Property sector's new buzzword:
Penthouse
Term mainly used as marketing tool and no
fixed criteria apply: Analysts
An exterior view of Ardmore Park, where an 8,740 sq ft
penthouse is being marketed for $35 million. -- PHOTOS:
KNIGHT FRANK, ST FILE
By MELISSA TAN
MOVE over, shoebox apartments. Penthouse units have claimed the
spotlight ever since the launch of a 4,349 sq ft penthouse suite at
an executive condominium (EC) in Tampines last month.
The unit, including a 1,600 sq ft roof terrace, was
sold for $2.05 million - the most expensive EC penthouse ever
sold.
But just what is a penthouse unit? The definition
is fuzzy, apart from the apartment being rather swanky and on the
top floor. No fixed criteria apply and the term is mainly used as a
marketing tool.
"In the past, penthouses were an exclusive lot
found in city or central locations. But the line has been blurred
such that any unit on the top floor is being marketed as a
penthouse," said Mr Lee Sze Teck, senior manager at DWG.
Penthouses generally have a large floor area
compared with the other units in a project.
For instance, the "penthouses" in 68-unit Kembangan
Suites are as small as 635 sq ft, said Ms Chia Siew Chuin, director
of research and advisory at Colliers International. Other units in
that project, one- and two-bedders, are also smaller, at between
344 and 624 sq ft.
Even selected HDB blocks in some estates including
Bishan and Strathmore Avenue in Queenstown can be considered as
having penthouse units, Ms Chia said, though the quantity of HDB
penthouses is very limited.
However, other analysts set the minimum size at
between 2,000 and 2,300 sq ft.
A penthouse usually includes a balcony or roof
terrace, a private lift lobby and more than two bedrooms. It also
has two or three storeys, analysts added.
Jones Lang LaSalle national research director Ong
Teck Hui noted that newer penthouses in city fringe or suburban
locations are smaller than older penthouses in prime districts
which tend to be more than 3,000 sq ft.
At the top end of the market are "super penthouses"
with huge floor areas commanding high absolute prices, Mr Ong
said.
For example, an 8,740 sq ft penthouse in Ardmore
Park is being marketed for $35 million. A 13,000 sq ft penthouse in
Chatsworth Court has an asking price of $50 million while another
11,200 sq ft penthouse at Boulevard Vue is listed at $68
million.
Penthouses appeal to a select group of buyers for
their spaciousness, exclusivity and accompanying bragging rights,
analysts said.
The typical penthouse buyer is often a wealthy
executive, though lately, multi-generational families have pooled
their cash to buy such units as well.
Knight Frank senior manager Alice Tan estimated
that Singapore has 6,000 to 9,000 penthouses, mostly in districts
1, 9, 10 and 11. "We are seeing a larger proportion of penthouse
units in newer high-end developments, particularly in District 9
and District 1," she said.
But the downside is that penthouse owners who do
not intend to occupy the unit for the long term may find it harder
to sell it later, for a few reasons.
One is that penthouse buyers are a select group of
people, so the resale value of a penthouse depends on limited
demand.
Another factor is that the proliferation of
so-called "penthouses" in many developments is undermining the
term's prestige, said DWG's Mr Lee.
Third, R'ST Research director Ong Kah Seng noted
that there are very few comparable sales and leases that can be
used to benchmark prices because of the scarcity and exclusivity of
penthouses.
"Prices are expected to be among the first to fall
in lacklustre economic conditions, as buyers opt for functionality
and embrace frugality," he said.
Money, The Straits Times, Saturday January 12 2013, Pg C1
