Komoco chairman’s Old Holland Road GCB sold after auction closes via private treaty

SINGAPORE - A good class bungalow (GCB) along Old Holland Road, belonging to automotive group Komoco Holdings executive chairman Teo Hock Seng, has been sold via private treaty, after being withdrawn from auction.

The auction on April 23 drew up to 30 attendees in their 30s to 80s.

Bidding opened at $36 million, but a counteroffer of $33 million was soon made and accepted by SRI Auction managing partner Mok Sze Sze.

Multiple bids pushed the price up to $35 million, but none was made at or above its $36 million reserve price, resulting in the property being withdrawn.

The bidding process lasted for over half an hour, before being taken into private treaty with two interested parties behind closed doors. It was eventually sold to one of the two at an undisclosed price, but Ms Mok said both the buyer and seller were satisfied with the sale.

“When the price is right, people will enter the market,” she said. “This shows that attendees at the auction were genuine buyers who came forth with the intention to secure the property and (sign for it) on the spot.”

While a non-disclosure agreement was signed, Ms Mok said the GCB was likely purchased for the buyer’s own stay. Generally, buyers of landed homes here including GCBs are Singapore citizens.

She added that there was a “healthy level” of private viewings and inquiries in the lead-up to the auction. “Most were impressed by the workmanship and quality that was built then,” she said.

Located in the Brizay Park GCB Area of District 10, the site has a two-storey bungalow with six en suite bedrooms, along with a swimming pool, an outdoor patio and pavilion, as well as a car porch that can accommodate 10 cars.

Mr Teo and his wife Chua Hwee Meng acquired the freehold GCB for $11.58 million or $500 per sq ft (psf) in May 2007, data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority showed. The previous owners were reportedly Mr Robert Heng, founder of auto-finance dealer Orchard Credit Group, and his wife Ruby. The Hengs built the 12,000 sq ft GCB in 1994.

The reserve price of $36 million translates to a land rate of around $1,555 psf on the land area of 23,148 sq ft, SRI had previously said. This is well below the median price of $2,183 psf for detached homes in the area in the past year, though over three times Mr Teo’s original purchase price of $500 psf.

The Business Times understands that in 2024, two other GCBs went under the hammer as owner sales, but failed to attract successful bids.

One was a King Albert Park GCB with an opening price of $26.8 million, or $1,649 psf, on a site area of 16,250 sq ft.

The other was in Jervois Road in the Tanglin area, with an opening price of $68 million or $4,482 psf on a land area of 15,171 sq ft. THE BUSINESS TIMES