SINGAPORE (THE NEW PAPER) - This is the view that fetched $1.1 million.

The 28th-storey Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS) flat at City View @ Boon Keng made headlines earlier this month because it became the most expensive public housing flat transacted so far this year.

The New Paper understands that the couple who bought the flat are "semi-retired".

The agent who helped broker the deal, Mr Kavin Kuah, 28, said the couple were attracted by the unblocked views of the Sports Hub, Marina Bay Sands and the sea in the distance.

"They will be able to enjoy the firework displays every National Day and New Year's Eve. The flat is also a stone's throw from shops and restaurants. To top it off, there is the Boon Keng MRT station," said Mr Kuah.

The seller, who wanted to be known only as Mr Tan, 35, told The Straits Times earlier that he thought he could try his luck, because "the location is very convenient".

Mr Tan and his wife had bought the flat for about $700,000, when the premium public housing project was launched in 2008.

With this sale, they made a profit of more than $300,000.

Home buyers are growing more willing to dig deep into their pockets for public housing, this despite a depressed resale market.

The move underscored what housing experts say is a persistent demand by some buyers for premium units in central locations.

In January, City View became the second DBSS project to enter the resale market, after The Premiere in Tampines in 2014.

City View has been fetching higher prices due to its location, with three other units there crossing the $1 million mark.

Since January this year, 12 public housing flats have been resold for more than $1 million - 11 of which are five-room flats. One is an executive maisonette.

PHENOMENON

The "million-dollar flat" phenomenon started in 2012 with a unit at Block 149 Mei Ling Street in Queenstown. At the peak of the property craze, a maisonette at Bishan sold for $1.05 million and last year, the Pinnacle@Duxton was ahead with about six flats reaching $1 million or more.

Head of auctions at Knight Frank, Ms Sharon Lee, said: "It's all about location, location, location. Singaporeans would pay that something extra to get a home in specific places - in town, near prominent schools, near good transport network.

"Also these million dollar apartments are located in town and at five to six years, are relatively new. If you look at other flats in the same area, they are much older."

Key executive officer of Spruce Realty Jasmine Lau, 42, said many of the buyers of these million dollar flats are young couples whose average gross monthly household income exceeds the income ceiling stipulated by the Housing Board for new flats.

"And apartments in the private condominiums are too expensive and out of their price range.

"By buying resale flats, they can still apply for government grants if they live near their parents. To them, that's a good deal. Besides, the monthly Service and Conservancy Charges would not be as high as the management fees at the condo," she said.

"Take the flat in City View that was recently sold for instance, it is about $800 per square foot (psf). A private condo, like Eight Riversuites nearby, with an equally good view would be priced at $1,300 psf. What this means is there would be half a million dollar difference in price," Ms Lau added.

Agreeing, Mr Kuah said: "The other group that would pay premium prices (for public housing) comprises older couples who are already established in their career or are semi-retired. They want the convenience of a centrally located flat with amenities such as the MRT and buses, shops and eateries near by."