A Good Class Bungalow on Leedon Road was sold at $57.5 million ($1,309 psf), according to a caveat lodged on Jan 18. The seller, a Madam Chong, is a veteran luxury property investor and collector of GCBs in the Leedon Road-Leedon Park neighbourhood, which has earned her the moniker “Queen of Leedon Park”.
The GCB that she sold was an investment property she had held for 21 years, having purchased it for $17.7 million ($403 psf) in August 1996. Based on the sale price of $57.5 million, she will enjoy a capital gain of $39.8 million, equivalent to the price of a luxury GCB.
Over the years, Madam Chong had flirted with the idea of selling the house on Leedon Road. In the last property boom a decade ago, she had put the GCB on the market for $39.5 million ($900 psf), and had then withdrawn it from the market.
The GCB on Leedon Road was bought in August 1996 for $17.7 million ($403 psf) and sold on Jan 18 for $57.5 million ($1,309 psf) (Credit: Samuel Isaac Chua/The Edge Singapore)
With a freehold plot area of 43,928 sq ft, the GCB can be subdivided into two smaller GCBs of 21,000 to 22,000 sq ft. Such large GCB plots are becoming rare, as many have already been purchased and subdivided into smaller GCB land parcels over the years.
The transaction of the GCB on Leedon Road marked the most significant gain for caveats lodged between Jan 16 and 23.
In Sentosa Cove, a 2,400 sq ft, four-bedroom unit at Turquoise was sold for $3.58 million ($1,491 psf), according to a caveat lodged on Jan 18. The fifth-floor unit was purchased for $5.87 million ($2,446 psf) more than five years ago, according to a caveat lodged in October 2012. For the seller, this translates into a loss of $2.3 million, or 39%.
Prices at Turquoise and other condominiums in Sentosa Cove may stabilise this year. Find the most affordable listing in the project here (Credit: Samuel Isaac Chua/The Edge Singapore)
Last November, a neighbouring four-bedroom unit on the same floor was sold for $3.7 million ($1,535 psf). The unit is slightly larger at 2,411 sq ft, and the seller also recognised a loss, having purchased the condominium for $6.27 million ($2,600 psf) in October 2007.
The biggest loss at the Turquoise was registered by a 2,777 sq ft, four-bedroom unit sold for $3.8 million ($1,368 psf), according to a caveat lodged in June 2016. The unit was first purchased at the peak of the market in November 2007 for $7.16 million ($2,580 psf). The loss was 47%, and it was a distressed sale.
With the residential market recovering, prices at Turquoise and the other condos in Sentosa Cove may stabilise this year, says a property consultant who declined to be named.
This article appeared in EdgeProp Pullout, Issue 816 (Feb 5, 2018).