The clubhouse at Draycott Eight is a conserved bungalow built in the 1920s. It was the former home of the British Air Marshall and the site of the Singapore French School for 30 years from 1967 (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Hong Kong-based Mr Chua and his family were among the first 25 buyers at Draycott Eight, a 136-unit luxury private condo that was launched in late 2005.
The Chua family bought a 14th-floor, four-bedroom unit of 2,896 sq ft for $5.1 million ($1,762 psf) in June 2006, according to a caveat lodged then. They were drawn by the prime location of Draycott Eight at Draycott Park, just off Scotts Road and Orchard Road. Another motivation for the purchase was that “close family members bought a few floors upstairs and across the road”, says Chua.
The Chuas liked living at Draycott Eight so much that they purchased the adjoining four-bedroom unit. It was a 2,863 sq ft unit, purchased for $5.65 million ($1,973 psf) in November 2006, based on a caveat lodged then. The plan was to hold the unit as an investment property and to rent it out.
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Developed by listed property developer Wing Tai Holdings, Draycott Eight sits within the exclusive neighbourhood of Draycott Drive-Draycott Park, near The American Club and Tanglin Club in prime District 10.
The condo has three 24-storey blocks spread across a 153,000 sq ft, 99-year leasehold site. Two of the blocks have four-bedroom apartments with sizes of 2,863 sq ft and 2,986 sq ft and penthouses of 4,015 to 4,187 sq ft. The third block is made up of two-bedroom apartments, with simplexes of 1,173 sq ft and duplexes or “Sky Suites” of 1,798 sq ft.
A key feature of the condo is the two-storey, black-and-white conservation bungalow on the site. Built in the 1920s, it was the former home of the British Air Marshall before it became the École Française de Singapour (Singapore French School) for the next 30 years from 1967.
View of Goodwood Hill Estate and Balmoral area from the junior master bedroom of one of the two units at Draycott Eight (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
When Wing Tai Holdings won the site in a government land sales tender in 1997, the developer conserved the black and white bungalow and turned it into Draycott Eight’s clubhouse. Facilities within the clubhouse include a library, a business centre, a theatre, a multi-purpose hall, a jacuzzi and sauna, a gym, a games cum mahjong room and a billiards room. There is also a dining room for residents to hold parties.
Outside the clubhouse, other facilities include a 50m swimming pool in front of the clubhouse, tennis courts, a barbeque area and extensive landscaped grounds. The facilities at the clubhouse and the grounds are being upgraded.
“Draycott Eight is beautiful and tranquil, with outstanding facilities,” says Chua in an email response to queries from EdgeProp Singapore. “The condo is very well-managed and has an excellent concierge team.”
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Another draw for the Chuas is the view from the apartment’s living room and bedrooms, which offer vistas of Ardmore Park and the Goodwood Hill Estate, with its black-and-white bungalows set amid sprawling gardens.
According to Chua, it has been easy to find tenants over the years as the units at Draycott Eight are sought-after, given the location and unit sizes. “The profile of tenants has not changed much over the years,” he notes. “Many are senior management with Singapore or foreign companies.”
Rents have increased progressively over the years. In December 2020, the monthly rent for the unit was $11,700. Two years later, in December 2022, the monthly rent was $17,000, including hiring of furniture and maintenance charges. “Rent increased steadily with every lease renewal,” he says.
Living area of one of the four-bedroom units which has been renovated earlier this year (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Now that the Chua family live abroad, they no longer need to maintain both apartments in Singapore. They have therefore decided to sell them. Nancy Tey, senior associate vice president of List Sotheby’s International Realty, is the appointed sales agent.
The two units were renovated earlier this year. The marble flooring in the living and dining area, the kitchen and bathroom fittings, as well as timber flooring in the bedrooms are the original ones provided by the developer and are still in good condition.
The selling price for the units is $7.18 million each, which translates to $2,508 psf for the 2,863 sq ft unit and $2,479 psf for the 2,896 sq ft unit. However, if a buyer wishes to buy both units, the price tag is $14 million ($2,431 psf), says Tey.
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There are only two units per floor, both with private lift access. Given their sizes, Tey expects the units to appeal to owner-occupiers. “Some families may want to buy two adjacent units on the same floor so they can have an eight-bedroom home, as the two units share a common corridor at the back,” she says.
Master bedroom that is newly renovated (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Draycott Eight has a 99-year lease from 1997, which means it has a remaining lease of 72 years. The developer had sold an entire block of four-bedroom units to two Morgan Stanley funds in 2007. One fund bought a stack of 23 units, including the penthouse on the top half of the block, while the other purchased the remaining 22 units. The average price was $2,600 psf then.
In 2010, Keppel Fund Management (formerly Alpha Investment Partners) purchased a stack of 22 units from one of the Morgan Stanley funds for $157 million ($2,300 psf). Meanwhile, in 2015, Hong Kong-listed Far East Consortium International purchased the other stack of 23 units for $150 million ($2,200 psf).
In 2017, the former Angelo Gordon (now TPG Angelo Gordon since it was acquired by TPG in 2023) purchased the 22 units from Keppel Fund Management for over $100 million ($1,700 psf).
Based on listings, the monthly asking rent for a four-bedroom apartment at Draycott Eight is currently in the range of $18,000 to $22,000 and as high as $26,000, says Tey.
Caveats lodged to date show that the latest transaction at Draycott Eight is for a four-bedroom unit on the eighth floor of the block. The 2,896 sq ft unit changed hands for $6.28 million ($2,169 psf) in March.
View of Ardmore Park from the living room of one of the units (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore)
Given that it is a 99-year leasehold condo, prices of units at Draycott Eight are lower compared to freehold projects with similar four-bedroom unit sizes in the same area. Investors looking to purchase units for rent will enjoy higher yields due to the lower entry price, says Tey.
She points to the 330-unit Ardmore Park, where typical units are 2,885 sq ft and have four bedrooms. Completed in 2001, Ardmore Park has long been considered the bellwether for luxury condos. Based on caveats lodged, the latest transaction was for a four-bedroom unit on the 18th floor of one of the three 33-storey blocks that changed hands for $12 million ($4,160 psf) in July.
Units sold at Ardmore Park first crossed the $4,000 psf threshold in 2022, when a unit on the 26th floor changed hands for $12.23 million ($4,240 psf). It hit a high of $14.08 million or $4,881 psf in July 2022. Transactions this year have been in the range of $4,108 to $4,472 psf.
According to List Sotheby’s Tey, asking prices of units at Ardmore Park today range from $11 million for a low-floor unit to $14 million for a high-floor unit. Meanwhile, at Draycott Eight, four-bedroom units are between $6.5 million and $7 million.
“For the amount that you pay for a unit at Ardmore Park, you can have the equivalent of two units at Draycott Eight,” says Tey. The units at Draycott Eight are available for sale by private treaty.
Source: EdgeProp Buddy
Source: EdgeProp Buddy
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