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MAPLETREE Investments' one-off venture into residential property development, The Beacon in Cantonment Road, is almost sold out - just three weeks after launch.

The Beacon: Just eight of its 124-units, mostly two-bedroom units of between 807 and 1,109 sq ft, in the 24-storey tower are left three weeks after launch

While there has been little marketing fanfare since the preview on June 17, as of yesterday just eight of the 124 units were left, said chief operating officer Tan Boon Leong.

One reason for the strong interest could be its price.

The units are selling for $600-$700 per square foot (psf), which is attractive for an area that is effectively part of the Central Business District.

For instance, the nearby Icon by Far East Organisation is reportedly selling for about $1,200 psf.

Mapletree's core business is integrated development and capital management, and Mr Tan told BT the property development venture is unlikely to be repeated soon.

The company decided to develop the project itself after a tender for the land drew unsatisfactory offers.

'The whole exercise was part of a process to extract optimal value from Mapletree's non-core assets.'

Market watchers may best remember the site - opposite the Housing Board's premium The Pinnacle@Duxton - as the location of the old Singapore Portworker's Union House.

Mapletree inherited the 3742.5 sq m site from the then-Port of Singapore Authority, and in September 2004 invited about 70 developers to bid for it.

The firm decided to develop the project itself after a tender for the land in September 2004 drew offers that were not satisfactory.

But the highest offer was below what Mapletree considered fair value, and so it decided to develop the site itself.

The move seems to have paid off - BT understands that the company has made a respectable profit from the venture.

Development of The Beacon started in the first quarter of this year.

The site was originally zoned for part-civic and community use and part-residential use, and had an original lease of 92 years.

Mapletree paid $11 million to top up the lease to 99 years, convert the site to residential use and increase the plot ratio to 3.5. The site has a maximum gross floor area of 13,098 sq m.

The Beacon has 124 units in a 24-storey tower - mostly two-bedroom units of between 807 and 1,109 sq ft.

All four penthouse units have been sold, as well as smaller units on the lower floors.

The eight units left are all on the upper floors, and asking prices for these are higher.

Property consultancy CB Richard Ellis is marketing the homes.