PEARLBANK APARTMENTS

30 Oct 2017

12 Apr 2011

Pearlbank Apartments up for sale again

Pearlbank Apartments, a 37-storey development on Pearl’s Hill near Chinatown, has been offered for en bloc sale with an indicative price of S$750 million.
This is the third time the 99-year leasehold development has been launched for en bloc sale. It was last marketed in 2008 at similar selling price but had no takers then.
The selling price translates to a land price of S$1,495 psf ppr, including an estimated charge of S$167.2 million to top up the lease to 99 years.
Developed in the 1970s, Pearlbank Apartments has a potential gross floor area (GFA) of approximately 613,530 sq ft. The project currently includes 280 residential apartments and eight commercial units.
The successful developer can construct around 500 to 520 new homes on the site, assuming an average unit size of approximately 1,200 sq ft, according to Nicholas Wong, Head of Investment at Knight Frank.
Located next to the Outram Park MRT station, the site has a land area of approximately 82,379 sq ft and is zoned for housing use with a 7.2 plot ratio.
“With its elevation on Pearl’s Hill, the site offers fantastic day and night unblocked 360-degree views of the city skyline even for the lower level units. It is a hidden gem in the city, offering developers an opportunity to reshape the skyline,” Mr. Wong said.
The tender for the site will close on 25 May.
Source : PropertyGuru – 12 Apr 2011


15 Mar 2011

Pearlbank Apartments up for collective sale at $750m
January 10, 2008

THE 38-year-old Pearlbank Apartments development at Pearl’s Hill has been put up for collective sale at an indicative price of $750 million. Marketing agent Knight Frank says that with a lease upgrading premium estimated at $143.3 million, the unit rate works out to be $1,456 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr), assuming the buyer can fully develop the site to baseline gross floor area of 56,998.8 square metres.

Knight Frank executive director Nicholas Wong said the site was put on the market last August. There were four expressions of interest but negotiations fizzled out in the wake of the US sub-prime crisis.

Pearlbank Apartments, which comprises 280 apartments and eight commercial units, was the first all-housing project constructed on a URA site. Some architects reckon the building has merit worth preserving, but it is not gazetted for conservation.

Mr Wong said more than 80 per cent of the owners have already agreed to go down the en bloc route. Based on the indicative asking price, he estimates most of them stand to collect 60-70 per cent more through a collective sale than they would individually.

Under the 2003 Master Plan, the site is designated for residential development at a plot ratio of 7.2. However, according to URA, the baseline gross floor area is 56,998.8 sq m. This is equivalent to a plot ratio of 7.447 on the land area of 7,653 sq m.

Based on an average unit size of 1,200 sq ft, 500 new apartments can be built on the site. There is also opportunity for the developer to integrate Pearl’s Hill City Park into the redevelopment, Mr Wong said.

Source : Business Times – 10 Jan 2008

Pearlbank Apartments, Mitre Hotel up for sale
August 7, 2007

PEARLBANK Apartments in the Chinatown area and Mitre Hotel off Killiney Road have been launched for sale.

And on Friday last week, MCL Land said it had bought Dynasty Garden Court 1 in Sixth Avenue for $80 million or $1,160 per square foot of land area. The freehold site is designated for three-storey mixed landed housing. The collective sale was brokered by Credo Real Estate.

Knight Frank says it expects at least $750 million for Pearlbank Apartments. This reflects a unit land price of $1,445 per sq ft of potential gross floor area including an estimated $137 million the developer will have to pay the state to restore the lease on the 82,376 sq ft site to 99 years from a balance of about 62.

In the Killiney Road area, the Mitre Hotel and a two-storey outhouse that sit on freehold land of 39,972 sq ft are expected to fetch about $200 million, or close to $1,800 psf per plot ratio, including an estimated $700,000 development charge.

Jones Lang LaSalle is marketing the property, which is being sold by public tender after a court order was made following a dispute among the Chiam family members who own it.

The site is zoned for residential use with a 2.8 plot ratio – the ratio of maximum potential gross floor area to land area – and a 10-storey height limit. The tender closes on Sept 12.

Pearlbank Apartments, next to Pearl’s Hill City Park, was built on land sold in 1969 under the Third Urban Redevelopment Authority Sale of Sites programme. It was the first all-housing project built on a URA land parcel.

The development has 280 apartments and eight commercial units. Knight Frank says owners representing more than 80 per cent of share values have signed the collective sale agreement. The project has an existing gross floor area (GFA) of 613,530 sq ft, equivalent to a 7.447 plot ratio – higher than the 7.2 designated for the site under Master Plan 2003.

Knight Frank’s price expectation of ‘at least $750 million’ is based on the assumption that the developer can retain the existing GFA in a new project.

‘Based on an average unit size of 1,200 sq ft, 500 new apartments can be built on the site,’ the firm says. Because of the site’s elevation, even lower-level units will have unblocked views of the city skyline, it adds.

Developers have until Sept 18 to submit offers.

Source : Business Times – 7 Aug 2007