Strata landed homes look set to be big trend

AUGUST and September are typically slow months for new property launches, due to the superstition surrounding the Hungry Ghost month.

But developers are not sitting idly by this year. Several launches are in the works for the last months of the year, and one of the big emerging trends appears to be strata-titled landed homes, or cluster housing projects.

Property firm CB Richard Ellis (CBRE), for one, identifies at least 21 such projects in the pipeline.

For the uninitiated, cluster homes look exactly like conventional landed homes. They are usually at least two storeys high and come in a variety of sizes, ranging from terrace houses to bungalows.

The main difference is that cluster homes come with strata titles, as do condominiums, rather than land titles.

In a cluster project, the land is shared by all the owners, explained Mr Li Hiaw Ho, an executive director of CBRE Research.

This has two main implications. First, cluster projects can be sold en bloc as long as the minimum required owner consensus is met. This means an 80 per cent agreement for projects more than 10 years old and 90 per cent for younger estates.

Second, owners of strata houses do not have the flexibility of tearing down and rebuilding their properties. Owners of conventional landed homes, on the other hand, can make additions and alterations that affect the external appearance of the homes.

Generally, cluster housing projects tend to be more standardised in appearance than the usual landed houses.

Each unit is typically two to three storeys high, and most come with four to six bedrooms, attics or roof terraces, and basements, said Mr Li.

Parking spaces are also a plus in cluster projects, which usually include one or two basement carpark lots for each house.

The built-up area for each house ranges from about 2,500 sq ft for a terrace house to 3,500 to 4,000 sq ft for a detached house, added Mr Li.

The larger bungalows can go up to almost 6,000 sq ft, with roof terraces usually accounting for another 500 sq ft.

Cluster housing is not a new concept in Singapore, having first made an appearance in 1993. But these projects became more mainstream only from 2000 onwards, and have taken off in a big way just recently.

‘More customers are accepting the product now, so developers are also encouraged to build more of these houses,’ said Mr Ku Swee Yong, the director of marketing and business development at Savills Singapore.

He noted that Far East Organization’s Greenwood series of landed homes, one of the more popular landed housing projects in recent years, is planning to release its next phase in a cluster housing style.

Anecdotal evidence from property agents also seems to indicate that foreigners find it easier to get approval to buy strata landed homes than to buy conventional landed homes.

‘Cluster homes are strata-titled, so in such a development, there would be a good balance of voting share rights between foreigners and Singaporeans,’ said one agent. ‘Also, generally, the smaller the property, the easier it is to get approval if you are a foreigner.’

For the individual home buyer, there are several advantages to strata homes that conventional landed housing do not offer.

Among the greatest draws of cluster houses are the communal facilities and security features. Facilities often include at least one swimming pool, jacuzzis, a gym, a clubhouse and barbecue areas.

But these perks come at a cost: Strata home owners have to pay a monthly maintenance fee, much like condominium owners, to maintain these facilities.

Previous estimates by consultancy Colliers International have put these fees at $250 to more than $400 a month, depending on the size of the estate and the facilities available.

Apart from the maintenance cost, cluster homes and landed homes in the same location are usually similarly priced, said CBRE’s Mr Li. ‘The facilities provided in a cluster project will be a trade-off against the loss of the private enjoyment of land.’

For a home buyer who is trying to decide between strata and conventional landed homes, ‘it will ultimately boil down to a question of lifestyle’, said Mr Li.

While some home owners might prefer a landed home with large common areas and some facilities within the compound, others might want to have the land title to their landed property, he added.

Source : Sunday Times – 9 Sept 2007

Current and upcoming cluster housing projects

Bungalows in Hua Guan Avenue

What: Six freehold bungalows, of which one has been sold.

Size: Units range from 4,200 sq ft to 4,500 sq ft.

Price: About $1,280 per sq ft (psf) of built-up area, or $5.4 million onwards.

Features: Each bungalow comes with individual swimming pools and two basement carpark lots.

Developer: A boutique developer/contractor

Dunsfold 18 in Dunsfold Drive

What:18 freehold bungalows, of which seven are unsold.

Size: Units range from 4,155 sq ft to 4,499 sq ft.

Price: $780 psf of built-up area, or $3 million onwards.

Features: Each bungalow is two storeys high and comes with five bedrooms, an attic, a basement, two basement carpark lots and a private pool.

Developer: Fortune Land

Siglap 33 at Siglap Hill

What: Six freehold cluster bungalows.

Size: Units range from 3,498 sq ft to 4,284 sq ft.

Launch/price: Launch date and pricing still unknown.

Westmont in West Coast Road

What: Nine terrace houses and two semi-detached houses, all freehold.

Size: The terraces range in size from 2,820 sq ft to 3,498 sq ft, while the semi-detached houses range from 2,949 sq ft to 3,079 sq ft.

Features: Facilities include a pool, private jacuzzi and barbecue areas. The units are three storeys high and come with four bedrooms, an attic and a basement.

Developer: Macly

Dalla Vale in Springleaf Avenue

What: 60 units of semi-detached houses. Thirty-six units were released in the first two phases, half of which have been sold. Phase 3 will be released when 70 per cent to 80 per cent of the first two phases have been sold.

Size: Units range from 3,218 to 3,261 sq ft.

Price: Phase 1 houses are priced at $2.1 million, while houses released in phase 2 are priced between $2.2 million and $2.3 million, depending on the direction the unit faces.

Features: Each unit has five bedrooms and comes with two basement carparks. Other facilities include a jacuzzi, a clubhouse, swimming pools and a gym.

Developer: Far East Organization

Lornie 18 at 14 Lornie Road

What: 18 freehold bungalows

Size: Units range from 4,392 sq ft to 4,930 sq ft.

Price: Priced between $5 million and $5.5 million. As at July 31, three had been sold of which two were sold in July for $1,150 psf.

Features: Facilities include 36 private basement carparks, a children’s pool and swimming pool and barbecue areas.

Expected temporary occupation permit (TOP) date: Dec 31, 2009

Developer: Clydesbuilt Group

Hillcrest Villas in Hillcrest Road/ Dunearn Road

What:168 strata terrace houses, 99-year leasehold.

Size: Each unit is about 3,100 sq ft.

Price: Has not been determined, but the houses are expected to be released for sale in a few weeks’ time.

Features: The two-storey houses come with five bedrooms, an attic, a basement and private carpark lots.

Communal facilities: Swimming pools, a clubhouse, a gym, and a lounge.

Expected TOP date: June 30, 2011

Developer: MCL Land

Illoura in Old Holland Road, behind Tessarina

What: 28 freehold semi-detached houses.

Size: Units are about 4,000 sq ft.

Price: Prices believed to be upwards of $4.5 million each. Six were sold in July for $970 to $1,175 psf of built-up area.

Developer: Brisbane Properties

Kings’ 8 in Kings Road

What: Eight freehold detached houses.

Size: Units range from 4,898 sq ft to 5,414 sq ft.

Price: Starts at $5.25 million.

Features: Each two-storey house comes with an attic, two private basement carparks and its own private pool.

Source : Sunday Times – 9 Sept 2007

Living legends – The familiar Chans’ Ville landmark in Katong gets a new lease of life, and has four new bungalows as neighbours too

MOTORISTS driving on Mountbatten Road will be familiar with this Katong landmark amid a row of sprawling bungalows.

At 745 Mountbatten Road stands the former Chans’ Ville, a two-storey Early Modern-style bungalow.

It was the home of the late Dr Chan Ah Kow and his seven children – including Alex, Roy, Patricia and Mark – who were well known in the 1960s and 1970s for their swimming prowess.

The Chan family, who lived there from the mid-1940s, sold it to property investor Simon Cheong of SC Global for $11 million in 2004.

When contacted, musician Mark Chan would say only that ‘we now live’all over’.

Today, Chans’ Ville, which sat on 55,000 sq ft of land, is known as the Five Legends of Mountbatten. It is SC Global’s first bungalow project.

The original bungalow, which was given conservation status by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) in 1993, occupies 23,000 sq ft of land. The remaining space, which used to house a tennis court and garden, was split into four plots ranging from 5,574 sq ft to 10,168 sq ft.

Four two-storey bungalows were built and reportedly sold for $5.1 million to $6.3 million. Chans’ Ville fetched $13 million.

SC Global says the buyers are high-net worth individuals, but declines to reveal more.

Mr Cheong says the name was inspired by the five ‘legends’ who lived there – Dr Chan Ah Kow, Patricia, Alex, Roy and Mark.

Though not a Katong boy, Mr Cheong frequented the Chinese Swimming Club nearby when he was younger and had many relatives and friends who lived in the area.

‘It would be a pity if Chans’ Ville was not conserved well,’ he says.

He picked architect Mok Wei Wei of W Architects to work on the project as he felt the latter ‘had the passion and shared vision to return Chans’ Ville back to its former glory in Katong’.

He declines to disclose how much was spent restoring it, but says ‘we were willing to invest whatever it took to do it well’.

Observing conservation rules

MR MOK, 51, is no stranger to SC Global, having designed upmarket condo Three Three Robin in Robin Road and is working on Hilltops condo in Cairnhill.

For Chans’ Ville, he kept most of the house intact according to URA guidelines.

For example, a second-storey balcony had awnings that were installed after the house was built. Mr Mok wanted to retain them but eventually kept to the original open balcony under conservation guidelines.

Other items that remained include metal casement windows and most of the original green-glass window panels.

He also stuck to the house’s original white facade: ‘I cannot imagine it in any other colour.’

Because of the bungalow’s spaciousness, he imagined the new owners to be a multi-tiered family living together under one roof, as was typical of families living in the East Coast in the past.

So he added two wings to the back of the house. Each is two-storey high and comes with its own living room and bedrooms. All in, the whole mansion has six bedroom suites.

SC Global does not know whether a multi-tiered family has indeed bought the bungalow.

The extensions are linked to the main house by a double-volume banquet hall that can seat 20 people, allowing diners to look out into the lush greenery outside.

For the four new bungalows, however, Mr Mok conceptualised them as a ‘walled city’, each having its own garden and pool that are placed almost next to each other, creating the illusion of a shared space.

In addition, each home has an extra family area at the back for entertainment. Guests can gather in the living room in the front of the house for pre-dinner drinks, before moving to the middle for dinner, and finally to the back for post-dinner drinks.

‘The extra space was created at the back for privacy, and it can be turned into a bedroom if needed,’ says Mr Mok, whose last bungalow project was a house in Morley Road 10 years ago.

A glass-enclosed staircase acts as a ’screen’ separating the front and back of the house, and leads to the four bedrooms upstairs. He says this makes the home more exciting as the visitor cannot see the whole house all at once.

‘It allows for more discovery.’

Source : Straits Times – 8 Sept 2007

Good class bungalow sold for record $29m

A GOOD class bungalow at 15 White House Park has become mainland Singapore’s most expensive, after it was sold for a record $1,308 per sq ft (psf) – eight years after the historic property was restored and put on sale.

The 22,000 sq ft conservation bungalow – called Glencaird – was sold to a Singaporean for $28.8 million, Wheelock Properties said in a statement yesterday.

Wheelock has been managing the property for Oroll, a wholly-owned unit of The Wharf (Holdings), which is also owned by Wheelock’s parent, Wheelock and Company.

Glencaird is one of 12 luxury bungalows that make up The Glencaird Residences and the only conservation bungalow in the series.

Oroll developed the bungalows.

The other 11 bungalows have already been sold at an average price of $838 psf.

Before it finally found a buyer, Glencaird – a restored, 105-year- old Victorian bungalow with five bedrooms – had sat empty since its completion in 1999.

‘We received several offers for Glencaird over the years,’ said Mr David Lawrence, Wheelock’s chief executive officer, in the statement.

‘However, we felt they were not reflective of the value, given that this is a very unique conservation piece in an excellent location.’

Prior to Glencaird’s sale, the record for mainland Singapore’s priciest bungalow was held by 63 Dalvey Road – sold in March for $16.45 million, or $1,091 psf.

On Sentosa, the highest price fetched by a bungalow plot is $1,473 psf.

Good class bungalows, Singapore’s most prestigious homes, are now enjoying astronomical asking prices amid the property boom.

Source : Straits Times – 30 Aug 2007

URA to auction 12 Sembawang sites for landed homes

FOR the first time in six years, the Urban Redevelopment Authority is offering small sub-divided landed housing plots for sale. It will auction 12 on 99-year leasehold tenure at Sembawang Road/Andrews Avenue on Oct 30.
 
 The plots, in Phase 1 of a new landed housing estate called Sembawang Green, can be developed into a total of 57 homes – 42 terrace houses, 14 semi-detached homes and a bungalow. The sale is aimed at encouraging wider participation by smaller developers and even individuals wanting to build dream homes opposite Sembawang Park and near Sembawang Beach. The approach is similar to that taken by URA for Kew Drive in 1993-1994 and Eastwood Park in 1995-1996, both in the Bedok area, and Chuan Green in 1997-2001. The Sembawang plots range in area from 4,243 sq ft (for a two semi-detached house development), to 43,694 sq ft (for a 23 terrace-home project). All 12 plots can be developed up to three storeys.
 
 Knight Frank director Nicholas Mak expects the terrace plots to fetch $220-250 psf of land area and the semi-detached and bungalow plots around $180-200 psf. These reflect breakeven costs of $870,000 to $930,000 per terrace house, $1.025 million to $1.1 million per semi-D and $1.5-1.6 million per bungalow.
 
 CB Richard Ellis executive director (residential) Joseph Tan expects the terrace plots to fetch $220 to $250 psf of land area, the semi-D plots $240 to $270 psf and the sole bungalow site $260-$300 psf. Based on these bid ranges, the terrace houses could sell for about $1.0-1.1 million, the semi-Ds for $1.4-1.5 million and the bungalow for $2.6-2.8 million, according to Mr Tan.
 
 The plots are next to the established landed housing estates of Straits Garden and Sembawang Straits Estate. URA has already put in infrastructure. A URA spokeswoman said the authority will decide on the number of phases for Sembawang Green and the number of homes in each phase after the auction of the Phase 1 plots.
 
 Source : Business Times – 29 Aug 2007

Three Sentosa bungalow plots released for sale

SENTOSA Cove Pte Ltd (SCPL) yesterday released another three 99-year leasehold bungalow plots for sale, after reporting new benchmarks being set for waterway and fairway facing plots in the upscale locale.

After the latest offer, the only sites the master developer will have left for sale are two more individual bungalow plots, a man-made island (which can be developed for 19 bungalows) and a plum condo plot at the mouth of the marina.

In all, the developer will have sold plots for a total of about 2,500 homes since October 2003.

SCPL said yesterday that an expression of interest (EOI) for four bungalow parcels that closed in July saw a new benchmark price of $1,233 per square foot of land area being achieved for a waterway bungalow lot, surpassing the $960 psf previous record for such land set earlier this year.

The other two waterway plots offered in the July EOI were also sold at above $960 psf. The sole fairway bungalow site in that EOI fetched $1,065 psf, surpassing the previous high of $910 psf for such sites achieved earlier this year.

The last seafront bungalow plot at Sentosa Cove was sold for a record $1,473 psf during an EOI in May, surpassing the top price of $1,308 psf previously for such plots seen at an EOI late last year.

SCPL’s latest EOI, which is being launched tomorrow, is for three bungalow sites – all waterway-fronting plots, one of which also boasts nearby views of, but is not directly fronting, the Tanjong Golf Course and the sea.

This plot has a land area of 6,941 sq ft. The other two plots are 7,414 sq ft and 10,663 sq ft.

The EOI closes on Sept 4, with the award being based solely on price.

Credo Real Estate managing director Karamjit Singh predicts that the three latest waterway plots could fetch prices ranging from $1,100 to $1,300 psf, with scarcity value raising the price.

Following this EOI sale, the last two individual bungalow plots at Sentosa Cove – both of which face fairways – will be sold by private treaty.

Pearl Island and a coveted high-rise condo plot (dubbed C-13) at the entrance to Sentosa Cove’s marina basin will be offered for sale before the year runs out.

Source : Business Times – 22 Aug 2007

Publishing firm buys $12.5m plot

PUBLISHING company Eastern Holdings, which ventured into property development three years ago, has bought a 10,888 sq ft freehold plot in Grove Drive for $12.5 million.

The price for the plot – which is near Ghim Moh Road – works out to $1,148 per sq ft of potential gross floor area.

Eastern said the move into property has allowed the company to ride on Singapore’s booming property market for growth.

Its chairman and managing director, Mr Stephen Tay, said yesterday: ‘This is the beginning of a new era of growth for Eastern, brought about by the robust demand for residential and commercial spaces.’

Eastern had earlier secured an option to buy an adjacent plot for $10.3 million and now plans to amalgamate the two sites.

Together, the combined plots at 81 and 83 Grove Drive offer a total gross floor area of 42,837 sq ft.

In a statement yesterday, the group said it is still discussing specific plans for the sites but may develop cluster bungalows or cluster semi-detached houses.

Eastern entered the property business in 2004 when the property market showed the first tentative hints of recovery.

It was a way for the company to diversify and add growth to its revenue streams beyond publishing, it said.

Today, the group – which publishes magazine titles such as Motherhood, Teens and Motoring – has a property portfolio of commercial, industrial and residential properties.

Source : Straits Times – 31 Jul 2007

Nobel Design snaps up two more properties

NOBEL Design Holdings yesterday said it will acquire another two properties at Jalan Lim Tai See – in addition to a property it bought on the same street earlier this year.

The three properties, which will give a combined land area of about 63,100 sq ft, will be redeveloped into a cluster of 35-40 semi-detached houses and bungalows for sale.

The company said that the cost of the three properties – at 69, 71 and 71A Jalan Lim Tai See – comes to $48.5 million.

‘The effort represents the company’s further expansion into niche property developments which is intended to be a key contributor to the profitability of the company,’ Nobel Design said in a filing to the Singapore Exchange.

In April this year, Nobel Design announced that it bought a property at 69, Jalan Lim Tai See for $14 million.

Then, Nobel set up a 50-50 joint venture company – Astrid Hill Residences Pte Ltd – with ACT Holdings Pte Ltd to acquire the property.

For the new acquisitions, Astrid acquired the options to purchase the two properties from Fortune Land Pte Ltd. In return, Fortune Land will take a stake in Astrid.

At the end of the whole exercise, Nobel Design will own a 28.75 per cent stake in Astrid. ACT and Fortune Land will hold 28.75 and 42.5 per cent respectively.

The development will be financed through a combination of internal funds and bank borrowing, Nobel Design said.

The company added that the project is not expected to have a material impact on its net tangible assets or earnings per share for the financial year ending December 31, 2007.

Nobel Design’s shares closed two cents up at a one-year high of 42.5 cents yesterday. The company’s stock has climbed 136.1 per cent since the start of the year.

Source : Business Times – 17 Jul 2007

More foreigners apply to buy landed homes

The number of applications by foreigners (including permanent residents) seeking approval from the government to buy landed properties in Singapore rose 30 per cent in 2006 against the preceding year, according to Singapore Land Authority.

‘This was possibly due to the strong economy, a favourable property market and interest in Sentosa Cove,’ an SLA spokeswoman said.

Foreigners including PRs face restrictions in buying landed properties in Singapore and need prior approval from the authorities before they can purchase such properties. Foreigners have to be PRs before they can receive permission to buy landed homes on mainland Singapore; Sentosa Cove is the only location where foreigners who are not PRs are allowed to purchase landed property.

Apart from an applicant’s PR status, sanction to buy landed property depends on his qualifications and economic contributions to Singapore, SLA’s spokeswoman stressed.

SLA declined to say how many applications were made by foreigners/PRs to buy landed property, and how many were approved.

However, based on DTZ Debenham Tie Leung’s analysis of caveats captured by the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s Realis database, foreigners including PRs bought 93 landed homes or 8.4 per cent of the total 1,108 landed homes transacted in Q1 2007, covering both primary and secondary markets, as well as completed and uncompleted properties.

These figures are higher than those for Q1 2006, when foreigners including PRs bought 43 landed homes, or 6.1 per cent of the total 706 landed homes that were transacted. During Q2 1996, at the height of the 1990s property bull run, PRs/foreigners purchased 31 landed homes, or 2.6 per cent of the total 1,188 landed homes that changed hands during the period.

DTZ’s analysis showed that for Q1 this year, PRs bought 86 landed homes while non-PR foreigners purchased seven such homes. The most popular landed homes among foreigners as a whole were terrace houses (45 units), followed by semi-detached (26 units) and detached houses (22 units).

Private apartments/condos – a class of properties where there are no restrictions on purchases by foreigners/PRs (unless they want to buy up an entire development) – made up the majority of private homes bought by foreigners in Q1 this year. In all, foreigners/PRs bought 2,008 non-landed private homes, accounting for 30.3 per cent of the total condos/apartments bought in the period.

In Q1 this year, foreigners/PRs bought 27.2 per cent of the overall 7,731 private homes (comprising both landed and non-landed homes) that changed hands. This share is almost double their 14.1 per cent share back in Q2 1996, when foreigners/PRs purchased 975 of the total 6,932 private residential properties transacted.

DTZ executive director Ong Choon Fah said the growing foreign buying of landed homes in Singapore reflects that many foreigners/PRs are raising their families here.

‘They may find that condos are too small. Very often they buy landed homes in locations close to the foreign/international schools that their children attend, for instance, in Lorong Chuan, where the Australian International School is located, and in the West Coast near the Japanese School,’ she added.

‘Many of these foreigners and PRs say Singapore is a very ‘liveable’ place. If they believe in the future of Asia, they’d want to raise their families in Asia, and Singapore is a good location, from which they can get exposure to China and India because of our connectivity,’ she added.

Since 1973, foreigners (including PRs) have been prohibited from buying landed property without prior government approval. All would-be buyers must seek permission from the Land Dealings (Approval) Unit under the SLA. Typically, it takes about four weeks for approval to be granted, but in the upscale waterfront locale of Sentosa Cove, the time has been fast-tracked to less than 48 hours.

Whether on mainland Singapore or Sentosa Cove, foreigners including PRs can at any one time own only one landed home in Singapore and must occupy it themselves rather than rent it out.

However, being a PR does not automatically mean one’s application to buy landed property will be approved. For instance, if the PR does not have the recognised qualifications or expertise/working experience required by Singapore or has not made any investment in the type of industry/service sector being promoted in Singapore, the application may be turned down. Even PRs who have set up businesses promoted by Singapore may find their applications rejected if their company’s paid-up capital and turnover do not meet certain requirements.

Source : Business Times – 14 Jul 2007

Owners of Claymore bungalow plots sitting on potential goldmine

Three adjacent homes – one of them unoccupied – could fetch a staggering $400 million if they all went on sale.

But these are anything but ordinary homes. They are the last three bungalow plots at a prime location smack in the heart of the Orchard Road district.

The spotlight has swung to the three bungalows – surrounded by condominiums and malls – after one of them, at 11 Claymore Road, was put up for sale at $115million amid a booming property market.

Assuming all three plots were sold at that level – although the indications are that at least one is not up for sale – they could fetch almost $400 million and be redeveloped into a luxury condominium, consultants said.

On Monday, Credo Real Estate put 11 Claymore Road up for sale at $2,815 per sq ft of potential gross floor area, inclusive of a development charge of $26.67 million. It is currently rented to Pat’s Schoolhouse childcare centre.

A British pre-school chain, Modern Montessori International Group, leases one of the other bungalows at 15 Claymore Road.

The third bungalow, at 9 Claymore Road, is believed to be vacant, though recently renovation work has been started on it.

It is the biggest of the three plots and could fetch $151.5 million, if there is a buyer at the asking price of its neighbouring plot.

Next to 15 Claymore Road is The Tate Residences, which is being developed. One of the condominiums at the rear, The Ardmore, was recently acquired for $262 million or a record $2,338 psf of potential gross floor area.

The owners of two of the bungalow plots declined to comment, while the owner of the third plot was not contactable.

According to a search done by The Straits Times, the freehold plots are all registered under Chinese names, two of which are believed to be family-owned businesses. The other is an individual.

Kok Kim Chuan Co owns 11, Claymore Road. A company search showed that it was registered in 1970. Then, it was described as being a real estate agent. It also handled the retail sale of motor vehicles except motorcycles, and was into chartered bus and excursion bus services.

Mr Karamjit Singh, the managing director of Credo Real Estate, which is handling the sale of 11 Claymore Road, said the Kok family did not wish to comment.

The founder of Pat’s Schoolhouse, Mrs Patricia Koh, said the childcare centre has been leasing the Claymore Road property for the past six to seven years. Prior to that, it was used as a family residence.

At the start of the lease, she dealt with the late Mr Kok Kim Chuan and now deals with his son.

Teo Soo Chuan Realty, registered in July 1985 as a holding company, owns 15 Claymore Road. It is believed to be a family business of Mr Teo Soo Chuan, who did not wish to comment.

When asked, Mr Singh said the owners of 15 Claymore Road said they have no intention of selling.

Mr Teo is a director of Ngee Ann Development, Singapore Clan Foundation and The Singapore Sugar Traders Association, among others.

He once held directorships at a host of companies and organisations, including Singapura Finance from 1981 to 2002.

From 1965 to 1988, he had been the managing director of See Hoy Chan Singapore, founded by his father. He became a director when the company became See Hoy Chan (1988), a rice-trader.

Modern Montessori International is believed to have occupied 15 Claymore Road for nearly six years. Another childcare centre occupied the site previously.

The third plot – 9 Claymore Road – is owned by a Singaporean, Mr Tan Kheng Chuan. He was appointed a manager and existing owner of the since-deregistered Hiap Ann Sago Factory in August 1940, and then a manager and owner of Hiap Ann in 1946.

A childcare teacher at Pat’s Schoolhouse said the 9 Claymore Road property is vacant, though someone pops by once in a while to collect the mail.

Source : Straits Times – 14 Jul 2007