Commentary on residential with commercial on first storey GLS site at River Valley Green (Parcel B)

By Tricia Song (宋明蔚), Head of Research, Southeast Asia, CBRE

Encouraged by the robust takeup at new launches in Q4 2024, developers showed healthy interest, with the healthiest participation this year to date (this is the third tender to close) and a top bid above expectations at the URA tender closing today on 7 Feb 2025 for the residential with commercial at first storey site at River Valley Green Parcel B (475 units). 

River Valley Green Parcel B

The plot at River Valley Green Parcel B (475 units) drew 5 bids, and a top bid price of $627.84 mil or $1,420 psf ppr above expectations submitted by a unit of GuocoLand. 

This land rate is 9% above the second highest bid submitted by Sing Holdings and 7% higher than the adjacent site at River Valley Green Parcel A (380 units) which received 2 bids and awarded at $1,326 psf ppr in Jun 2024 to a Wing Tai Holdings entity. However, compared to pre-cooling measures era, the top bid price is still 18% below the Jiak Kim Street plot (Rivière) that drew 10 bids and a top bid of $1,733 psf ppr in Dec 2017. 

The second to last bidder’s prices between $1,251 – 1,303psf ppr are well within market expectations. Hence, we will hesitate to say sentiment has revived. 

Other recently awarded comparables in the vicinity include Zion Road Parcel B (610 units) site which drew 2 bids and was awarded for S$730.09 mil or $1,304 psf ppr in Aug 2024 to a unit of Allgreen Properties and the SA2 hybrid site at Zion Road Parcel A (735 residential units, 435 SA2 units) which saw just 1 bid and was awarded in Apr 2024 to a joint venture between CDL and Mitsui Fudosan Co. for $1,202 psf ppr. 

Developers may have viewed the site more favourably due to its long frontage facing the Singapore River compared to the other River Valley Green sites. We believe that GuocoLand could be redeploying proceeds from its successful Lentor launches and may have been encouraged by the sell-out at Rivière (455 units) located just across the river from the land parcel. They will however have to contend with heightened competition, with 1,725 residential units and 435 SA2 units expected in the pipeline from the 3 prior sites. 

Nearby developments Rivière (455 units) saw 47 transactions in 2023 at a median price of $3,083psf and sold 5 units in 2024 at a median price of S$2,848 psf. The popular River Gate, which is of freehold tenure and completed in 2009, saw 13 transactions at a median price of $2,809 psf in 2024.

The developer would likely take cue from the launch prices at prior sites and new development could potentially be launched at an average price of $3,000 psf.