Bukit Timah Plaza and Sherwood Towers (right) are part of a commercial and residential mixed-use development built in 1980, with a 99-year lease from 1976 (Photo: Brilliance Capital)
SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) - Since The Reserve Residences sales gallery at Jalan Anak Bukit opened for public preview on May 13, the neighbouring Bukit Timah Plaza shopping mall has enjoyed increased footfall, with property agents and their clients dropping by the mall before or after visiting the sales gallery.
Riding on the wave of renewed interest in the Jalan Anak Bukit and Bukit Timah neighbourhood due to the upcoming launch of The Reserve Residences, Sammi Lim, founder and executive director of Brilliance Capital, has kicked off the sale of the strata-titled carpark at Bukit Timah Plaza by expression of interest (EOI).
Bukit Timah Plaza is a mixed-use commercial and residential development built in 1980 and includes the 269-unit apartment block, Sherwood Towers. The mixed-use development has a 99-year lease from 1976, which means a remaining lease of 52 years.
The carpark at Bukit Timah Plaza spans several floors: the basement levels 2 and 3, as well as the entire floorplate on the third floor. It comprises 427 carparking and 14 motorcycle spaces, and has direct access from both the shopping mall and Sherwood Towers.
Bukit Timah Plaza shopping mall has NTUC FairPrice Finest supermarket as an anchor tenant. Other tenants include popular F&B outlets, retail shops, educational and medical centres, and two banking halls (DBS and Maybank) [Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp SIngapore]
The combined strata area of the carpark is about 152,772 sq ft, equivalent to 22% of the total strata area in the development. This means the carpark owner will have a significant say should there be a collective sale. In terms of share value, the carpark represents 178 (4%) of the 4,544 shares in the development.
Towards the end of last year, the owners of Bukit Timah Plaza and Sherwood Towers embarked on a collective sale process. The collective sales committee has yet to secure the 80% consensus to proceed.
The existing owner of the carpark is Keppel Land, which developed the commercial and residential development as part of a joint venture. Keppel Land is the urban development arm of Keppel Corp.
According to Brilliance Capital’s Lim, the exclusive marketing agent for the carpark, there is “a limited supply of strata-titled carparks for sale”. She observes that potential buyers include existing carpark operators who want to add to their portfolio of carparks. Alternatively, some investors consider carparks an alternative asset class with stable income. She adds that the buyer could operate the carpark or lease it to an operator.
The carpark on the third level of Bukit Timah Plaza spans the entire floorplate (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Lim believes there is a possibility of unlocking value by decanting some of the carpark space for alternative uses, including pick-up-and-go self-storage facilities, community spaces, sports facilities or even a capsule hotel, subject to approval from the authorities.
The anchor tenant of Bukit Timah Plaza is NTUC FairPrice Finest, which occupies more than 40,000 sq ft and operates 24 hours. The mall also has popular F&B outlets, retail shops, educational and medical centres, and two banking halls (DBS and Maybank). There is increased income potential from having a 24-hour supermarket within the premises, says Lim. The supermarket could lease space for its shopping carts. Alternatively, the new owner could generate income from advertisement panels on the walls of the carpark.
Bukit Timah Plaza and Sherwood Towers sit on an island site with prominent frontage along Jalan Anak Bukit, Upper Bukit Timah Road and Dunearn Road. It is accessible via the Pan Island Expressway and Bukit Timah Expressway, and is within walking distance of Beauty World MRT Station and King Albert Park MRT Station on the Downtown Line.
The mixed-use development is likely to benefit from the rejuvenation in its neighbourhood. The Reserve Residences next door is a new, mixed-use development integrated with a transport hub: Beauty World MRT Station underground and a new air-conditioned bus interchange on the second level of a new shopping mall. The development will also have 732 residential units and 160 serviced apartments.
FairPrice Finest supermarket occupies a floor area of 40,000 sq ft and operates 24 hours (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Nearby are two other new developments, the 120-unit The Linq @ Beauty World and Bukit Sembawang’s upcoming 160-unit condo block at Bukit Timah Link.
Also on the market is the six-storey, strata-titled carpark at Textile Centre on Jalan Sultan, off North Bridge Road. The price tag is $36 million, and JLL is handling the sale. It includes an adjacent plot of commercial land, which could become the driveway for the carpark. The 200,456 sq ft carpark spans the third to seventh floors of Textile Centre and comprises 685 parking spaces and 40 motorcycle pots. The asking price translates to $52,555 per parking space. (Find Singapore commercial properties with our commercial directory)
The carpark accounts for 30% of the total strata area in the development and 1.02% of its share value. Textile Centre is a 25-storey, mixed-use development. It has a seven-storey retail podium with 150 retail units, six floors of offices with 63 units, and 12 residential floors with 132 apartments. The carpark is being offered for sale by EOI.
Several strata-titled carparks have changed hands between 2020 and 2021: At Holland Road Shopping Centre, 47 parking spaces on a 999-year lease were sold for $17.33 million ($368,723 per space); at Bukit Timah Shopping Centre, 381 parking spaces on a 999-year lease for $16.2 million ($42,520 per space); at Parklane Shopping Centre, 219 spaces on a 99-year lease for $17.1 million ($70,000 per space); and at People’s Park Complex, 648 parking spaces on a 99-year lease for $39.33 million ($54,000 per space).
Bukit Timah Plaza and Sherwood Towers sit on an island site just across the road from The Reserve Residences mixed-use development integrated with a transport hub (Source: EdgeProp Landlens)
Lim brokered the sale of all the above mentioned carparks except the one at Bukit Timah Shopping Centre. “In Singapore, carparks are considered a valuable investment asset, due to limited parking spaces, especially in areas with high demand,” she says.
Over the past two years, Lim has seen the pool of buyers widen to include local and overseas corporates, private funds, family offices, and ultra-high-net-worth individuals.
The EOI for Bukit Timah Plaza carpark will close on July 7.
Check out the latest listings near The Reserve Residences, Sherwood Towers, The Linq @ Beauty World, Bukit Timah Plaza, Bukit Timah Shopping Centre, Jalan Anak Bukit, Textile Centre, Parklane Shopping Centre, Holland Road Shopping Centre, People’s Park Complex, Beauty World MRT station, King Albert Park MRT Station