Yahoo Finance Singapore $12 million penthouse sale flops after three auctions
By Low De Wei
(Bloomberg) — In the past, a luxury penthouse for sale in Singapore would be one of the hottest properties in town. Not anymore, after a condo with an asking price of almost $12 million failed to attract any bidders this week.
The five-bedroom suite at the St. Regis Residences, with a private pool and a 180-degree panoramic view, received no offers during its third auction by realtor Knight Frank on Thursday. That’s even after the price was lowered by 14% from earlier this year, to S$15.5 million ($11.5 million).
The property, owned by the son of Indonesian billionaire Tahir, is one of many luxury homes struggling to sell in a Singapore market slammed by a 60% stamp duty on foreign buyers, along with a crackdown on money laundering. The moves have slowed purchases by the super rich to a trickle.
Developers including City Developments Ltd., which built the St. Regis Residences more than a decade ago, have seen their stocks pummeled as a result. Other projects are faring little better. The Cuscaden Reserve, a luxury project near the prime Orchard Road shopping district, has slashed prices by a fifth, with nearly 70% of its 192 units still unsold.
The malaise was on stark display at the auction conducted by Knight Frank. In a largely empty auditorium with fewer than 20 attendees, none of the 16 properties up for sale got any public bids — including multi-million dollar seafront villas with amenities like private pools and elevators.
The St. Regis apartment, spanning about 6,684 square feet (621 square meters), is owned by Jonathan Tahir, according to property records. The Indonesian is the executive chairman of MYP Ltd., a property investment firm based in Singapore. He’s a scion of the Tahir family, whose Mayapada Group conglomerate holds interests in everything from banking to health care.
This was the last chance for the property to sell at auction; it will now need to be sold privately. It attracted two offers before the auction, both below the guide price. It was one of two houses in the development that were on the block, with the other being a sixth-floor apartment owned by a subsidiary of MYP.
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