SINGAPORE – J’den, a 99-year leasehold condominium on the site of the former JCube mall in Jurong East, saw 323 units, or 88 per cent of its 368 units, sold during its launch on Saturday.

Units in the mixed-use development, which will be directly connected to Jurong East MRT interchange and malls such as Westgate, IMM and Jem, went for an average selling price of $2,451 per sq ft (psf), CapitaLand Development said on Sunday.

All 148 smaller units, comprising one- and two-bedroom apartments ranging in area from 527 sq ft to 721 sq ft, were sold, said the developer.

The highly anticipated project in the Jurong Gateway commercial hub has 40 storeys, with retail spaces on the first and second storeys. According to CapitaLand, it is set to become the tallest mixed-use development in the Jurong Lake District.

More than 99 per cent of buyers were Singaporeans and permanent residents, with close to 60 per cent of them aged 40 or younger, it said.

Sixty-two per cent of them currently live in western Singapore.

Property analysts said the sales achieved show that buyers prefer projects that are close to amenities and within walking distance of MRT stations.

PropNex chief executive Ismail Gafoor said that buyers were excited about J’den as it is conveniently located and the starting price of $2,100 psf is attractive.

“Even though J’den has set a new benchmark launch price for that locale, many buyers are comfortable and confident to enter the market to purchase units,” he said.

“This is because they deem it as compelling, given the project’s location attributes, and also considering the potential upside in the future when the Jurong Lake District is fully realised.”

Jurong East MRT station currently comprises the East-West and North-South lines. When the Jurong Region Line is completed by 2029, and the second phase of the Cross Island Line opens by 2032, the interchange will have four MRT lines.

In addition, the makeover of the nearby Chinese and Japanese gardens will be completed in 2024, while the Jurong East integrated transport hub – a fully air-conditioned bus interchange – and the new Science Centre is set to open in 2027.

As the last condominium project launched in the area was J Gateway in 2013, there is pent-up demand for new private homes in Jurong, Mr Gafoor added.

ERA Singapore chief executive Marcus Chu said that buyers were also drawn to the views of either Jurong Lake Gardens or the city offered by J’den units.

“Owner-occupier families went for the premium three-bedroom-plus-study units and four-bedroom units that are served by private lifts for added exclusivity,” he added.

Such units range from 1,259 sq ft to 1,485 sq ft in area.

Mr Nicholas Mak, chief research officer of property search portal Mogul.sg, noted that the average price of $2,451 psf is the highest for a new condominium project in areas such as Jurong, Boon Lay and Clementi.

“At $2,451 psf, it is close to the transacted prices of Blossoms by the Park in Buona Vista, located in the city fringe,” he said. The project had seen more than 70 per cent of its 275 units sold at its launch in April, at an average price of $2,423 psf.

Noting that all the smaller units at J’den were sold out, Mr Mak said most of the buyers are likely to be investors.

The small number of foreign buyers could be attributed to the impact of April’s property cooling measures, which doubled additional buyer’s stamp duty rates for foreigners from 30 per cent to 60 per cent, he added.

A consultant, who wanted to be known only as Mr Patrick, 45, said he bought a two-bedder-plus-study unit as a gift for his daughter’s 21st birthday. The 818 sq ft unit on the ground floor cost about $2 million, or about $2,400 psf.

“It’s definitely a good deal, especially with the Government ramping up the Jurong Lake District. My daughter also loves the area as she grew up in the west, and she was quite disappointed when JCube closed,” he added.

JCube mall, which had housed Singapore’s only Olympic-size ice-skating rink, shut its doors in August after 11 years of operations to make way for the residential development. J’den is expected to obtain its temporary occupation permit in 2027.

Another condominium project that was launched on Saturday was Hillock Green, located in the Lentor area in Ang Mo Kio. Twenty-eight per cent, or 131, of its 474 units were sold. Analysts attributed the lower take-up rate to the condominiums that had already been launched in Lentor in the past year, such as Lentor Modern and Lentor Hills Residences.

Mr Gafoor said: “Unlike J’den, Hillock Green faces more competition due to the ample stock of new homes in the area.”