Two enbloc sites (Horizon Towers and Faber Gardens) with asking prices of more than S$1 billion closed without a sale.

The tender for Horizon Towers - the first major en bloc exercise to close after July's property cooling measures - ended on Wednesday (12 Sept 2018) without a single bid. While strong interest was not expected given the tough measures introduced on July 6, the absence of any bids from developers added to the disquiet in the en bloc market, especially big estates eyeing billion-dollar tabs.

​No bid came in when the tender period ended on Sept 12, which was extended from the original Aug 7 closing date. Owners of the Leonie Hill Road site, which has a S$1.1 billion reserve price, now have 10 weeks to seal a deal by private treaty. The 99-year leasehold project, which sits on a 1.9ha plot, launched its tender on July 5. That very night, the Government announced a fresh round of preemptive cooling measures for the housing market that took effect the following day. The unsuccessful sale of the 211-unit development - despite its prime location - puts other billiondollar en bloc candidates on notice. Among them are Laguna Park in the east, which is launching its tender on Sept 18 at a reserve price of S$1.48 billion, and the 623-unit Pandan Valley in the Holland area, whose owners have just agreed on a record asking price of S$2.6 billion. 

More locals employed in H1, but long-term jobless rate up slightly: MOM

​More Singaporeans found jobs in the first half of this year than in the first six months of 2017, with local employment growth 1.5 times higher. However, the latest Manpower Ministry (MOM) statistics also showed that the long-term unemployment rate edged up. MOM said in its latest report that local employment, which rose by 6,500, was boosted mainly by expansion in the services sector - community, social and personal services; financial and insurance services; information and communications; and transportation and storage.

The long-term unemployment rate, which measures the proportion of the resident labour force that has been unemployed for at least 25 weeks, grew from 0.7 per cent in March to 0.8 per cent in June. This remains within the range observed in the last two years. At the same time, the resident unemployment rate rose from 2.8 per cent in March to 2.9 per cent in June, after a general downward trend since June 2017. Meanwhile, the number of retrenchments declined to 5,350 in the first half of the year, lower than the 7,640 lay-offs in the first half of last year.

​Job vacancies rose to a three-year high of 56,700 in June, up from 53,900 in March. Overall labour productivity rose by 3.9 per cent, supported by the manufacturing, financial and insurance services, accommodation and food services, and wholesale and retail trade sectors. 

Private resale prices post first dip since July's property curbs

Resale prices of private non-landed homes in Singapore took their first dip last month, breaking a 12-month climb to record highs, with the latest property cooling measures having taken effect in July. Flash estimates released showed that resale prices of condominiums and private apartments declined by 0.2 per cent in August from the previous month. The property curbs also had an effect on the volume of transactions, which went tumbling the month after the latest property curbs hit.

​The number of private non-landed homes resold in August fell 35.3 per cent to an estimated 694 units, from 1,072 units in July. This was the fourth consecutive monthly fall in resale volumes, with volume now at the lowest since January 2017. Year on year, the number of resales last month was down 48.2 per cent from the 1,339 units moved in August 2017.  

S'pore retail sales down 2.6% in July on slowdown in car segment

Retail sales in Singapore fell in July, weighed down by a slowdown in motor vehicle sales, according to the latest figures from the Department of Statistics. Overall takings were down by 2.6 per cent from last year, against the revised 2.2 per cent growth seen in June, on fewer vehicles being sold. The drop is the first since March, and ends three months of retail sales growth.

​Motor vehicle sales tumbled by 15.2 per cent year-on-year. But, leaving auto sales out of the picture, turnover inched up by 0.2 per cent in July, down a tad from the 0.3 per cent growth in the month before. Month-on-month and seasonally adjusted, July retail sales slid 2.9 per cent from June, but rose by 1.1 per cent when motor vehicles were excluded.

The 1,206-unit Jadescape opened its showflat to the public last weekend and saw more than 9,000 potential property buyers thronging its showflat during its first weekend launch over the two days from Sept 8 to 9. The 22,000 sq ft sales gallery located in Bishan features Jadescape’s smart home and smart estate management features as well as its “Gold Standard” elderly-friendly units that is ideal for multi-generational residential living.. Average prices according to the developer is from $1,700 per sq ft.

Jadescape is located on the former Shunfu Ville en bloc site along Shunfu Road offering a total of 1,206 units with sizes from 527 sq ft to 4,230 sq ft. Prices start from $838,000 for the one-bedroom units, $988,000 for the two-bedders, $1.38 million for the three- bedders and $1.86 million for the four-bedders. Prices for other unit types are yet to determined.

According to visitors at the Jadescape sales gallery, they were enticed by the development’s high-tech features. These include the usage of facial recognition technology in elevator lobbies, an energy-efficient AC, a water heater system that recycles waste heat for warm showers and an integrated dishwasher with ultrasonic food washer. As Singapore’s first fully-smart project, it is also the first residential development here to adopt a Smart Estate Management System.

​The KL-SG High Speed Rail is postponed till May 2020. Regardless of the postponement, Jurong Lake District proposition as a second central business district has not dimmed, given the introduction of infrastructure such as new office spaces and shopping malls to entice people - Twin Vew condo would likely benefit from this decision due to its proximity to the future High Speed Rail. 

Singapore and Malaysia have agreed to suspend construction of the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail (HSR) project until May 31, 2020, with service on the advanced train line expected to begin by the start of 2031, instead of the original end-2026 commencement date. Singapore's Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Minister for Transport Khaw Boon Wan and Malaysia's Minister of Economic Affairs Mohamed Azmin Ali exchanged legal documents in Putrajaya to vary the HSR bilateral agreement based on the new understanding. Under the new agreement, Malaysia will reimburse Singapore S$15 million by end-January 2019 for suspending the HSR project.

​If Malaysia does not proceed with the HSR project by May 31, 2020, it will also bear the agreed costs incurred by Singapore in fulfilling the HSR bilateral agreement. If a decision is not reached within two years, the project will be terminated, and Singapore's financial interests will be safeguarded. With the new signing, HSR services between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur are expected to commence by Jan 1, 2031, instead of the original start date of Dec 31, 2026.

​The development charge (DC) rate for redeveloping land has been hiked for non-landed private homes for the fifth straight time, although watchers said that future increases could taper off as property-cooling measures put the lid on the collective-sale frenzy. Rates for this land-use group have been raised by an average of 9.8 per cent for the next six months, in a move by the Ministry of National Development (MND) on Friday - down from the 22.8 per cent jump in March.

Developers pay the DC, which is based on an assessment of land values, for the right to enhance the use of some sites or to build bigger projects. The MND revises rates on March 1 and Sept 1 each year, in consultation with the taxman's chief valuer, for land across 118 sectors island-wide. The biggest rise in rates, to the tune of 33.3 per cent was in sector 43, spanning Tanglin Road, Cuscaden Road, Orchard Boulevard and Grange Road. The development charge rate for these areas is S$18,200 per sq m (psm) of gross floor area; in sector 67, which includes Orange Grove Road, the rate is S$16,800 psm. This indicates that projects, e.g. 120 Grange, One Draycott and 8 Hullet will see an appreciation in their property prices in the near future.

The neighbourhood hosted record-smashing deals this year, with a government land sale (GLS) in Cuscaden Road in April and the collective sale of Park House in June. Other areas faced with above-average residential rate increases include parts of Bukit Merah and Telok Blangah, where the rate went up by 27.9 per cent to S$7,700 psm. Huttons Asia research head Lee Sze Teck said that the latest rate revision is likely to be the last increase of more than 5 per cent for non-landed residential sites. He has forecast future changes of zero to 2 per cent. 

Demand for new Punggol BTO flats far exceeds that for Yishun New Housing Board flats were launched in two northern towns, but those in Punggol garnered more attention than the ones in Yishun. As of 5pm on Monday, there were 5,608 applications for 1,221 three-room and larger flats - 4.6 times the number of flats available - in the newly launched waterfront district of Punggol Point, the most north-eastern part of the town where it meets the Johor Strait. In contrast, there were applications for just 60 per cent of the total number of four-room flats in Yishun, and 90 per cent of the five-room flats. Only three-room flats were oversubscribed 1.5 times, compared to 2.8 times for the same flat type in Punggol. Altogether, there were 6,620 applicants for 2,475 three-room and larger Build-To-Order (BTO) flats.

Hundreds of jobs will be generated from the opening of social media giant Facebook's $1.4 billion data centre in Singapore - its first in Asia and its 15th in the world. Jobs will include technical operations, electricians, air conditioning, and heating specialists, culinary, cleaning staff, logistics staff and security. The centre - to be at Tanjong Kling, formerly known as Data Center Park - aims to start operations in 2022. The 170,000 sq m, 11-storey building will feature a facade made out of a perforated lightweight material that will allow air flow and provide glimpses of the equipment inside. The centre is said to be the first to incorporate the new StatePoint Liquid Cooling system, which minimises water and power consumption. It aims to reduce by 20 per cent the amount of peak water used in climates like Singapore's. Facebook said the facility is expected to be powered by 100 per cent renewable power. US Internet giant Google announced last month that it is building a third data centre in Singapore to meet rapid user growth in the region.