Property in Singapore: Chevron House sold for $547m

Friday, September 24, 2010

Chevron House sold for $547m

Published September 24, 2010

Chevron House sold for $547m

Goldman funds take big loss, sell property to Deka

By KALPANA RASHIWALA

(SINGAPORE) Chevron House at Raffles Place has been sold for $547 million to a fund managed by Deka Immobilien of Germany, taking the total value of Singapore office investment sales deals so far this year to nearly $3 billion.

Changing hands: The latest transaction price works out to $2,083 psf of net lettable area

The price for Chevron House works out to around $2,083 per square foot based on the building's existing net lettable area (NLA) of 262,650 sq ft, BT understands.
Chevron House, which was formerly known as Caltex House, is a 33-storey building on a site with a remaining lease of about 78 years.
The property is being sold by Goldman Sachs funds, which are walking away with a loss, having paid $730 million or about $2,780 psf for the property in 2007. That acquisition was funded mostly by a consortium of lenders headed by Standard Chartered. The latest transaction is slated for completion by late October, ahead of the expiry of the financing facility, sources say.
Chevron House is the second Singapore office property to be sold by Goldman Sachs funds lately following last month's $870.5 million divestment of DBS Towers One and Two along Shenton Way to Overseas Union Enterprise. Goldman reaped a profit from that transaction; it paid $690 million for the office blocks in 2005.
The US bank's funds also bought Hitachi Tower, behind Chevron House, in early 2008 for $811 million or about $2,900 psf of NLA. The 999-year leasehold office tower, fronting Collyer Quay, is expected to be put up for sale within the next few months given that the financing facility on the asset - also extended by a Stanchart-led consortium - is said to end early next year.
The Singapore office market has seen a steady rental recovery after the slump in the wake of the global financial crash.
'The fundamentals are attractive. Investors have realised this over the past three months and investor appetite has increased significantly. Parties looking to invest include Reits, other property funds and private investors. Appetites range from $100 million to $500 million-plus,' said a market watcher.
Deka, which is buying Chevron House, is a unit of DekaBank in Germany. The deal marks Deka's first major property acquisition in Singapore and is said to be at close to 4 per cent net yield. Chevron House is currently 98 per cent let. Major tenants include Chevron and Visa.
The property comprises a four-storey retail podium, 29-storey office tower and three basement levels. B1 has shops linked directly to the Raffles Place MRT Station, while B2 and B3 contain 96 carpark lots.
It is thought that the property was marketed through an expression of interest exercise which closed in the third week of August.
BT understands the exercise was well received and that about six parties were then shortlisted for due diligence and further negotiations, culminating in the sale to the Deka-managed fund.

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GOOD CLASS BUNGALOWS

Buying the ultimate home

With only about 2,400 units of good class bungalows in the market, almost any GCB would be a rare find.

By Arthur SimPublished: August 13 2009,The Business Times
THEY are wealthy and successful people who can probably afford to buy any home they want, but many of them are being drawn towards good class bungalows (GCBs). There are only 39 designated GCB areas in Singapore and Binjai Park is one of them.

However, these areas are not all equal. Some GCB locations are more prestigious than others. For instance, the current asking price for GCB land in the Nassim area is between $1,500-$2,000 per square foot (psf) whereas in Chestnut Drive, GCBs have been known to have transacted at around $550 psf.

There are also pros and cons to buying either an old bungalow or a newly built one. 'Some old GCBs have unique architectural features and come with a rich heritage. Buyers, however, have to be prepared to set aside some money to refurbish and upgrade the building and fit it out with modern conveniences,'

New buildings, he says, can be tailored to specific tastes but also be expensive. But what usually pushes up prices is the location. A martial arts movie star who picked up a GCB at Binjai Park for $19.8 million at around $871.36 psf earlier this year appears to have gotten a good buy. It was reported that the seller of the house had incurred a loss of $1.2 million on the deal, having bought the property in early 2007 for $21 million, or $924 psf. The selling price for a newly built GCB will generally be higher than that of an old GCB. 'The choice normally depends on whether the buyer is price sensitive,'. A new house might take as long as two years to build although it is more likely to be built to the owner's precise specifications.

If one is looking for exclusivity, the most expensive GCBs are generally in the Nassim and Lady Hill areas. This is followed by those in the Tanglin vicinity such as the Rochalie, Bishopsgate and Chatsworth areas.On the prices, GCBs in the Tanglin vicinity range from $1,200-$1,400 psf for the top of this category.

'Other popular GCB areas are in the Swettenham, Pierce, Dalvey, Cluny Park areas where prices can range from $1,100-$1,300 psf', '1,000 psf is the standard price for an average GCB. Prices have been moving up over the last six months. Permanent residents are permitted to buy landed property, but only with permission from the government. Foreigners cannot easily buy a GCB or any other landed home here as the government restricts foreign ownership of residential property. However, foreigners who take up Singapore citizenship may buy landed property. The exception to the restrictions is the gated residential enclave of Sentosa Cove, where ownership rules were eased to allow foreigners who are not permanent residents to buy landed homes or land plots, though permission is still needed.

Apart from some restrictions on ownership, one of the common misconceptions when buying a GCB is that some buyers unknowingly pay a premium for a home that actually falls outside the designated GCB areas. 'Some buyers think that as long as a bungalow has a land area of 15,070 sq ft, it is considered a GCB, not knowing there are only 39 designated areas,' he added. Before buying any home, it is also useful to do some checks. For instance, it is useful for a surveyor to be called in to assess and ascertain the site boundary for issues such as encroachment. A structural surveyor or engineer can also be engaged to assess the structural integrity of a house, especially if it is an old or conserved bungalow. It is also important to check with the relevant authorities about possible drainage and road reserves as this could affect the the boundary setbacks. Finally, the terrain, shape of the site and frontage are other physical characteristics that are important, especially if one is going to build a new house. But with only about 2,400 units of GCBs in the market, almost any GCB would be a rare find. 'The majority are owned by the who's who - and are seldom placed for sale in the market. On the contrary, there's an increasing pool of buyers made up of high net worth individuals, GCB collectors as well as permanent residents who are looking to buy GCBs for their own use,' he adds.

GCB buyers are a discerning group of investors who also have a different view on what makes a good investment. 'Yields are not part of the investment criteria - which is typically less than 2 per cent,' said Mr Han. Instead most see GCBs as a good long-term asset class of investment, 'especially in land-scarce Singapore where land value appreciates over time'. And Mr Han believes that the outlook for GCBs is also good.