High number of bids for Dairy Farm Walk and Bukit Batok West EC GLS

URA and HDB have closed the GLS tender earlier today on March 8 for the Dairy Farm Walk and Bukit Batok West Avenue 8 EC sites.

Both sites attracted several bids, with seven bids for the Dairy Farm Walk site and nine bids for the Bukit Batok West Avenue 8 EC site.

The highest bid for the Dairy Farm Walk site was submitted by Sim Lian Land and Sim Lian Development at $347 million.

With a GFA of 32,893 sqm, this translates to $980 PSF per plot ratio. The site will yield an estimated 385 units.

In our review of the site , we noted that the main draw of the Dairy Farm Walk site is that it is right next to the German European School Singapore, making it ideal for expats. Bukit Timah Nature Reserve is also nearby, as residents can reach the entrance within a five-minute walk.

As for the Bukit Batok EC site, the highest bid came from the Qingjian-Santarli joint venture, which submitted a tender price of $266 million. This translates to $662 PSF per plot ratio for a maximum GFA of 37,348 sqm - a record high for an EC site. The estimated number of units of the EC is 375 units.

Residents of the EC will be within walking distance of Le Quest mall and Bukit Batok Hillside Nature Park.

The high number of bids for both sites signal developers' interest in replenishing their land banks. This is despite the latest cooling measures, in which the developer remittable ABSD rate was increased to 35 per cent.

OrangeTee and Tie noted a pent-up demand for homes in both areas. Currently, Dairy Farm Residences is the only new launch in the Dairy Farm area. According to the agency, it has since sold 97.8 per cent of its units.

Likewise, the agency highlighted that there has been a lack of ECs in Bukit Batok. The Dew has been the only EC launched in the area so far and was completed nearly twenty years ago in 2003. This means it has since been privatised.

With that, OrangeTee and Tie expects the selling price to range from $1,950 PSF to $2,050 PSF for the new Dairy Farm Walk condo, and from $1,250 PSF to $1,350 PSF for the new Bukit Batok EC.

This article was first published in 99.co.