Ravi Chandran
Victory Point, a freehold mixed-use development at Balestier Road for sale at an indicative price of $14.7 million, or approximately $1,390 on GFA
JLL, as the exclusive marketing agent, on Nov 25 announced for sale Victory Point – a development comprising a 2-storey conservation shophouse with an attic and a 6-storey rear apartment block. It is held under a single title.
Under the Draft Master Plan 2019, the Victory Point site is zoned “Commercial & Residential” and is located within the Balestier Conservation Area. The property has a land area of approximately 3,463 sf and an estimated gross floor area (“GFA”) of 10,609 sf. The conserved section of the property currently houses a 24-hour convenience store on the ground floor, with the second storey and the attic for office use. The rear residential block with nine apartments is wholly leased to a master tenant. Nine mechanised carpark lots are also housed in the building.
Located at the city fringe in the Central Region of Singapore, the Balestier area carries with it a long history dating back to the past where it was once a sugarcane plantation. The Balestier Heritage Trail was launched in 2006 in a joint effort by the National Heritage Board (“NHB”) and the Urban Redevelopment Authority (“URA”) to showcase the area’s rich cultural, community and religious heritage. With a myriad of multi-sensory offerings, the area is characterised by an eclectic mix of unique architecture and landmarks of the old and new, from pre-war terrace houses, art-deco shophouses to the most modern buildings, mirroring the various stages of development of the city-state.
Situated in the Balestier locale, Victory Point enjoys a plethora of F&B, lifestyle and hospitality offerings.
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The well known Whampoa Makan Place and Balestier Market Food Court are within short walking distances, not to mention the many local and foreign eateries lining the streets in the immediate surrounding.
A revitalization of the area is also evident from ongoing efforts by the NHB and URA, together with the recent introduction of an integrated development of hotels, offices and mall at Zhongshan Park next to the historic Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall. Other notable integrated developments include Balestier Plaza, Balestier Point and the upcoming refurbished Shaw Plaza, scheduled to re-open in 2021, which will further inject vibrancy into the area.
Besides being near notable education institutions such as the East Asia Institute of Management, Global Indian International School and Curtin Singapore, Victory Point is also near to premier healthcare services at Thomson Medical Centre and the still expanding HealthCity Novena. Renowned medical institutions include the Tan Tock Seng Hospital and Medical Centre, Mount Elizabeth (Novena), National Neuroscience Institute, Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, National Skin Centre, etc.
Mr Tan Hong Boon, Executive Director, Capital Markets, JLL, said: “Victory Point presents an excellent opportunity for investors to acquire a tightly-held asset occupying a very prominent corner plot with double road frontages that comes with a value-add angle and a good potential exit strategy. The conserved portion is a natural choice retail and office space, while the rear annexed block boasts an extremely convenient residence with its proximity to public transport and ample amenities in the vicinity.
With a potential for strong capital value and rental upside, the freehold property may be held long term for accretive yield and subsequent strata subdivision for sale. The palatable quantum will appeal to a range of investors such as boutique real estate funds, local and foreign family offices, local investment companies and high net worth individuals.”
The indicative price for Victory Point is $14.7 million reflecting $1,390 psf on the estimated GFA. The tender for Victory Point closes on Monday, 13th January 2020 at 3.00 p.m.
https://www.icompareloan.com/resources/first-time-real-estate-investors/
Mr Paul Ho, Chief Mortgage Consultant at iCompareLoan, said that despite the property curbs introduced by the Government last year, Singapore is still an attractive residential market for investors.
Although the property market exuberance has been curbed to some extent with the property cooling measures introduced last year, Singapore as a property market investment destination still remains among the top – shoulder to shoulder with other cities in the world like London, New York, Shanghai and Sydney.
“We have to be mindful that there is a lot of excess capital fluidity here and at 1.9 – 2 percent, Singapore has one of the lowest interest rates for home loans in the region,” he added.
https://www.icompareloan.com/resources/use-mortgage-calculators/
The freehold mixed-use building will be especially attractive to investors because of its location and its freehold status, as investment properties of such nature are scarce in that area. The fact that there is also no ABSD or SSD imposed on the purchase of the property, adds to the attractiveness of the property.
Properties such as Victory Point may be bought under personal name, but total debt servicing Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR) will apply on the individual’s income on such purchases. To buy a commercial or industrial property under company name, total debt servicing ratio TDSR also applies on the individual director’s income if the company is an investment holding company or an operating company that is loss-making or does not have sufficient cash flow to servicing the repayment.
To buy a commercial or industrial property under company name where the company is well established with an existing operating business with strong financials, TDSR may be waived on the individual. However director is usually required to become personal guarantors of the loan the company undertakes. Hence this may affect the director’s other purchases, such as for buying a residential property, due to the loading from the TDSR for guaranteeing a loan.
Some banks even advertise 100 to 120% loan. This is due to a combination of working capital as well as commercial/industrial property loan, but this only applies to company with strong cash flow position. Commercial property is different from residential property and the considerations are more complex and varied though the payoff may be worthwhile for investors
