Freehold building in CBD up for sale

Tower Fifteen at 15 Hoe Chiang Road is a 29-storey office tower within walking distance of Tanjong Pagar MRT station.
Tower Fifteen at 15 Hoe Chiang Road is a 29-storey office tower within walking distance of Tanjong Pagar MRT station. PHOTO: CBRE

A freehold commercial building in the central business district (CBD) is being put up for sale.

Tower Fifteen at 15 Hoe Chiang Road is a 29-storey office tower, which includes an annex three-storey hotel podium. The building has a site area of 39,337 sq ft and a current gross floor area of 253,453 sq ft, which comprises office and hotel space.

The total existing net lettable area of the building is some 210,268 sq ft, said sole marketing agent CBRE in a statement yesterday.

Based on the Master Plan 2014, the site is zoned "commercial" with a plot ratio of 5.6 and a building height of up to 35 storeys.

It is within walking distance of Tanjong Pagar MRT station while the future Cantonment MRT station under the full loop Circle Line will be located across the road.

"The market has been anticipating the sale of a freehold commercial building in the CBD, given that buyers have been starved of such opportunities in the Singapore market over the last few years," said CBRE associate director for investment properties Sammi Lim.

"Tower Fifteen is arguably the only freehold commercial building available for sale currently in the prestigious CBD, and hence we can expect strong interest from both the local and foreign buyers, which will include developers, investors, property funds and owner-occupiers looking for a corporate headquarters with building naming rights," she added.

Written permission has been granted by the Urban Redevelopment Authority for the site's redevelopment into a new 30-storey strata commercial development comprising retail and office components, which allow the buyer full flexibility to explore various options for this building.

"The buyer will be buying into an otherwise tightly held asset class, where property developers and Reits (real estate investment trusts) own the majority of office space in the CBD," Ms Lim added.

Potential buyers have up to Jan 27 to register their interest.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on November 23, 2015, with the headline Freehold building in CBD up for sale. Subscribe