Strata office floors at GB Building for sale from $11.9 mil
Two strata office floors at levels 16 and 23 of at GB Building on Cecil Street have been put on sale. Both floors have a regular and column-free layout and measure 5,425 sq ft each. The sale will be via expression of interest, which closes on July 28. CBRE is the exclusive marketing agent.
Level 16 is currently leased to various tenants. Its indicative price is $11.9 million, which is approximately $2,200 psf on strata area.
Level 23 has an indicative price of $12.7 million, which is about $2,350 psf based on strata area. As it is to be sold with vacant possession, the buyer can purchase for owner occupation.
Clemence Lee, senior director of capital markets at CBRE, says that the indicative prices are “noticeably competitive” compared to recent transactions. For example, three strata office floors at the CBD were sold earlier this year. Level 11 at Samsung Hub transacted at $49.8 million ($3,800 psf based on strata area); a 10th floor unit at Suntec Tower 1 was sold for $37.1 million ($2,580 psf); while another on the 33rd floor of Suntec Tower 2 fetched $38 million ($3,209 psf).
CBRE expects strong interest from investors such as boutique real estate funds, family offices and highnet-worth individuals.
GB Building is a 26-storey office development situated at the junction of Cecil Street and McCallum Street. It is within a three-minute walk to Tanjong Pagar MRT Station on the East-West Line via a sheltered walkway.
Lee says that GB Building will benefit from the CBD Incentive Scheme announced last year. “As older buildings in the area make way for newer mixed-use developments in the journey of rejuvenation, strata property owners of GB Building can expect to enjoy potential capital appreciation in the midto long term,” he adds.
Alice Tan, Leonard Tay join Knight Frank management team
Knight Frank has appointed Alice Tan as head of consultancy with effect from August and Leonard Tay as head of research with effect from May.
Currently at Edmund Tie, Tan will join Knight Frank in August. She will be taking over the role of head of consultancy from real estate veteran Tay Kah Poh, who will be retiring from Knight Frank.
Previously, Tan was at List Sotheby’s International Realty Singapore as director of research and consulting for Southeast Asia for five months. Before that, she helmed the head of research and consulting role at Knight Frank for six years.
With over 17 years of experience in real estate and construction sectors, Tan will be leading the consultancy team at Knight Frank in the areas of feasibility studies, master planning, financial and business modelling, market analysis and development strategy. She will service both public- and private-sector clients in residential, retail, capital markets, hospitality, property asset management, office and industrial sectors.
Tan’s advisory roles in the past include Our Tampines Hub, Sentosa-Brani Master Plan, one-north Retail Master Plan and Thomson-East Coast Line MRT stations.
Leonard Tay has been appointed head of research since May this year. He has 15 years of experience in the real estate industry and previously held senior roles in research teams under CBRE and Colliers International. His expertise is in cross-sector market research, consultancy advisory and tenancy administration.
Tay’s suite of clients in the public and private sectors include Central Provident Fund Board, Ascendas-Singbridge, Standard Chartered Bank, CapitaLand and Overseas Union Enterprise. He was previously a lecturer on real estate subjects at Ngee Ann Polytechnic and also conducted courses at Singapore Institute of Surveyors and Valuers.
In his new role as head of research, Tay will focus on market research. He will support Knight Frank’s wider business and strategic initiatives.
CapitaLand announces new CEOs for Singapore, Vietnam markets
CapitaLand has announced two key executive appointments in its core markets of Singapore and Vietnam that will come into effect from July 1. Tan Yew Chin will assume the role of CEO, CapitaLand Singapore. Ronald Tay will be appointed CEO, CapitaLand Vietnam.
In his new role as CEO, CapitaLand Singapore, Tan will be responsible for the Singapore portfolio, which comprises more than 14,500 residential units, 20 retail malls, 17 commercial and integrated developments, and over 100 business parks, industrial and logistics properties. He will also be appointed as a member of the CapitaLand executive committee.
Tan brings with him over 30 years of experience in real estate management. He joined CapitaLand as CEO of Business Park & Commercial in July 2019. Previously, he was CEO of Singapore & Southeast Asia at Ascendas-Singbridge (ASB) and was one of several former ASB leaders who joined CapitaLand Group to helm key management roles after the group acquired ASB in June last year.
As CEO, Capitaland Vietnam, Tay will focus on growing the overall business in Vietnam, where the group manages two integrated developments, close to 8,600 quality residential units across 15 developments, two retail malls and one business park. CapitaLand has been operating in Vietnam for more than 25 years.
Tay is currently CEO of residential & retail in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. He will continue to oversee ongoing development projects in Malaysia and Indonesia in his new role as well. Having been with CapitaLand since 2001, Tay will be taking over Chen Liang Pang, who will be retiring.
Nan Fung Group launches Airside on old Kai Tak airport site in Hong Kong
Nan Fung Group has announced its plan for Airside, a 1.9 million sq ft mixed-use commercial development that will sit on the site of the former Kai Tak airport in Hong Kong.
The 47-storey building will be the tallest in Kai Tak and will offer “unparalleled views of Victoria Harbour, the Kai Tak Area and CBD 2.0”, according to a press release by Nan Fung Group. There will be 30 storeys of Grade-A offices with a total gross floor area of 1.2 million sq ft and floor plates of 32,000 to 53,000 sq ft.
Airside will also have a multi-storey retail complex connected to an underground shopping street that conveniently links it to Kai Tak MTR Station. Nearby facilities are also accessible through elevated walkways and bridges.
When the upcoming Shatin-Central and Tuen-Ma Lines are completed, Airside will be 15 minutes away from Central and 40 minutes from Hong Kong International Airport and the Shenzhen border.
The project is designed by international architectural firm, Snohetta, whose notable works include the Oslo Opera House and the September 11 Memorial Museum Pavillion in New York. Airside will have landscaping and sustainable features such as an automatic bicycle parking bay, a sky garden, automated smart waste sorting and centralised district-cooling. Airside has secured five green-building pre-certifications, including US LEED, Hong Kong BEAM Plus New Building and the platinum pre-certification of the WELL Building Standard.
When Nan Fung purchased the site in 2017, it set a record price for land sales of HK$24.6 billion (S$4.4 billion). The total investment in the project is around HK$32 billion ($5.7 billion).
Mapletree Industrial Trust acquires remaining 60% interest in 14 data centres in US
Mapletree Industrial Trust (MIT) is acquiring the remaining 60% interest in the 14 data centres currently held by Mapletree Redwood Data Centre Trust (MRDCT) in the US. The purchase consideration is US$210.9 million, or approximately $299.5 million.
MIT currently holds a 40% interest in MRDCT. The remaining 60%, valued at US$494 million or $701.5 million, is held by Mapletree DC Ventures, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mapletree Investments. After acquisition, MIT will hold 100% interest in the 14 data centres, which have an agreed property value of $823.3 million in total.
CEO of Mapletree Industrial Trust Management, Tham Kuo Wei, says that the acquisition “will improve MIT’s income stability with the increased freehold land component and long leases with annual rental escalations”. The acquisition will also increase the trust management’s exposure to the resilient data centre segment and deepen its presence in the US.
The data centre market — insourced and outsourced — is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 2.2% from 2018 to 2024. The US will account for about 28% of the global market by net operational square feet, according to MIT. —