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LEASEHOLD residential development The Orie kickstarted 2025’s new launches by selling 668 units – around 86 per cent of the 777 available – over its launch weekend. Units were sold at an average price of S$2,704 per square foot (psf). 

About 93 per cent of the buyers were Singaporeans, developers City Developments Limited, Frasers Property and Sekisui House said in a joint media statement on Sunday (Jan 19).

The remainder comprised permanent residents from China, Malaysia, Indonesia, the UK, Australia, Germany, Hong Kong, India and South Korea, as well as one American.

The units were priced from S$1.28 million for a one-bedder plus study (517 sq ft), S$1.48 million for a two-bedder (592 sq ft), S$2.09 million for a three-bedder (850 sq ft), S$2.92 million for a four-bedder (1,216 sq ft), and S$3.48 million for a five-bedroom with a private lift (1,453 sq ft).

Broadly popular

All unit types were well received, the statement said, with two and three-bedroom units being the most popular.

Huttons Asia CEO Mark Yip said: “Many buyers believed that The Orie is well-priced in the mature estate of Toa Payoh.”

He also noted that the Toa Payoh Integrated Development is slated to be completed around the same time as The Orie, in 2030.

“Homebuyers mainly include families and Housing and Development Board (HDB) upgraders from the vicinity, first-time buyers attracted to the development’s convenient location, as well as former Toa Payoh residents returning to a familiar community,” said the developers’ statement.

The project attracted a mix of homebuyers and investors, observers said.

“Forward-looking homebuyers and investors are hedging on the project’s upside potential in the medium and longer term,” ERA Singapore CEO Marcus Chu said. “Schools, MRT and the large number of units in the project (which are popular among resale home buyers) are key ingredients for getting good resale prices when opportunities arise.”

Market watchers said The Orie’s success came as no surprise as demand was pent up, considering that the last project launch in Toa Payoh was Gem Residences in 2016.

Chu noted that of about 1,035 resale flats that transacted for at least S$1 million in 2024, 144 units (14 per cent) were in Toa Payoh.

The residential population in Toa Payoh grew from 126,720 in 2014 to 139,310 people in 2024, driving sales, added Nicholas Mak, chief research officer at real estate technology platform Mogul.sg. This represents a 9.9 per cent increase, which is faster than the 8 per cent rise in the resident population islandwide.

The strong demand allowed developers to push prices to a record high for the Toa Payoh area, at about S$2,600 psf, said Mak, adding: “Some of the more sought-after units were even reportedly sold at above S$3,000 psf.”

Comparatively, units in Gem Residences transacted at a median of S$1,928 psf over the past six months, he noted.

Booking sales at Bagnall Haus

Bagnall Haus in East Coast was the other new project put on the market this weekend. The freehold 74,280 sq ft site comprises 113 residential units ranging from one bedroom plus flexi of 495 sq ft, to five bedrooms of 1,528 sq ft. It also includes two shop units of 172 sq ft each.

Developed by Roxy-Pacific Holdings, about 62 per cent, or 70 residential units, had been sold as at Saturday evening, according to market watchers. The two shop units were also sold.

“The average price of all units sold on Saturday was around S$2,490 psf, which we think is compelling for a well-located freehold development,” said Ismail Gafoor, CEO of PropNex.

Buyers likely saw value in the project, he added, given that some 99-year leasehold new launches in the Outside Central Region had fetched an elevated psf price, such as S$2,579 on average at Chuan Park in November 2024.

“We think the prices are generally in the sweet-spot range of under S$3 million that would appeal to many buyers,” he said.

Huttons’ Yip agreed that it is “rare to find a freehold project at the doorstep of an MRT station”.

ERA’s Chu noted that homebuyers were owner-occupiers – older landed homeowners looking for somewhere newer and smaller, or families already living in the area, particularly those looking to upgrade to a freehold property near established amenities and reputable schools.

The development “offers a highly attractive long-term investment and legacy planning opportunity due to its freehold tenure”, he said, adding that most private residential properties in the Kew and Eastwood areas are leasehold, with fewer than 70 years left on their leases.

Observers also highlighted its proximity to the upcoming Sungei Bedok Interchange Station as a significant draw.

“Buyers were convinced of the benefits from the upcoming Bayshore precinct transformation,” Huttons’ Yip added.

Prices picking up

Chu expects prices to climb even further in H2 2025.

“The record new project sales in November last year led to spillover demand to existing projects, and this may have in turn led to price increases among existing inventories,” he said. “Should interest rates decrease in the future, the demand spike may push up prices even more.”

Mogul.sg’s Mak agreed that demand for the two projects have spilled over to other launches, “especially when buyers find that the prices of the unsold units at other projects are lower”, potentially pushing their prices – and those of upcoming residential developments – upward.

“The developers of these upcoming project launches will refer to the launch prices and sales of these two new developments for their marketing and pricing strategies,” he added.

But while these projects’ success, with significant sales and record prices, will be celebrated by their developers and appointed property agents, he cautioned that “what is good for the individual is not always good for the group”.

“The authorities are closely watching the housing market, particularly the buying demand and price movement,” he said. “Every burst of euphoric sales that led to new record prices would only strengthen the argument for tougher government intervention to moderate prices and demand in the property market.”

The 60 per cent Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty levied on foreign buyers since April 2023 does not seem to deter current demand, as many buyers are Singaporeans and permanent residents, he noted.

“Hence, the government could be weighing whether to implement more effective market curbs that could curtail excessive property investment demand.”