663-unit condo to come up on city's fringe

Average prices of around $1,600 psf for units in Alexandra project close to Redhill MRT station

Showflats for the Principal Garden condominium (above) will be open for public viewing from next Saturday.
Showflats for the Principal Garden condominium (above) will be open for public viewing from next Saturday. PHOTO: UOL GROUP

The Principal Garden condominium on the city fringe in the Alexandra area will be launched at the end of the month with average prices of around $1,600 per square foot.

The 663-unit project in Prince Charles Crescent has four 24- storey blocks and is next to the Alexandra Park Connector that extends 4km towards the Central Business District. It is also within a 10-minute walk from the Redhill MRT Station.

It comprises 182 one-bedroom, 304 two-bedroom and 69 three- bedroom units, as well as 66 three- to five-bedroom apartments with private lifts.

The smaller units in the 99-year leasehold project are seen as being particularly appealing to investors, according to the joint developers, UOL Group and Kheng Leong Company.

"Being near the city, the investment angle is strong and some parents (living nearby) may want to get a unit for their children," UOL deputy group chief executive Liam Wee Sin said at a showflat viewing yesterday.

The one-bedders range from 484 to 506 sq ft, the two-bedroom units are 764 to 807 sq ft while three-bedders are between 1,076 and 1,195 sq ft. Units with private lifts range from 1,238 to 2,347 sq ft.

Prices are around $1,600 per sq ft, making one-bedders cost around $770,000, two-bedders around $1.18 million, and three-bedders around $1.7 million.

The showflats will be open for public viewing from next Saturday, for about two weeks.

Mr Liam said the units will be launched in phases, with around 250 being made available initially.

"We secured the Prince Charles Crescent site last year at a reasonable bid price (at $821 psf per plot ratio), by which we are now able to pass on value and savings to buyers," he said.

"We believe buyers can see the strong upside potential."

Analysts noted that the development has attributes that could sit well with investors - competitive pricing, a good location as well as a large number of smaller units, especially the popular two-bedders.

"At $1,600 psf, it's cheaper than its next-door neighbour The Crest, which has a median price of $1,688 psf based on the reported transaction prices from January to October this year," said Mr Nicholas Mak, executive director at SLP International.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on October 10, 2015, with the headline 663-unit condo to come up on city's fringe. Subscribe