Farrer Court en bloc sale reaps $1.34 billion

Farrer Court en bloc sale reaps $1.34 billion 
Farrer Court’s (above) sale price is above the owners’ reserve price of $1.2 billion but below their asking price of $1.5 billion. — ST PHOTO: ARTHUR LEE CH
 
PROPERTY giant CapitaLand paid $1.34 billion for the sprawling Farrer Court estate on Thursday - the biggest lump sum ever shelled out for a residential site here.
Owners at the 618-unit complex will get about $2.15 million each, depending on the size of their flats, which range from 1,453 to 1,615 square feet.

The bumper price for the ex-HUDC block beat the reserve of $1.2 billion but fell short of the owners’ $1.5 billion asking price.

It also signals how high and how fast prices have risen this year. The owners’ had demanded $900 million earlier this year but revised that to $1.5 billion when the estate was put up for sale in May.

The deal broker Credo Real Estate said the sale is also the largest in terms of land area, number of units and buildable gross floor area.

Farrer Court, which is 30 years into a 99-year lease, sits on 838,488 sq ft near the junction of Farrer and Holland Roads and the upcoming Farrer MRT Station.

CapitaLand plans to build a 36-storey condominium with about 1,500 flats on the site, which will be ready for launch in early 2009.

Existing Farrer Court owners will have first right of refusal to buy units at the new development.

Capitaland president and chief executive Liew Mun Leong said the deal would further jack up its residential landbank, allowing it to benefit from Singapore’s ‘growth story’.

The site also gives the firm the chance to work with world-renowned architects to create a unique landmark project, said Mr Liew.

The Farrer Court tender closed on Wednesday and attracted two bids, both above the reserve.
Source: The Straits Times, 28 June 2007

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