BTO project near Tampines MRT station, more flats in Sembawang North to go on sale in February
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One of the upcoming projects in Tampines, which will house 280 units, is located between Tampines Avenue 2 and Tampines Street 22.
ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG
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- HDB will launch 4,600 BTO flats across six projects in Bukit Merah, Sembawang, Tampines and Toa Payoh in February, alongside 3,000 balance flats.
- The Tampines project near an MRT station is expected to be popular, possibly under the Plus category with stricter rules. The Sembawang North flats could be under the Standard category, with less strict rules.
- Bukit Merah and Toa Payoh projects near schools are anticipated to be under the Prime category.
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SINGAPORE – A 250-unit development near Tampines MRT station and two more projects in the new Sembawang North neighbourhood are among six Build-To-Order (BTO) projects that will go on sale in February.
In Bukit Merah and Toa Payoh, more than a thousand flats located near schools will go on sale in each housing estate.
On its website on Oct 15, the Housing Board published details of 4,600 flats in Bukit Merah, Sembawang, Tampines and Toa Payoh that will be launched in February. About 3,000 balance flats will also be on offer.
Two projects in Tampines will have a total of 530 units.
One of the projects is in Tampines Central 8 – about a five-minute walk from Tampines MRT station and Our Tampines Hub. It will have about 250 units of two-room flexi and four-room flats, as well as a pre-school.
Property analysts expect this project to be popular, given its proximity to the MRT station and several shopping malls and amenities in the area. They said the project could fall under the Plus category as it is not near the city centre.
Plus flats, which are near transport nodes and amenities in towns farther from the city centre, come with a 10-year minimum occupation period (MOP) like Prime flats, but with a lower subsidy clawback rate.
Ms Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist at Realion Group, expects these flats to be oversubscribed, given that previous BTO launches in Tampines consistently drew high application rates.
Simei Symphony, a project near Upper Changi MRT station that was launched in July, saw about nine applicants vying for each of the 140 four-room flats, she noted.
The second upcoming project in Tampines, which will house 280 units of three- and four-room flats, is located between Tampines Avenue 2 and Tampines Street 22. The site is about 1km from Tampines and Simei MRT stations, with Chongzheng and Yumin primary schools nearby. Analysts expect this to be a Standard project as it is farther from the town centre.
The Straits Times had previously reported that work on the BTO project, which is on the former site of Angsana Primary School, began in August and is set to be completed by the fourth quarter of 2028
In the new Sembawang North estate, a combined 1,920 units will be built across two projects flanking a proposed park in Admiralty Lane.
The larger, 1,160-unit project – with two-room flexi, four- and five-room flats – is located in Sembawang Drive. The other project comprises 760 units of two-room flexi, three-, four- and five-room flats. It will also have a pre-school, an eatery, a minimart and shops.
Several schools, such as Canberra primary and secondary schools, are located in the vicinity. Sembawang MRT station is about 1km away.
These flats will form part of the 8,000 BTO flats to be built in the 53ha Sembawang North estate. It will also have 2,000 private homes.
Analysts said these projects could fall under the Standard classification, which do not have a subsidy recovery clause when they are sold, and come with a five-year MOP.
The first project in the area, Sembawang Beacon, was launched in July with 775 units under the Standard category.
Mr Mohan Sandrasegeran, head of research and data analytics at Singapore Realtors Inc, said there has been healthy demand for flats in the area. Sembawang Beacon had an application rate of about 1.2 first-timer families vying for each flat, he noted.
“Buyers looking to increase their chances of securing a unit may find Sembawang a favourable choice, given its relatively lower competition compared with more central locations,” he said.
Ms Sun added that the five-room flats there – an estimated 650 units – could attract families with school-age children.
In Bukit Merah, a 1,040-unit project comprising two-room flexi, three- and four-room flats, is bounded by Jalan Bukit Merah and Redhill Close. Redhill MRT station is about five minutes away on foot.
Gan Eng Seng Primary School and Bukit Merah Secondary School, as well as Bukit Merah Town Centre, are located nearby.
The site is adjacent to Redhill Peaks, a Prime BTO project with 1,021 units that was launched in the ongoing October sales exercise
In Toa Payoh, a 1,130-unit project comprising two-room flexi, three- and four-room flats will be built in Kim Keat Avenue near the CTE.
The development will have a pre-school, an eatery, a minimart and shops. Toa Payoh MRT station is about 1.5km away.
St Andrew’s Village, which includes its junior and secondary schools, as well as the junior college, is located across the expressway.
Analysts expect the Bukit Merah and Toa Payoh projects to fall under the Prime category, as they are centrally located in towns with a high number of million-dollar resale flat transactions.
Ms Sun expects the Bukit Merah project to be popular, but she also pointed out that BTO application rates for projects in the area have fallen from 2022 to 2025.
The recent launch of several projects in Queenstown and Bukit Merah – such as Berlayar Residences on the former Keppel Club site – may also impact the overall take-up rate of the Bukit Merah project, she added.
