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Five years ago, SPH bought over Lum Chang's 15 per cent stake in Paragon Shopping Centre and its 50 per cent stake in Promenade. The deal included a swop of properties.

Lum Chang now owns the bungalows and at current prices of around $500 psf for Good Class Bungalows (GCB), the pre-war bungalows which sit on a 291,735 sq ft site in Swettenham Road are worth about $146 million.

 

A recent GCB transaction in nearby Pierce Road went for $568 psf.

The nine bungalows have been gazetted for conservation but Lum Chang still managed to subdivide the site into 16 Good Class Bungalow (GCB) plots.

 

Chay Yue Kai, executive director of Lum Chang subsidiary LCD Property Management, says six lots have been sold since they were put on the market last year. These were priced at about $450-500 psf. The most recent transaction in March hit $10 million (including construction costs), and was sold to an Indonesian permanent resident here. The other buyers were all Singaporeans.

 

Mr Chay says that the remaining 10 lots, which include four houses designed by SCDA Architects, are now ready for sale at about $500 psf. The construction cost for the new houses is not included in the price for the land. Construction cost for each house is expected to be between $2 million and $2.5 million.

 

Noting that some GCB plots in the Jervois Hill area are being marketed for as much as $600 psf, Mr Chay says he expects Lum Chang's pricing will help move their properties faster.