Experts expect more commercial properties to be converted to residential or mixed-use developments, given the high demand for residential properties and how the residential property market has thrived during the pandemic. Since the pandemic hit, at least five developers have announced that they will be redeveloping their properties to include residences.
When Frasers Property launched Sky Eden@Bedok for sale in September 2022, about 75 per cent of its 158 units were sold on the first day. To date, 127 units, or 80 per cent, have been sold.
URA data showed the private residential price index grew by 10.6 per cent in 2021 and 8.6 per cent in 2022, while the office price index fell 5.8 per cent in 2021, but was relatively stable at minus 0.1 per cent in 2022. The retail price index declined by 4.2 per cent in 2021 and 7.8 per cent in 2022.
Come August 2023, CapitaLand Development will shut down JCube – a leisure and edutainment mall in Jurong East – and redevelop it into a 40-storey residential and commercial development. CapitaLand said the project will complement the Government’s plans to bring new homes, along with new businesses, recreational facilities and amenities, to the Jurong Lake District.
In May 2022, a joint venture involving Chip Eng Seng, Chuan Investments and SingHaiyi Investments was granted approval by the URA to redevelop Maxwell House, a 13-storey commercial development, into a mixed development with 324 apartments and about 46,800 sq ft of retail space.
In the luxury segment, the former AXA Tower is being redeveloped into a 63-storey office, retail, residential and hotel project that will house Singapore’s highest super penthouse.
City Developments Limited (CDL) will build Newport Residences, another luxury condominium, on the site of the former Fuji Xerox Towers in Tanjong Pagar.
A CDL spokesman told The Straits Times that despite the recent increase in marginal buyers’ stamp duty for higher value residential properties, the developer believes that “discerning buyers and investors will continue to be attracted to well-located and thoughtfully designed properties in Singapore, given the city’s status as a safe haven and hub for business growth and new opportunities”.
Newport Residences, which will be launched in the first half of 2023, is part of Newport Plaza – a 45-storey mixed use development that will include 246 freehold apartments from the 23rd to 45th storeys, Grade A offices and a retail component.