More than 2,500 people at Mah Sing’s Southville City@KL South launch

SERI KEMBANGAN: Property-based Mah Sing Group Bhd (Mah Sing) has launched its Southville City@KL South sales gallery last Saturday.

Following the launch, a private balloting for registrants of Savanna executive suites, phase one of Southville City@KL South was held, which saw 1,068 units of Savanna executive suites worth RM351mil pre-booked in eight hours of the balloting event.



More than 2,500 guests turned up for the event. Present to launch the event was Mah Sing chairman, Gen (R) Tan Sri Yaacob Mat Zain, executive director Datuk Lim Kiu Hock and chief operating officer for marketing and sales, township residential James Bruyns. Mah Sing, in a press statement, said the the first phase of its largest township so far, Savanna executive suites, offers freehold three-bedroom suites with built-up from 956 sq ft and indicatively priced from RM280,000.

The units have upgraded features of two carpark bays, four units of air conditioners, two water heaters and two shower screens. Phase 1B comprising 766 units in Tower B1 and B2, was 90% booked and due to the overwhelming response, Phase 1A, which also has 766 units in Tower A1 and A2, was opened later in the day. This phase was 50% booked within the same day. In view of the keen interest, Mah Sing intended to open two more towers and the Lifestyle Retail Lots @ Savanna with an indicative price from RM1.3mil which would also be available for pre-selection next week.

“Savanna Executive Suites is the first phase of Mah Sing’s Southville City @ KL South. One of our largest township projects, Southville City@KL South meets market demands for affordable housing for the middle-income group yet offers that special touch of class and distinction in each component of the township,” said Yaacob.

“The keen interest shown in our property signifies the trust and support the public has on Mah Sing Group and its products,” he added.

The 428-acre Southville City@KL South with the estimated gross development value of RM5.15bil is accessible with the proposed direct interchange from the North-South Highway and only 30-minute drive from the KL city centre. Yaacob noted, “The development concept of Southville@KL South is ‘connectivity’, which forms the framework for an exciting communal living environment.

“We are making this integrated township ‘walk-friendly’ with a 13km pedestrian footpath-cum-bicycle track that connects the entire neighbourhood. There will be a riverside walk, nature trail and even a nine acres urban park.”

Upon completion, Southville City@KL South will be home to 17,500 people and provide seamless and rounded lifestyles for different family sizes. Upcoming phases will have properties for the upgrader market like linked semi-D, semi-detached and bungalows.

Mah Sing plans to build close to 70% of the residential component at below RM1mil per unit to meet the strong market demand for bread and butter properties.

The STAR, 30 Sept 2013

IJM Land and FCW Holdings Bhd in tie-up

PETALING JAYA: IJM Land Bhd has entered into a shareholders’ agreement with FCW Holdings Bhd and its 50:50 joint-venture company (JV Co) 368 Segambut Sdn Bhd to regulate their relationship in relation to a mixed development on four parcels of land in Kuala Lumpur.

A Bursa Malaysia announcement said it would entail the JV Co entering into two conditional sale and purchase agreements with the FCW units – FCW Industries Sdn Bhd and Federal Telecommunications Sdn Bhd – to acquire the said freehold land.

20 Sept 2013, The Star

New home sales in Singapore rise 54% in August

Developers moved more new private homes last month than expected. But sales were still relatively subdued, due to the number of launches put on hold for the Hungry Ghost Festival.
The sales lift looks impressive at first glance, with 742 units, excluding executive condominiums (ECs), sold last month – a rise of 54 per cent over July. But July’s numbers were in the basement after new cooling measures and tougher curbs on lending hammered the market. Only 481 new homes were sold then, 73 per cent lower than June’s 1,806 units.

The slowing sales momentum can be seen more clearly by going back 12 months: Transactions of new private apartments in August last year hit 1,427 – 48 per cent more than last month.
Consultants said that despite the improvement from July to last month, Monday’s figures still signal a cooling market. The introduction of a total debt servicing ratio (TDSR) framework that caps a borrower’s debt-to-income ratio will “haunt the market for a longer period, beyond the Ghost Month”, said CBRE Research associate director Desmond Sim.

Jones Lang LaSalle Singapore research director Ong Teck Hui added: “The days of mega-launches with quick sell-outs may be over unless projects are ‘priced to sell’.”
If ECs are included, last month’s sales came in at 1,468 units – a testament to the popularity of two project launches. The 512-unit Ecopolitan EC in Punggol sold 335 units while the 380-unit Lush Acres EC in Sengkang sold 311 units – making them the top two sellers last month.

The Tembusu in Kovan, which launched in mid-August, was the top-selling private development, with 218 homes shifted at the 337-unit project at a median $1,547 per sq ft (psf), according to Urban Redevelopment Authority data out on Monday. Next was the 141-unit Kensington Square, a mixed freehold development at the junction of Upper Paya Lebar Road and Jalan Lokam that launched last month. It moved 61 out of the 112 units launched at a median $1,511 psf.

Other launches last month included the 248-unit RV Residences in River Valley, a 999-year leasehold project. Its selling price was initially said to be $2,100 psf to $2,300 psf but that dropped to an average of $2,000 psf after early bird discounts. It sold 39 out of 83 units launched at a median $2,043 psf. Consultants tip sales to pick up this month due to more launches, including the 726-unit The Glades in Tanah Merah and the 420-unit The Skywoods in the Dairy Farm area, both on 99-year leaseholds. CapitaLand may also release Sky Vue, a 99-year leasehold project next to its Sky Habitat condo, later this month. Previews began last weekend and prices for the first phase range from $1,380 psf to $1,550 psf. That makes it cheaper than its next-door neighbour Sky Habitat, where 172 units have been sold at an average price of $1,589 psf.

Colliers International research director Chia Siew Chuin said that since “tried and tested” incentives such as vouchers and rental guarantees were probably less effective after the TDSR, developers may change their sales strategies and lower prices. She expects new private home sales to be around 1,000 units this month. Knight Frank research head Alice Tan said sales could also improve as banks gradually become more efficient at processing home loan applications.She reckons new private home sales will be between 700 and 800 units this month, and could come in at 14,500 to 16,000 units for the full year – around 30 per cent lower than the record 22,197 new private homes sold last year.
Religare Institutional Research said on Monday that it expects new home sales to be around 17,000 units this year. — The Straits Times / Asia News Network, 20 September 2013