As you may know, a property’s value in the market is largely determined by factors such as location, years on the remaining lease, high or low floor amongst others. But in some cases, location – if prime enough, can often allow homeowners to overlook the other less-satisfactory aspects.
Enter Marine Parade – a relatively small mature estate located just between the Central and Eastern region of Singapore. The estate has just recently created a stir in the property market, with a 5-room HDB flat being sold for over a million dollars in the past couple of days. This makes it the very first million-dollar HDB resale transaction of the estate, and another addition to the growing number of HDB resale flats being sold for over a million dollars.
Here’s everything we know about the Marine Parade sale:
The first-ever million-dollar HDB transaction in Marine Parade:
Image adapted from: HDB
Based on data from the HDB’s Resale Price Checker, the transacted flat is a 126sqm (1,356sqft) 5-room unit located at Block 28 Marine Crescent, somewhere between the 22nd to 24th floor. The unit was built in 1975, making it around 47 years old.
Image adapted from: Google Maps
The flat was sold for a hefty price tag of $1.01M, which makes it the most expensive 5-room flat ever sold in Marine Parade, and also the very first time a flat in the estate has broken the million-dollar mark. Previously, the most expensive 5-room unit transaction in Marine Parade was a 122sqm (1,313sqft) flat at Block 1 Marine Terrace in October 2021, which also had a similarly short remaining lease of 52 years.
Relatively short remaining lease
That being said, an interesting detail about the transaction certainly stands out: the remaining lease on the unit stands at just over 51 years, which is actually one of the shortest remaining leases amongst all the recent million dollar resale transactions. For example, the two million-dollar flats sold in Woodlands and Pasir Ris had remaining leases of over 71 years, while two others in Yishun had remaining leases of about 69 years.
So why is this so odd? Well for one, flats with a shorter remaining lease would typically command lower prices as compared to newer ones, and their values would also depreciate over time as the flat ages.
Image credit: @veryseriousfun
This is because all HDBs here in Singapore have a 99-year lifespan; after its lease expires, it is technically returned back to the government and its current owners won’t be able to continue living in the flat. Of course, no HDB flat has ever reached that stage yet (we’re only 57 years old after all!), and so we don’t have any precedent to work on.
There are also those that believe the government will never allow HDB blocks to expire and will typically en-bloc all ageing flats…but that’s a whole other debate for another day.
Another thing to bear in mind is that people typically shy away from flats with remaining leases with fewer than 50 years. This is because there may be some implications in the long run, such as how you might find it difficult to sell your flat in the future, or how you might not be able to secure a substantial home loan due to the lower loan-to-value limit.
Nonetheless, the short remaining lease hasn’t seemed to have dampened demand for resale flats in Marine Parade. For instance, within just the last year alone, there were 63 recorded 5-room resale transactions, all of which had remaining leases of between 51 to 54 years. Our take is that there might be some speculation these blocks will eventually go en-bloc via SERS in the near future given their attractive location for future developments, and so people are cashing in early to maximise their potential profit. Either that, or they really love the views in the area.
Attractive location in the East
It’ll be safe to say that Marine Parade is one of the more sought after locales to call home, with plenty of amenities and transport connectivity options that “East Side, Best Side” people would be proud of. Definitely a location that’s well worth its price tag!
Image adapted from: Google Maps
Taking a look at the locale map of Block 28, what immediately stands out is how close it is to East Coast Park. In fact, it’s just a 5-min walk away, if you cut through the blocks and use the underpass that will bring you to the other side.
Image credit: CBRE
This will bring you to not just some random ulu location along East Coast Park, but in fact right to the doorstep of Marine Cove where there’s plenty of food and recreational options such as the iconic Mcdonalds at East Coast Park and a giant playground for the young and young at heart to enjoy.
Apart from East Coast Park, there are plenty of other attractive things about Marine Parade. For one, the many transport options – especially buses that ply their route through the estate – means that there is convenient accessibility in and around Marine Parade, as well as to neighbouring estates like Katong, Geylang, and even the CBD.
For drivers, the ECP highway is also right at the doorstep of Marine Parade, which will allow you to easily swing over to the CBD for work or a night out in the city, or even to places like Changi Village for some supper.
Within Marine Parade itself, there are also several highlights. The main shopping mall in the vicinity is Parkway Parade, which is a huge mall with everything that you might need – dining, retail and recreational offerings. Else, Eastsiders would say that the East is the best side of Singapore, with superb food options in and around the vicinity.
Million-dollar sea views
Image credit: @johnmuzi
Given that the block is so close to the East Coast and that the unit that was sold is somewhere between the 22nd and 24th floor, we’re sure that one huge contributing factor to the sale has to be the amazing views that the flat offers.
After all, who wouldn’t want to wake up to a stunning view of the sun rising just over the sea’s horizon, and to have a relaxing sea breeze sweeping into your home? Other than Marine Parade, there are only a few other estates around Singapore that offer sea views, and so that’s definitely a unique selling point for resale flats in the area.
Million-dollar HDB resale flat sold in Marine Parade
Now that we’ve seen the first-ever million-dollar HDB resale transaction in Marine Parade, we’re sure that there will be more to come in the coming months.
One selling point that Marine Parade certainly has over the likes of Woodlands and Yishun is the awesome sea view that residents can wake up to. Even though flats in the area are generally older with shorter remaining leases, we’re sure that buyers with deep enough pockets won’t be too deterred by its high price point, and so we can reasonably expect more of such transactions in the near future.
Check out our other articles here:
- Upgrade from an HDB to condo
- Amazing 5-room resale renovations under $45K
- Best estates for newlyweds
Cover image credit: Punggol Point Cove For Residents and Vendors, Google Maps
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