Jia is SDB’s first Singapore development

JIA. Short, simple and chic. The meaning is even more profound. It means home in Chinese. There is something within each of us that is drawn to a place called home. It does not have to be something at the upper end, although in this case, it is.

It is on this premise that SDB Properties Sdn Bhd, the property arm of Selangor Dredging Bhd, has named its first residential development in Singapore ... Jia. The project was launched about a month ago.

Located at 65, Wilkie Road, on Mount Sophia, about 10 minutes from the republic’s shopping haven Orchard Road, Jia represents more than just another development for the former tin-mining company Selangor Dredging under the helm of its managing director Teh Lip Kim.

With an eye to establish the group as a regional property player, this is Teh’s first foray beyond Malaysian shores. She has also set her sights on Australia.

Teh is setting many firsts as she enlarges her property portfolio, both in Malaysia and Singapore. A single thread runs through each of the projects she has thus far launched – niche.

When Teh launched her first development in Kinrara, Puchong in Selangor in 2004, AmanSari was among the first semi-detached and bungalow development in a gated and guarded environment, and by far, the most upmarket, targeted at upgraders.

With Ameera in SS2, launched last year, it was the most high-end condominium in that location. What else can be said of Park Seven in the KLCC area, which started at RM2mil when it was launched three years ago.

In her last chat with the media early August, Teh emphasised that the company was not into township developments, which would take years to materialise and a lot of resources. Rewards from small niche developments come in faster, if not greater. Small developments also tend to need more attention and Teh and her team are pretty hands-on in that respect.

Jia comprises only 22 units in a seven-storey development on 17,000 sq ft with an average price of S$1,637 per sq ft. Prices begin at S$2.1mil for a two-room apartment and goes right up to more than $S5mil for a duplex (exchange rate: S$1 to RM2.4). There are also three-bedroom units. Three of the 22 units come with private gardens of varying sizes. The two-room unit with garden is priced at S$2.8mil.

Says SDB senior sales and marketing manager Leon Kim Yoke: “The garden units work out cheaper on a per sq ft basis.”

She says most city apartments are in the 500-700 sq ft range. There will be a group of buyers who will want larger units of 1,200 sq ft and above.”

The group bought the land in December 2006 for S$20.8mil. A sales value of S$64mil is expected from that project.

All the units will come fitted out with the latest quality built-in cabinets and kitchen appliances. The team went as far as to change the materials that will be used after a trip to a Milan furniture fair.

Leon says there will be an emphasis on details like design and materials to be used as these will be the differentiating factor compared with other mass market projects in that area.

SDB is not the only one building on Mount Sophia. In that vicinity, there are several Singapore developers who have already completed their projects or in the midst of building.

Besides Jia, the company will also be launching No. 2 Gilstead later this year. While Jia is small, niche and cosy; 2 Gilstead is a 33-storey development with 66 units of three-bedroom units located off Bukit Timah Road near Newton Circus, off Scotts Road. While Jia is in the centre of the city, the Gilstead project is in a suburb popularised by several schools.

Leon says most Singaporeans buy into a project because of the proximity of well-known schools. Places are allocated according to how close one lives.

The Gilstead project comprises a single tower block with an indicative price of S$2,200 per sq ft. That piece of land of 37,000 sq ft was bought in May last year for S$96.5mil.

That project is a 50:50 joint venture and its share of revenue will be around S$110mil based on its 50% stake in Chedstone Investment Holdings Pte Ltd. The other 50% is shared on a 30:20 basis between privately held Teh Wan Sang & Sons Sdn Bhd and Teh Wan Sang & Sons Housing Development Sdn Bhd.

Last month, the group purchased a third property – Balstier Complex in Balstier Road – in an established township the likes of Kuala Lumpur’s Jalan Ipoh, for S$47mil.

Currently tenanted, that complex offers potential redeployment when the time is right.

Other Malaysian companies that have gone to the Lion City are IOI and YTL group. While both of these have bought land on Sentosa Cove, all three properties belonging to Selangor Dredging are in the city or established suburbs.

Besides its interest to tap the Singapore market, the group has also invested RM24.6mil in Penang’s famed Batu Feringgi. It bought three pieces of beach-front land located between the Lone Pine and Casuarina hotels where it plans to develop a “good, villa-type resort development” sometime in late 2009 or 2010.

The group is also developing controversial Damansara 2 in Damansara Heights, where it plans to build 21 luxury bungalows on a hillslope, which has drawn a lot of flak from nearby residents.

By The Star