Singapore Luxury Homes Draw Chinese

China's wealthy are throwing down big bucks for Singapore's exclusive Sentosa Cove homes. Drawn by waterfront living and a tightening property market back in the Mainland has may spending millions for their dream homes.

More than half of the homes here at Sentosa Cove are owned by non-Singaporeans.

But it's the mainland Chinese who have been raising eyebrows, splashing out ten of millions for houses here.

Already the third largest among all foreign property buyers in Singapore, they are especially keen on these luxury bungalows, with one home exchanging hands earlier this year for US$26 million.

In the first half of the year alone, Chinese buyers accounted for over 30 percent of sales in these ultra high-end homes here.

This is nearly double of what China buyers accounted for, in all foreign property sales in Singapore.

Real estate group DTZ says wealthy Chinese love Sentosa because it offers features hard to find anywhere else.

[Chua Chor Hoon, Southeast Asia Research]:
"They like the resort style living, it is a very unique location, where it is surrounded by the sea, you have a very good view of the waterfront, and secondly it is a gated community."

Luxury like this doesn't come cheap; the cheapest and the smallest sold for about $5 million - with another buyer forking out $56 million for 4 bungalows.

But even at these prices, wealthy Chinese think they're still cheap compared to similar high-end homes back in China, in Hong Kong and even London.

Clear rules and a favorable tax regime provide further incentives for buyers.

[Chua Chor Hoon, Southeast Asia Research]:
"There's no capital gains tax in Singapore, and the property market is very transparent and very well regulated."

Then, there's the new fun factor.

Once known for its shopping malls and staid social life, Singapore has transformed itself into the fun capital of Southeast Asia

By turning Sentosa into a playground for the rich, the city's gambling attractions like this Universal Studios theme park to lure visitors - especially from high-rolling China.

After years of resistance, Singapore also had an abrupt change of heart a few years ago, building not one, but two casinos, as it made a gamble on attracting well-heeled visitors from around the region.

[Song Seng Wun, Economist]:
"Ten years ago, Singapore was more boring. You come to Singapore to work, hardly any place to play. You wanna play, jump in a plane. Now, perhaps you spend half a day more, or a day more at the casino. So there are added attractions which means there are more business opportunities, if there are more business opportunities, it means there are more investment opportunities. "

Singapore has also benefitted from China's recent tightening policies that has squeezed all segments of the mainland property market, and sent some of the liquidity to property here.

[David Green-Morgan, Asia-Pacific Research]:
"We saw quite a heavy decline in the actual number of transactions undertaken in China, because of course many of the residential deals are mixed-use developments ... we've seen a pickup in investor activity in Australia, we've seen it here in Singapore, we've seen it in Hong Kong."

With Sentosa's limited supply of homes, buyers are seen as shifting to high-end projects on the Singapore mainland.

China buyers' share of the foreign buyer market has nearly doubled since 2008 - and DTZ says they could eventually make up a quarter of all property bought by non-citizens in Singapore.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

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• Singapore
• Sentosa Cove homes
• Chinese
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• Southeast Asia
• Universal Studios
• Asia-Pacific Research

[tyccww]

How about Singaporeans? Does government care about its own people dream houeses? These beautiful houses will be owned by non-singaporeans, but s'poreans will be left to live in HDB flats because high prices from from demand from overseas and limited land.

[padgehariz]

i heard jet lee is one of them



[MrKingPin360]

@cityofrock see ya later gaylord..i havent taken no offence in ur rant

[cityofrock]

@MrKingPin360 so r bragging bout your life??did i ever askk??haha kuli is better than nothing u idiot..so clever but yet so stupid..youre not even talking..im out bye fag..

[MrKingPin360]

@cityofrock lol stop talking to people like they still depends on their families. i am one man against the world and have been since i was 16. im not like u, who can live in luxury and always know u have a safety net a.k.a mum n dad. i aint even singaporean! and i went to uni in UK (with my own money) and now i got an expat job in singapore. kamu siapa eh? cuma kerja tukang kuli masih bisa ngomong jelek. im not indonesian or malay! i take extra classes cos i manage malays. im done talkin to u

[MrKingPin360]

@cityofrock im a construction manager, i kept that quiet to make u feel a bit of worth, since u r just a lowlife construction labourer. i am probably ur boss or one day would be. i dont ave parents like u, i got my degree through my own merit and with the money i saved through the military. so fuck u fag, u can talk shit about me, but dont go talking shit about other peoples parents. it aint on and even a lowlife like u will understand. im disapointed, i thought malays know better.

[cityofrock]

@MrKingPin360 lowlife is better then sitting down posting negative comment on youtube like you..pity ur family..especially ur mom..what kinda son did she gave birth to..a fag ...hahaha

[MrKingPin360]

@cityofrock go fuck a goat like ur pakistani muslims cousins u piece of lowlife shit lol. HAHAAH U GOT OWNED AGAIN!!! AHAHAAHAHAHA

[MrKingPin360]

@cityofrock LOL!! u sound so retarded and has personal issues

[cityofrock]

@MrKingPin360 im working in a construction site u piece of shit..u dont even know how tough life..coz u just sit n suck ur moms tits...wow wat a weird person u r can lower ur IQ no wonder when i fuck ur mom suddently went retard like ur family...im sorry for ur family..but just accept it ok..wanna be gangster in youtube..pity u...go cry to ur mommy..