Tie-up involving Singapore’s 2nd richest man Kwek Leng Beng’s CDL offers $422M top bid for prime housing site

The offer translates to S$1,865.15 per square foot (US$15,630 per square meter) per plot ratio for the 59,347-square-foot (5,513.5-square-meter) private housing site on Peck Hay Road, according to the Urban Redevelopment Authority, which announced the tender’s closing on Thursday.

It was 8.4% higher than the second-highest bid of S$500.19 million, or S$1,720 psf ppr, submitted by a joint venture between Sunway MCL Land and CSC Land Group.

It also exceeded the nearly S$1,820 psf ppr paid for the nearby Bukit Timah Road site, whose tender closed last November.

Analysts had projected a top bid of about S$1,600-1,800 psf ppr for the Peck Hay Road site when its tender was launched in April, according to The Edge Singapore.

The 99-year leasehold site has a maximum gross floor area of 290,811 sq ft and is within walking distance of Newton MRT Station, offering easy access to both the North South and Downtown lines.

It is located in the Newton area, which the URA plans to develop into a “vibrant, mixed-use urban village” under its 2025 Master Plan.

If awarded the site, the 80:20 tie-up between City Developments (CDL) and Hong Realty, a subsidiary of Hong Leong Group, intends to build a 39-story residential development comprising around 380 units, well above the 315 estimated by the URA.

Sherman Kwek, CDL’s group CEO and Kwek’s son, said the project’s proximity to the Orchard Road shopping belt, strong MRT links and convenient access to amenities make it an appealing option for discerning homebuyers.

“We look forward to shaping the precinct’s next phase of transformation with a distinctive residential landmark,” he said, as quoted by The Business Times.

Kwek Leng Beng, executive chairman of Hong Leong Group and executive chairman of City Developments Limited (CDL), Oct. 20, 2023. Photo by AFP

Marcus Chu, CEO of real estate agency ERA Singapore, said the top bid ranks as the second-highest ever for a residential-only government land sale site, trailing only the S$2,377 psf ppr paid for the Cuscaden Road site in May 2018.

Based on the land cost, ERA estimates that the upcoming project will have an average selling price of at least S$3,500 psf.

Meanwhile, Leonard Tay, head of research at property consultancy Knight Frank Singapore, expects launch prices to average S$3,700-3,900 psf.

He told EdgeProp Singapore that pricing will depend on “how the developer designs and shapes the product and schedules the launch vis-a-vis prevailing market conditions in about a year’s time.”

Kwek Leng Beng is the executive chairman of CDL and Hong Leong Group. He and his family ranked second on Forbes’ list of the richest people in Singapore last September with an estimated net worth of US$14.3 billion.