Leasehold projects prove their mettle with majority of the highest rental yields in 2017

By EdgeProp Singapore
/ EdgeProp |
Overall gross rental yields in Singapore for non-landed private homes are around 3.2%, the lowest in a decade. Low interest rates, a tightening labour market and a large housing supply are possible reasons. However, there were projects that managed to command attractive rental yields of 4% and above in 2017.
In our analysis, we have identified apartments and condominiums with the highest gross rental yields in the Core Central Region (CCR), Rest of Central Region (RCR) and Outside Central Region (OCR).
Current gross rental yields are calculated by taking the annual rental income of the development and dividing it by recent resale prices of the corresponding project. To mitigate the effects of outliers which may skew rental yields, we only considered major projects with 100 units and above, and projects with at least five sales and five rental transactions in 2H2017.
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However, it is important to note that these are gross rental yields, and do not include other costs such as vacancy costs and maintenance fees, etc.
These are the top 10 results for each market segment in 2017:
1) Prime district properties (CCR)
Suites at Orchard is among the highest-yielding properties in the prime districts.
Project Name
District
Planning Area
Within500m from MRT station
Completion Date
Tenure
No. of units
Avg. Rental $PSF
Avg. Sale Price $PSF
Est. Gross Rental Yield
Suites at Orchard
9
Museum
Yes
2014
99 yr
118
6.27
1,426
5.28%
76 Shenton
2
Downtown Core
Yes
2014
99 yr
202
5.60
1,777
3.78%
Icon
2
Downtown Core
Yes
2007
FH
646
5.26
1,681
3.75%
The Clift
1
Downtown Core
Yes
2011
99 yr
312
5.81
1,880
3.71%
Skysuites@Anson
2
Downtown Core
Yes
2014
99 yr
360
6.97
2,284
3.66%
One Shenton
1
Downtown Core
Yes
2011
99 yr
341
4.95
1,652
3.60%
RV Residences
10
Tanglin
No
2015
999 yr
248
5.73
1,966
3.50%
Soleil@Sinaran
11
Novena
Yes
2011
99 yr
417
5.17
1,779
3.49%
Hillcrest Arcadia
11
Bukit Timah
No
1980
99 yr
272
2.38
831
3.44%
Espada
9
River Valley
Yes
2013
FH
232
6.60
2,307
3.43%
2) City fringe properties (RCR)
The Interlace tops the list as the highest-yielding project in the city-fringes.
Project Name
District
Planning Area
Within500m from MRT station
Completion Date
Tenure
No. of units
Avg. Rental $PSF
Avg. Sale Price $PSF
Est. Gross Rental Yield
The Interlace
4
Bukit Merah
No
2013
99 yr
1,040
3.30
954
4.15%
Prestige Heights
12
Novena
No
2011
FH
154
4.65
1,406
3.97%
Sims Green
14
Geylang
Yes
2003
99 yr
108
2.40
739
3.89%
Heritage View
5
Queenstown
No
2000
99 yr
618
3.66
1,144
3.84%
Riverbay
12
Kallang
No
2014
999 yr
147
3.77
1,209
3.74%
Dover Parkview
5
Queenstown
No
1997
99 yr
686
3.07
989
3.72%
Simsville
14
Geylang
Yes
1998
99 yr
522
2.77
895
3.72%
One-North Residences
5
Queenstown
Yes
2009
99 yr
405
4.26
1,407
3.63%
Queens
3
Queenstown
Yes
2002
99 yr
722
3.47
1,157
3.60%
Citylights
8
Kallang
Yes
2007
99 yr
600
4.50
1,509
3.58%
3) Suburb properties (OCR)
Melville Park has an estimated gross rental yield of 4.29%, the highest in the Outside Central Region.
Project Name
District
Planning Area
Within500m from MRT station
Completion Date
Tenure
No. of units
Avg. Rental $PSF
Avg. Sale Price $PSF
Est. Gross Rental Yield
Melville Park
18
Tampines
No
1996
99 yr
1,232
2.30
643
4.29%
Clementiwoods Condominium
5
Clementi
No
2010
99 yr
240
3.25
1,013
3.85%
Astoria Park
14
Bedok
Yes
1995
99 yr
354
2.90
907
3.83%
Northvale
23
Choa Chu Kang
Yes
1998
99 yr
762
2.16
679
3.82%
Regentville
19
Hougang
No
1999
99 yr
580
2.25
709
3.81%
The Mayfair
22
Jurong East
Yes
2000
99 yr
452
2.78
875
3.81%
Orchid Park Condominium
27
Yishun
No
1994
99 yr
615
2.11
672
3.77%
Eastpoint Green
18
Tampines
No
1999
99 yr
646
2.42
772
3.76%
Euphony Gardens
27
Mandai
No
2001
99 yr
304
1.95
623
3.76%
The Santorini
18
Tampines
No
2017
99 yr
597
3.22
1,033
3.75%
Observations
High-yielding properties are mostly 99-year leasehold projects
Leasehold properties are typically considered to be more attractive when comparing rental yields. This is due to a lower relative $ psf when buying a 99-year leasehold property compared to freehold, assuming that all other things are equal.
In general, tenants are not concerned about the tenure of a property, so leasehold properties do tend to have an advantage over their freehold counterparts when looking purely at rental yields.
Distance from MRT matters more for prime district rental properties
Notably, prime district properties located within walking distance to a MRT station commanded higher rental yields (we define walking distance as 500m, which should be roughly within five minutes walking time). This is understandable, as tenants could be foreigners or expats who do not own a car, and who are working in vicinity of the central business district (CBD).
At the end of the day, it is important to note that rental yield is just one part of the total return of investment equation. When considering real estate investment, it pays also to look at capital growth potential. For instance, the lower the purchase price, the higher the potential for upside, and the higher the likelihood that rental yields will be favourable - such as this list of winning developments that took home the EdgeProp Value Creation Award based on capital appreciation and rental returns. Read on for more!

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