GuocoLand, Hong Leong Group and Singapore’s Intrepid Investments submit top bid of $486.8 mil for Lentor Gardens GLS siteToday, the tender for a residential government land sale (GLS) site at Lentor Gardens closed with just one bid from GuocoLand and Intrepid Investments (a subsidiary of Hong Leong Group). The joint venture partners submitted a bid of $486.8 million ($985 psf ppr) for the 99-year leasehold site. According to Mark Yip, CEO of Huttons Asia, the bid “is the lowest for a land parcel in the Lentor precinct” and the first residential GLS tender to see only one bid since the tender for the Silat Avenue GLS site in 2018.
The bid of $486.8 million for the 99-year leasehold site is the lowest for a land parcel in the Lentor precinct. GuocoLand and Intrepid Investments (a subsidiary of Hong Leong Group) are the joint venture partners of this residential government land sale (GLS) site and they envisage a new high-end residential development with approximately 533 units in the area. Their bid translates to a land rate of $985 psf per plot ratio (psf ppr).
The GLS site at Lentor Gardens is the first residential tender to see only one bid since the Silat Avenue GLS site in 2018. This was won by a consortium led by UOL Group, who bid $1.035 billion, which later became the 1,074-unit Avenue South Residences fully sold in September 2019.
The last two residential GLS sites to be sold in Lentor were at Lentor Central and Lentor Hill (Parcel B). Lentor Central was awarded to a consortium comprising China Communications Construction, Soilbuild Group Holdings, and United Engineers. Their bid of $481.03 million ($1,108 psf ppr) was the top and won the land parcel. The bid for Lentor Hills (Parcel B) was $276.36 million ($1,130 psf ppr) and was won by TID, a joint venture between Hong Leong Group and Mitsui Fudosan. This land parcel has the potential to yield about 265 units.
Prior to this land sale, a GLS site at Lentor Hills Road (Parcel A) was sold for $586.6 million ($1,060 psf ppr) in January 2022. The 598-unit Lentor Hills Residences by GuocoLand, Hong Leong Holdings and TID (a joint venture between Hong Leong Holdings and Mitsui Fudosan) is expected to launch soon.
The launch of the 605-unit Lentor Modern integrated development by GuocoLand last September was met with enthusiastic reception; 84% of the units were sold on launch weekend, with 88% sold at an average price of $2,104 psf.
As such, bids for GLS sites in the Lentor area have been trending downwards. This is due to the multiple parcels being launched in the area and possibly a cloudy economic outlook. Furthermore, still available are two other GLS sites in Lentor. These sites – located at Lentor Central and Lentor Gardens – can potentially yield 3,500 new units, which translates to almost 11,000 new residents in an area of less than 0.5 sq km in the span of three to six years.
The site is near the Lentor MRT station and various recreational facilities (Yio Chu Kang Stadium, Thomson Nature Park) as well as CHIJ St Nicholas Girls’ School. It’s appeal to parents of school-age children and retirees should attract many potential homebuyers to the new condominium. Units are expected to be priced around $1,950 – $2,050 psf when launched.