More pain ahead?
High housing costs and office rents prompt highest levelof dissatisfaction since 2006
Wednesday • July 23, 2008
CHRISTIE LOH and CHEOW XIN YI
christie@mediacorp.com.sg
INCREASINGLY frustrated by cost pressures and a shortage of places for their children at international schools, American companies foresee yet more pain ahead, including a recession back home. This, they say, will hurt their Asia operations.
The American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore conducted its sixth annual survey of its members last month and found that 76 per cent of 130 senior executives polled online thought the United States would suffer a recession this year.
Within this group, most believed the downturn would last 12 to 18 months or what is known as a U-shaped recession — the scenario sandwiched between a short-term “V-shaped” bounce and a long-term “L-shaped” slump.
“The impact will be more related to the perceptions of our parent company in the US as they struggle to deal with their economic realities, and much less to do with the realities of the Asian economic scene,” said one unnamed executive surveyed from the Asian subsidiary of a US multi-national firm.
Others, such as AmCham member Lance Hardesty, think it is perhaps premature to pinpoint a recession on the horizon.
“I think the economy right now is just holding its breath to see what happens with the US Presidential elections,” Mr Hardesty, who runs engineering consultancy RW Beck here, told Today.
There was, however, wide consensus on the impact of any US recession on business in Asia: 80 per cent of the respondents foresaw “negative” repercussions. This makes American executives in Singapore, whose jobs are mostly regional and not confined to a single country, more bearish compared to their peers in Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines.
Already, US businesses here are feeling the heat from inflation. Some 74 per cent of the respondents were disgruntled with housing costs and office rents in Singapore. That is the highest level of dissatisfaction since 2006, when AmCham began surveying these concerns.
To fight inflation, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has allowed the Singapore dollar to appreciate to lower effective import costs.
But the central bank “needs to do more”, opined Mr Lee Jong-Wha, head of the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) office of regional economic integration, during a conference here yesterday.
He said a “tighter monetary policy” could be balanced with fiscal policy, such as by increasing public expenditure, to ensure economic growth.
:The ADB predicts inflation in Singapore to hit 5.8 per cent this year, after last year’s 2.1 per cent.
:High prices have also found their way into education, with expatriates stumping out money to secure places in prestigious schools. Half of those polled by AmCham felt that a lack of adequate space at international schools could affect their company’s decision to hire foreign employees.
:The chamber formed a committee in April to look into solving the problem.
:As in previous surveys, the majority were satisfied with the infrastructure and business climate here. Despite recession fears and cost frustrations, 57 per cent of those polled foresaw their Singapore workforce growing, while 71 per cent planned to expand in South-east Asia.
Copyright MediaCorp Press Ltd. All rights reserved.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Two Singapore office blocks sold for $40m
Business Times - 24 Jul 2008
Two Singapore office blocks sold for $40m
Both buildings with 999-year leasehold transacted around $1,300 psf of NLA
(SINGAPORE) Amid the quiet investment sales market, two small office blocks have been sold - in High Street and Middle Road - for a total of about $40 million or $1,300-plus per sq ft of existing net lettable area (NLA). Both buildings have 999-year leaseshold tenure.
A Hong Kong investor is believed to have bought Wisma Sugnomal at 75 High Street for $23.5 million or $1,349 psf based on existing NLA of 17,414 sq ft.
The property is believed to have been sold by mortgagee bank DBS. The mortgagor is understood to be an entity linked to the Aswani family.
The seven-storey office block, which has shops at street level, is about 12 years old.
The existing gross floor area of about 25,500 sq ft is slightly higher than the maximum allowed for the site under the Master Plan.
Fragrance group has bought 33 Middle Road, which is next to a Hotel 81, for $16.8 million or $1,324 psf of existing NLA in the five-storey building.
Market watchers expect Fragrance to convert the property into a budget hotel when existing leases to Tyndale Education Group and another tenant run out in the next few months and give the neighbouring Hotel 81 a run for its money.
Based on building's existing gross floor area of almost 17,000 sq ft, the property could house about 50 budget hotel rooms, industry observers suggested. Colliers International is believed to have brokered both deals.
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.
Two Singapore office blocks sold for $40m
Both buildings with 999-year leasehold transacted around $1,300 psf of NLA
(SINGAPORE) Amid the quiet investment sales market, two small office blocks have been sold - in High Street and Middle Road - for a total of about $40 million or $1,300-plus per sq ft of existing net lettable area (NLA). Both buildings have 999-year leaseshold tenure.
A Hong Kong investor is believed to have bought Wisma Sugnomal at 75 High Street for $23.5 million or $1,349 psf based on existing NLA of 17,414 sq ft.
The property is believed to have been sold by mortgagee bank DBS. The mortgagor is understood to be an entity linked to the Aswani family.
The seven-storey office block, which has shops at street level, is about 12 years old.
The existing gross floor area of about 25,500 sq ft is slightly higher than the maximum allowed for the site under the Master Plan.
Fragrance group has bought 33 Middle Road, which is next to a Hotel 81, for $16.8 million or $1,324 psf of existing NLA in the five-storey building.
Market watchers expect Fragrance to convert the property into a budget hotel when existing leases to Tyndale Education Group and another tenant run out in the next few months and give the neighbouring Hotel 81 a run for its money.
Based on building's existing gross floor area of almost 17,000 sq ft, the property could house about 50 budget hotel rooms, industry observers suggested. Colliers International is believed to have brokered both deals.
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.
Newton Suites shortlisted for International Highrise Award
Business Times - 24 Jul 2008
Newton Suites shortlisted for International Highrise Award
By ARTHUR SIM
UOL's Newton Suites has been selected as one of the five contenders for the International Highrise Award (IHA).
Having made the shortlist, Newton Suites, which is designed by award-winning Singapore architectural firm, WOHA, has been elevated to the same league of buildings designed by Foster and Partners (Hearst Tower, New York), Renzo Piano Building Workshop (New York Times Building) and OMA (Television Cultural Centre, Beijing).
An international jury of architects, engineers, real-estate specialists and architecture critics in Frankfurt/Main were responsible for the selection of the five buildings.
On Newton Suites, the Jury citation reads: 'In this residential tower, the feeling of living in the tropics both indoors and outdoors is transferred to a vertical dimension. It represents a development for life in the vertical in densely developed metropolises and can be seen as a pioneering model for other tropical cities.'
UOL Group COO Liam Wee Sin said that being on the shortlist with the likes of Hearst Tower and New York Times Building, 'is a step closer towards building an exciting living environment for Singapore, and having a development good enough to be selected among entries from around the world'.
'For UOL, the recognition will inspire us to continue to push the frontier of good design and sustainable city living in Singapore,' he added.
Newton Suites is a 36-storey apartment building, clad in metal mesh sunshading. It features cantilevered skygardens and a 30-storey wall of creepers.
The green areas of the building exceed the original site area, demonstrating how cities in the future can become much greener without loss of density or quality of living.
WOHA director Wong Mun Summ added: 'The integration of the environmental features such as sunshading and hanging gardens into the design shows how tropical highrise can be different from temperate climate models.'
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.
Newton Suites shortlisted for International Highrise Award
By ARTHUR SIM
UOL's Newton Suites has been selected as one of the five contenders for the International Highrise Award (IHA).
Having made the shortlist, Newton Suites, which is designed by award-winning Singapore architectural firm, WOHA, has been elevated to the same league of buildings designed by Foster and Partners (Hearst Tower, New York), Renzo Piano Building Workshop (New York Times Building) and OMA (Television Cultural Centre, Beijing).
An international jury of architects, engineers, real-estate specialists and architecture critics in Frankfurt/Main were responsible for the selection of the five buildings.
On Newton Suites, the Jury citation reads: 'In this residential tower, the feeling of living in the tropics both indoors and outdoors is transferred to a vertical dimension. It represents a development for life in the vertical in densely developed metropolises and can be seen as a pioneering model for other tropical cities.'
UOL Group COO Liam Wee Sin said that being on the shortlist with the likes of Hearst Tower and New York Times Building, 'is a step closer towards building an exciting living environment for Singapore, and having a development good enough to be selected among entries from around the world'.
'For UOL, the recognition will inspire us to continue to push the frontier of good design and sustainable city living in Singapore,' he added.
Newton Suites is a 36-storey apartment building, clad in metal mesh sunshading. It features cantilevered skygardens and a 30-storey wall of creepers.
The green areas of the building exceed the original site area, demonstrating how cities in the future can become much greener without loss of density or quality of living.
WOHA director Wong Mun Summ added: 'The integration of the environmental features such as sunshading and hanging gardens into the design shows how tropical highrise can be different from temperate climate models.'
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.
En bloc site relaunched with 40% lower price tag
Business Times - 24 Jul 2008
En bloc site relaunched with 40% lower price tag
Elsewhere, Straits Trading asking $162m for Gallop Gables apartments
By UMA SHANKARI
A DISTRICT 10 collective sale site at Robin Drive, off Bukit Timah Road, has been relaunched for sale - with a new asking price as much as 40 per cent lower in view of the current market sentiment.
The two properties on the site are now being sold for $964-$996 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr), a downgrade from the initial asking price of $1,500- $1,600 psf ppr when the site was first launched in December 2007.
The property was not the only one to be put on the market yesterday. The Straits Trading Company has put up for sale two blocks of apartments at Gallop Gables with a price tag of about $162 million, or $1,500 psf.
The Robin Drive site now consists of two properties - Robin Court and No 1 Robin Drive. Robin Court is an apartment block with 15 units while No 1 Robin Drive is a detached house now occupied by a preschool.
The indicative price of the combined plots is now $58-$60 million. If the developer maximises the potential of building up to 10 per cent of gross floor area (GFA) for balconies, the land rate works out to be about $964-$996 psf ppr, said Credo Real Estate, which is marketing the sites.
The majority owners of Robin Court had agreed to the collective sale before amendments to the en bloc laws took effect last October. But now, they have begun signing the collective sale agreement to lower the reserve price in view of the current cautious sentiment in the property market, Credo said.
No development charge is payable for redevelopment of the site at a plot ratio of up to 1.4, with a further 5.5 per cent in GFA for balconies, said Yong Choon Fah, Credo's executive director.
The new development on the site could accommodate a luxurious residential project with a GFA of about 62,398 sq ft and can be configured into 30 apartments with an average size of 2,000 sq ft each, Credo said.
The developer should be able to break even at about $1,470-$1,500 psf, the firm added.
The expressions of interest (EOI) exercise for the two properties will close at 2.30pm on August 14.
Elsewhere, Straits Trading is selling two blocks consisting of 38 large apartments in Gallop Gables. Situated off Farrer Road, Gallop Gables, which was completed in 1997, has seven low-rise blocks with 140 apartments in all.
Straits Trading's apartments have been retained for investment since completion. The 38 apartments have a total gross floor area of about 108,170 sq ft.
The apartments are tenanted and 'present an opportunity to purchase an income-producing investment with capital growth potential', said Knight Frank, the property firm marketing the two blocks.
The EOI for the apartments will close on September 9 at 3pm.
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.
En bloc site relaunched with 40% lower price tag
Elsewhere, Straits Trading asking $162m for Gallop Gables apartments
By UMA SHANKARI
A DISTRICT 10 collective sale site at Robin Drive, off Bukit Timah Road, has been relaunched for sale - with a new asking price as much as 40 per cent lower in view of the current market sentiment.
The two properties on the site are now being sold for $964-$996 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr), a downgrade from the initial asking price of $1,500- $1,600 psf ppr when the site was first launched in December 2007.
The property was not the only one to be put on the market yesterday. The Straits Trading Company has put up for sale two blocks of apartments at Gallop Gables with a price tag of about $162 million, or $1,500 psf.
The Robin Drive site now consists of two properties - Robin Court and No 1 Robin Drive. Robin Court is an apartment block with 15 units while No 1 Robin Drive is a detached house now occupied by a preschool.
The indicative price of the combined plots is now $58-$60 million. If the developer maximises the potential of building up to 10 per cent of gross floor area (GFA) for balconies, the land rate works out to be about $964-$996 psf ppr, said Credo Real Estate, which is marketing the sites.
The majority owners of Robin Court had agreed to the collective sale before amendments to the en bloc laws took effect last October. But now, they have begun signing the collective sale agreement to lower the reserve price in view of the current cautious sentiment in the property market, Credo said.
No development charge is payable for redevelopment of the site at a plot ratio of up to 1.4, with a further 5.5 per cent in GFA for balconies, said Yong Choon Fah, Credo's executive director.
The new development on the site could accommodate a luxurious residential project with a GFA of about 62,398 sq ft and can be configured into 30 apartments with an average size of 2,000 sq ft each, Credo said.
The developer should be able to break even at about $1,470-$1,500 psf, the firm added.
The expressions of interest (EOI) exercise for the two properties will close at 2.30pm on August 14.
Elsewhere, Straits Trading is selling two blocks consisting of 38 large apartments in Gallop Gables. Situated off Farrer Road, Gallop Gables, which was completed in 1997, has seven low-rise blocks with 140 apartments in all.
Straits Trading's apartments have been retained for investment since completion. The 38 apartments have a total gross floor area of about 108,170 sq ft.
The apartments are tenanted and 'present an opportunity to purchase an income-producing investment with capital growth potential', said Knight Frank, the property firm marketing the two blocks.
The EOI for the apartments will close on September 9 at 3pm.
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.
S'pore is 13th most expensive city
Business Times - 24 Jul 2008
S'pore is 13th most expensive city
It is also the 5th costliest in Asia for expats: Mercer survey
By ARTHUR SIM
SINGAPORE is the world's 13th most expensive city for expatriates, and the fifth most expensive in Asia.
According to Mercer's Worldwide Cost of Living Survey 2008, Singapore ranks above Sydney (15th), New York (22nd) and Shanghai (24th).
Mercer's survey, which covers 143 cities on six continents, measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment.
For instance, a fast-food hamburger meal costs US$4.50 in Singapore, US$3.18 in Hong Kong and US$5.97 in Tokyo.
Mercer's managing director (Asean) Su-Yen Wong said: 'Singapore's rise in the rankings is partly due to the appreciation of the Singapore dollar against the US dollar.' At the same time, Singapore's strength as a regional hub and its 'high quality of living' have attracted talent from overseas. 'Consequently, this has increased demand for items such as housing, food and transport.'
Rents have increased significantly here. According to Mercer, a 'luxury' two-bedroom unfurnished apartment now costs US$3,539.77 a month, an increase of about 20 per cent from US$2,946.09 in 2007.
But 'luxury' rent here is lower than in Hong Kong at US$6,411.89 a month and Tokyo at US$5,128.84.
On the upside, Singapore's annual ranking has not increased as rapidly as before. Its 13th place this year is only a notch up from its 14th last year. In 2006 it ranked 17th - way up from 2005 when it was 34th.
In the latest survey, Moscow has been ranked the world's most expensive city for expatriates - for a third straight year. London dropped one place to third.
Yvonne Traber, a principal and research manager at Mercer, said: 'Although the traditionally expensive cities of Western Europe and Asia still feature in the Top 20, cities in Eastern Europe, Brazil and India are creeping up the list. Conversely, some locations such as Stockholm and New York now appear less costly by comparison.'
With New York as the base city at 100 points, Moscow scored 142.4 and is close to three times costlier than Asunción in Paraguay, the least expensive city with a score of 52.5.
Mercer noted that contrary to a trend last year, the gap between the world's most and least expensive cities now seems to be widening.
In its report, it says: 'Our research confirms the global trend in price increases for certain food items and petrol, though the rise is not consistent in all locations. This is partly balanced by decreasing prices for certain commodities, such as electronic and electrical goods. We attribute this to cheaper imports from developing countries, especially China, and to advances in technology.'
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.
S'pore is 13th most expensive city
It is also the 5th costliest in Asia for expats: Mercer survey
By ARTHUR SIM
SINGAPORE is the world's 13th most expensive city for expatriates, and the fifth most expensive in Asia.
According to Mercer's Worldwide Cost of Living Survey 2008, Singapore ranks above Sydney (15th), New York (22nd) and Shanghai (24th).
Mercer's survey, which covers 143 cities on six continents, measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment.
For instance, a fast-food hamburger meal costs US$4.50 in Singapore, US$3.18 in Hong Kong and US$5.97 in Tokyo.
Mercer's managing director (Asean) Su-Yen Wong said: 'Singapore's rise in the rankings is partly due to the appreciation of the Singapore dollar against the US dollar.' At the same time, Singapore's strength as a regional hub and its 'high quality of living' have attracted talent from overseas. 'Consequently, this has increased demand for items such as housing, food and transport.'
Rents have increased significantly here. According to Mercer, a 'luxury' two-bedroom unfurnished apartment now costs US$3,539.77 a month, an increase of about 20 per cent from US$2,946.09 in 2007.
But 'luxury' rent here is lower than in Hong Kong at US$6,411.89 a month and Tokyo at US$5,128.84.
On the upside, Singapore's annual ranking has not increased as rapidly as before. Its 13th place this year is only a notch up from its 14th last year. In 2006 it ranked 17th - way up from 2005 when it was 34th.
In the latest survey, Moscow has been ranked the world's most expensive city for expatriates - for a third straight year. London dropped one place to third.
Yvonne Traber, a principal and research manager at Mercer, said: 'Although the traditionally expensive cities of Western Europe and Asia still feature in the Top 20, cities in Eastern Europe, Brazil and India are creeping up the list. Conversely, some locations such as Stockholm and New York now appear less costly by comparison.'
With New York as the base city at 100 points, Moscow scored 142.4 and is close to three times costlier than Asunción in Paraguay, the least expensive city with a score of 52.5.
Mercer noted that contrary to a trend last year, the gap between the world's most and least expensive cities now seems to be widening.
In its report, it says: 'Our research confirms the global trend in price increases for certain food items and petrol, though the rise is not consistent in all locations. This is partly balanced by decreasing prices for certain commodities, such as electronic and electrical goods. We attribute this to cheaper imports from developing countries, especially China, and to advances in technology.'
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.
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