Executive Condo launches in the pipeline to test new highs of $1,700 psf

On Oct 29, joint developers Hoi Hup Realty and Sunway Developments released the indicative starting prices for the units in their upcoming executive condo (EC) project, the 504-unit Novo Place. With absolute prices from $1.298 million for an 872 sq ft, two-bedroom to $1.779 million for a 1,163 sq ft, four-bedroom-plus-study, the indicative unit price is in the range of $1,489 psf to $1,545 psf.

Property consultants had anticipated Novo Place’s selling prices to be in the $1,500 to $1,600 psf range, given the elevated land cost of $703 psf per plot ratio (ppr) that the joint venture partners paid for the site in September 2023. Novo Place is also the first EC launch that is affected by the harmonisation of the gross floor area (GFA) definitions, says Wong Siew Ying, PropNex head of research and content. The project is expected to set a new benchmark for EC project launch prices.

New record land rate, new selling price threshold

Novo Place’s benchmark price will likely be surpassed by Sim Lian Group’s future project at Tampines. The developer submitted a top bid of $475 million or $768 psf ppr for the EC site at Tampines Street 95, according to the tender results on Oct 24.

The top bid of $768 psf ppr has already exceeded the previous record land rate of $729 psf ppr set by a Qingjian Realty-led consortium for an EC plot at Jalan Loyang Besar in Pasir Ris in August.

The Tampines Street 95 site is within walking distance of the Tampines West MRT Station on the Downtown Line and can potentially yield 560 new EC units. According to Mark Yip, CEO of Huttons Asia, based on the land rate of $729 psf ppr for Jalan Loyang Besar and $768 psf ppr for Tampines St 95, the selling prices of these upcoming EC projects are likely to hit $1,700 psf.

Resale EC prices already crossing $1,600 psf

Resale prices of completed EC projects, such as the 531-unit Hundred Palms, have already exceeded $1,600 psf, points out Huttons’ Yip. Iit hit a high of $1,677 psf for an 883 sq ft unit in December 2023. The 573-unit Esparina Residences at Compassvale Bow in Sengkang, launched in 2010 and completed in 2013, has also seen units change hands at prices above $1,600 psf this year. Last November, a 1,367 sq ft unit at Esparina Residences hit $1,756 psf, based on caveats lodged. Likewise, at the 670-unit Tampines Trilliant, recent resales have crossed $1,500 psf, with a 1,012 sq ft unit hitting a high of $1,670 psf in October. Tampines Trilliant was launched in 2012 and completed in 2015.

The new generation of ECs launched in the Covid-19 era (2020-2021) and completed this year have also set new benchmarks in terms of product offering. Examples include Hoi Hup and Sunway Developments’ Parc Canberra and Parc Central Residences, as well as Frasers Property’s Parc Greenwich.

This year saw two new EC launches: the 512-unit Lumina Grand and the upcoming Novo Place. Next year, two more EC projects are in the pipeline for launch: Sim Lian Group’s 760-unit Aurelle of Tampines at Tampines St 62 and Hoi Hup-Sunway’s EC at Plantation Close Parcel B in Tengah.

In 2026, two more ECs are scheduled for launch, says Yip of Huttons: the EC site at Jalan Loyang Besar in Pasir Ris and Tampines Street 95.

“The upcoming EC launches are well-spaced out in different parts of the island,” Yip adds. “Demand for ECs tends to be localised. With more than 4,000 flats reaching their MOP [minimum occupation period] in Bukit Batok and Tampines in 2024 to 2026, there will be sufficient demand from upgraders.”