CapitaLand and UOL-led consortium submit $805.39 mil bid for Holland Drive GLS site
A consortium led by CapitaLand Development (35%) and UOL Group (35%) have placed the highest bid of $805.39 million for a prime government land sale (GLS) site at Holland Drive. The remaining 30% is divided between Singapore Land Group (20%) and Kheng Leong Co. (10%). This bid, which was submitted on May 14 when the tender closed, exceeded the two other bids the government received for the 133,330 sq ft residential site. The second highest bid was jointly submitted by Hong Leong Group and Hong Realty, at $765.26 million ($1,221 psf per plot ratio), while CK Asset Holdings offered $632 million ($1,008 psf per plot ratio). The $805.39 million bid represents a 5.24% increase from Hong Leong Holding and Hong Realty’s bid.
Additionally, the upcoming Norwood Grand CDL at Woodlands Avenue will provide even more transportation options for residents in the future.
Norwood Grand CDL offers a wide range of bus services in addition to the MRT, making it easy for residents to travel to different parts of Singapore. With the Woodlands bus interchange as a central hub, transportation around the area is efficient and hassle-free. And with the upcoming Norwood Grand CDL at Woodlands Avenue, residents will have even more convenient options for their daily commute.
The 99-year leasehold site, located in prime District 10, has a maximum gross floor area of 626,650 sq ft. If the tender is awarded to the CapitaLand-UOL consortium, they plan to develop two 40-storey condominium towers with 680 units. While the competition for this GLS site was less intense compared to the neighbouring mixed-use GLS that was developed into One Holland Village, it still garnered 15 bids from 10 different consortiums. The site was ultimately awarded to Far East Organization, Sekisui House and Sino Group in 2018 at a land rate of $1,888 psf per plot ratio in 2018.
Leonard Tay, head of research at Knight Frank Singapore, believes the three bids for the latest GLS site at Holland Road were “within expectations given the current state of developer sentiment in the private residential market”. He points out that the low number of interested developers reflects the cautious sentiment in the current market due to the high cost of construction, elevated borrowing costs, and government property cooling measures. Wong Siew Ying, head of research and content at PropNex Realty, also shares this sentiment and believes developers were “circumspect” as they submitted relatively conservative bids. In fact, the top bid land rate for this Core Central Region (CCR) plot came in below their expectations.
If the CapitaLand-UOL consortium is awarded the GLS site, the land rate would be the lowest for a CCR GLS residential plot since the Kampong Java Road site was sold in January 2019. Marcus Chu, CEO of ERA Singapore, believes the new project will benefit from a captive market as some nearby landed property owners may be looking to downgrade to single-level units as they age, as well as owners of older developments in the area who may be looking to upgrade. Mohan Sandrasegeran, head of research and data analytics at SRI, believes there is a strong market demand for new private residential homes in the Holland Road area based on the historical performance of new launches in the area.
The 296-unit One Holland Village Residences, launched for sale in November 2019, was fully sold by August 2023 at an average selling price of $2,807 psf. CapitaLand-UOL consortium is expected to launch the new development at a similar price. PropNex also predicts a positive buying interest for the future homes, depending on the pricing that fits the housing budget of local buyers.