International Plaza relaunched for collective sale at $2.7 bil
International Plaza, located at the junction of Anson Road and Choon Guan Street in the heart of Tanjong Pagar, has been relaunched for collective sale at the previous price of $2.7 billion. The 75,089 sq ft site has a 99-year lease from 1970. Under the Master Plan 2019, the site is zoned for commercial use with a plot ratio of 10.5 and building height control of up to 250m.
The reserve price of $2.7 billion reflects a land rate of $2,448 psf per plot ratio (psf ppr), based on the existing plot ratio of 19.24, and is inclusive of differential premium and lease upgrading premium to top-up the lease to a fresh 99 years, according to sole marketing agency Edmund Tie & Co. As the property is zoned for commercial use, there is no additional buyer’s stamp duty payable and no foreign ownership restriction.
International Plaza was first launched for collective sale in August last year at $2.7 billion, and the tender closed on Nov 30, 2021. The tender for the relaunch will close on April 29, 2022.
According to an outline application submitted for International Plaza, URA has advised that the site can be redeveloped up to the existing gross floor area (GFA) of 1.445 million sq ft, reflecting a plot ratio of 19.24, of which the residential GFA will constitute a minimum of 362,811 sq ft, and the office GFA will be capped at a maximum of 945,756 sq ft.
In 1Q2022, there were over $6 billion worth of transactions in the commercial sector, says Edmund Tie. Significant deals from January to March included the acquisition of the remaining 68.2% interest in Jem by Lendlease Global Commercial REIT at $2.08 billion; the $868 million collective sale of Tanglin Shopping Centre to the Tanoto family’s Pacific Eagle Real Estate; the $810.8 million acquisition of Cross Street Exchange by private equity group PAG from Frasers Logistics & Commercial Trust; the sale of PIL Building for $323.8 million to a joint venture between TE Capital Partners and LaSalle Investment Management; as well as the $287 million purchase of 55 Market Street by Kajima Corp.
“We are optimistic of the relaunch of International Plaza — on the back of the expected recovery in the downtown commercial sector that is benefitting from the easing of Covid measures, the rejuvenation of CBD, and in particular, the growing demand from family offices, and the growing regional high HNWI [high net worth individual] population,” says Swee Shou Fern, executive director of investment advisory at Edmund Tie.
The existing International Plaza is a 50-storey development completed in 1976. It has a seven-storey triangular podium with 192-unit strata-titled shops on the first three levels and a car park from the fourth to seventh levels. Sitting on top of the triangular podium is an octagon-shaped, 43-storey block, with 559 strata office units on the first 27 floors, and 209 apartments spanning the top 14 floors. The topmost level is occupied by two penthouses with roof gardens. The swimming pool and carpark have their own respective strata titles, bringing the total number of strata units in the building to 962.
The latest transaction of an apartment at International Plaza was in August last year when a 1,033 sq ft, three-bedroom unit on the 40th floor changed hands for $1.18 million ($1,142 psf).
The last strata retail unit to change hands was in October 2019, when a 344 sq ft unit on the second level was sold for $841,300 ($2,442 psf).
Strata office units that changed hands in recent months included a 936 sq ft unit on the 24th floor sold for $1.88 million ($2,008 psf) in December last year; and a 936 sq ft unit on the 29th floor that fetched $1.83 million ($1,849 psf) in February, according to caveats lodged with URA Realis. The largest recent strata office deal done was for several strata units on the 34th floor totalling 7,072 sq ft, which changed hands for $13.7 million ($1,937 psf) in December, based on a caveat lodged.
International Plaza has a 200m frontage and has direct access to the Tanjong Pagar MRT Station (East-West Line) exit located in front of the building. The building is also within 600m of three other upcoming MRT stations, namely Shenton Way (Thomson-East Coast Line), Prince Edward (Circle Line) and Maxwell (Thomson-East Coast Line).