious houses that attract these prices,” notes Savills’ Wong. “Due to the absence of new inventory as of late, these GCBs might not be new, but they must be of an elegant design with clean lines , and was created by an internationally acclaimed architect.”
‘Private clubhouse’
In the land-scarce Singapore having a huge GCB is the most prestigious status symbol. “It’s something that Chinese especially the rich residents of Fujian province, are looking to have,” says a real estate agent who specializes in the market for luxury homes and who asked to remain anonymous.
Not only are Chinese ready to shell out these expensive rents, they’re also willing to shell out millions to renovate these magnificent homes, according to the broker. Beyond being a place to live, GCBs are considered to be “private clubhouses” for entertaining their guests.
It is essential to have a KTV room that has a top-of-the-line sound system. The budget for the room is one million dollars. Another necessity is a putting course. “We don’t have a putting green, but a tournament grade green like the one Tiger Woods himself would use,” says the broker. “That is minimum $300,000, which includes every piece of equipment. And the championship-golf-course grass requires a gardener to tend to it at least twice a week.”
The highest rent for housing recorded by URA Realis this year is $150,000 per month for the GCB located at Dalvey Estate, sitting on an area of 22600 to 22,500 sq ft. It was sold in April of this year (see the table). Another one is one GCB located at Jalan Asuhan, which is off University Road, which was let for $120,000 in March. The GCB is situated on the site that covers between 26,100 and 26,200 square feet. because of its size agents believe it’s one of two GCBs on the top at the top of Jalan Asuhan that were designed by Aamer Architects and was completed in the year 2017.
Monthly luxury condo rents for luxury homes reaching $100,000
It’s not only GCBs as well as luxury condos, which have seen rents increase to astronomical levels. In Draycott Park is Eden which is a single, 22-storey residential tower that was designed by Thomas Heatherwick and developed by Hong Kong developer Swire Properties. The 20 units of Eden that have freeholds, were bought in a single transaction through the Tsai family of the snack food giant Want Want China for $293 million in April last year. The construction was completed in the year 2019.
The apartments located at Eden are believed to have an the same layout, including four bedrooms with en suite bathrooms and a built-up areas of 3,035 square feet. Based on URA rental figures five units that are connected at Eden with a floor space of between 15,100 and 15,200 square feet were let for $80,000 per month during month of February. It was the top of the list for rent for condos in 2022.
The second highest rent per month of $60,000 was achievable in The Marq on Paterson Hill. It was 6,200 to 6,300 square 4 ft apartment that had four bedrooms and a lap pool located at The Signature Tower. The freehold, 66-unit The Marq located on Paterson Hill was developed by SC Global Developments and completed in the year 2011.
The towers include two inside The Marq’s development: one is the Signature Tower, where typical units are between 6,200 and 6,300 sq ft and have an outdoor lap pool on the balcony. The other is The Premier Tower, where typical units range from 3,200 to 3,300 sq ft with four-bedders. The monthly rental for a 6,300 square foot unit in The Signature Tower of The Marq located on Paterson Hill is $100,000 today.
What can $45,000-$48,000 buy you?
In the 510-unit V in Shenton at Marina Bay, there are six penthouses. The largest among them is the 7,255 square feet penthouse with five bedrooms at the 52nd level. The penthouse has the monthly rent of $48,000.
The development was jointly developed with Singapore Land Group, the 99-year leasehold development is situated at Shenton Way. The project was completed in the year 2017.
In Sentosa Cove, a four-bedroom apartment of 4,800 square feet located on the top floor of the luxurious condo Seven Palms was let out for $45,000 per month. This is the highest rental rate for a condo in Sentosa Cove to date. It was believed that the deal would be mediated by senior associate vice-president Steve Tay’s staff at List Sotheby’s International Realty. The 41-unit 99-year leasehold condo, which was developed through SC Global Developments, was completed in the year 2010. Every unit has a stunning sea view, and the complex comes with its own beach club.
Human resource departments of the corporate HR teams of MNCs are required to alter their budgets for rental to meet the current situation of increasing rents. “Many MNCs have moved the regional offices of their companies from Hong Kong to Singapore, because there aren’t any travel restrictions in Singapore,” says Savills’ Wong. This has fueled the demand for homes at the top of the market for housing. It appears that rents will keep on to grow.