SINGAPORE - If the Mandarin Gardens condominium does end up going on the market, potential developers could end up with an overall price tag of $4 billion to acquire the new property.

Marketing agent C&H Properties told owners this at a second extraordinary general meeting on the afternoon of March 25, where they approved the asking price of $2.48 billion as well as the method of apportionment, according to sources present.

The owners also approved the collective sales agreement at the meeting held at Touch Centre at Marine Parade Central.

With that approval, the 99-year leasehold estate has begun the process of collecting signatures from owners to get the requisite 80 per cent for the collective sale to be launched.

Sources say that the target is to get the mandate within three months.

In addition to the asking price, it is understood that buyers would have to pay an estimated $325.4 million as a top-up for a fresh lease, as well as an estimated $1.28 billion for development charges. This could bring the total tab to close to $4.09 billion, which translates to $1,236 per square foot (psf) ppr.

C&H also told owners at the meeting it is hoping to attract either a consortium of local developers or Chinese buyers, sources added.

If the sale does eventually go through, Mandarin Gardens could smash the existing record for the largest en bloc sale here by dollar value, currently held by the former Farrer Court, which went for S$1.3388 billion in 2007 when a consortium bought the 838,488 sq ft estate and redeveloped it into D'Leedon.

The second-highest en bloc deal belongs to Pacific Mansion in River Valley, which last week was acquired by Singapore-listed Guocoland, along with Intrepid Investments and Hong Realty, for $980 million.