Some Punggol loft flats are being listed for sale at $1.5m, property experts weigh in

Another Punggol loft flat is now on the market for $1.5 million.

The flat for sale — a five-room loft unit — is located at Block 305A Punggol Road.

According to the listing put up on PropertyGuru last Saturday (Dec 14), the flat features an open terrace and two floors, along with a master bedroom on the second floor.

The price per square foot for the 1,582 sqft property works out to be $948 psf.

The flat is less than 10 minutes' walk away from Punggol MRT station and Waterway Point, and has amenities such as a coffee shop and a supermarket in the vicinity.

In October, a similar unit in the same estate was put up for sale at $1.5 million.

A check online shows that the five-room loft flat at Block 306D Punggol Drive was re-listed for sale on Dec 2.

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'$1.3m price tag more realistic'

High floors, accessibility, size — these loft flats may have ticked the boxes for those looking to buy a house, but it appears that they have yet to find any takers.

Speaking with AsiaOne, Herohomes co-founder Heikel Shafrudin said that the flats' $1.5 million price tags are not realistic.

"The kind of cash or CPF (Central Provident Fund) [loans] needed can get you a condo," he said.

"$1.5 million is a bit on the higher side — probably somewhere in the range of $1.3 million would be more palatable for most buyers today."

Flats like these usually target those earning a combined monthly income of over $20,000, Heikel added.

People who choose to buy loft flats over condominiums or other properties at the same price point may be doing so to chase their dream home, he said.

"The design element — the layout — would definitely stand out," Heikel said. "This loft is basically the newer generation of the executive maisonette (EM) that got discontinued.

"For some people, being able to live in a double-storey property in Singapore… it's already a very rare occurrence to them, it's their goal, it's a lifestyle drive."

'The price is right'

Property agency Bluenest's sales director Zen Lim holds a different opinion, however.

Asserting that the loft flats' price tags of $1.5 million are realistic, Lim explained that previous transactions in the region already climbed beyond $1.2 million, adding that these loft units are unique and rare.

While most flats including EMs have all bedrooms on the same floor, these loft units have the master bedroom on the second floor, he said.

Lim also pointed out that the open-air terrace seen in both Punggol units is very unique, further increasing his valuation of the property.

While he agreed that buyers will likely need to have a combined monthly income of over $20,000, he also suggested that they might be those "downgrading" from private property.

"A lot of these down-graders sell off their property to buy a HDB flat because they need the space," he said. "Of course, they also cash out after selling their private property for a good price."

With the current trend of increasing property prices, Lim said that it won't be too long before the loft flats find buyers.

He estimated that it'd take about three months, inclusive of the Chinese New Year period.

"It's just a matter of time, I'm pretty sure someone will [snap the property up] at $1.5 million, it shouldn't be a problem," Lim said.

Million-dollar flats make up for about two per cent of all resale transactions in the past year and a half, said Minister for National Development Desmond Lee in August.

Only 0.5 per cent of four-room and smaller flats were sold for $1 million or more within the past two years, he added.

"But when they go around, people have the impression that every resale flat is a million dollars or more," the minister said.

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khooyihang@asiaone.com