Just last year in 2019, there were about 60 new project launches. These projects offer between 17,000 to 18,000 units, from en-bloc sites as well as Government Land Sales (GLS), all over the island.
These new launches include executive condominiums, mega projects of more than 2000 units and mixed developments, all located in different parts of Singapore. Each of the projects has its own potential upside, attracting different types of investors/ homeowners.
I practically grew old in District 23, have been residing in this area with my family for the last two decades. This is why I am particularly interested in the new project launches in this area, especially Dairy Farm area.
I remembered Dairy Farm area used to be pretty dark at night with all these huge trees, looked just like a forested area, by the side of the roads. This area has certainly developed much from those days, with a handful of private condominiums and an international school now.
About Dairy Farm Residences
Dairy Farm Residences, located at Dairy Farm Lane, is a 99 years leasehold project launched last November. It is a project by one of the reputable developers, United Engineers (UE). UE residential projects include Ascentia Sky @ Alexandra View, Austville Residences @ Sengkang, Eight Riversuites @ Whampoa and many more.
Dairy Farm Residences is a mixed development, that has two blocks of five storeys and two blocks of fifteen storeys. It is a luxury residential condominium of 460 units with a childcare centre as well as supermarket and food court at 1st storey and basement.
This project consists of 2 bedder to 4 bedder units, more information as below:
2 Bedder: 624 to 775 Sqft (240 Units)
3 Bedder: 915 to 1313 Sqft (200 Units)
4 Bedder: 1324 to 1475 Sqft (20 Units)
With a direct north-south orientation, most units will have a north-south facing and and a view of Bukit Timah Hill and the Nature Reserve.
Every project is sure to have its pros and cons, of course, this does not exclude Dairy Farm Residences.
Pros of Dairy Farm Residences
Capital appreciation
Convenience of mixed development
Near to nature, surrounded by lush greenery
Efficient layout of unit, good size of individual rooms
Accessible to major expressways
Walking distance to Nature Reserve
No 1 bedder units in the development
Cons of Dairy Farm Residences
lower rental yield
not a 5 minutes walk to nearest MRT
not within 1 km to the primary schools
Capital Appreciation
New project launches are typically at the lowest price during the initial launch, prices gradually increase from there, depending on the developers.
Below is a graph of the capital appreciation of the properties near to Dairy Farm Residences.
Convenience of mixed development
I like the idea of having a supermarket within the project. It will be so convenient, especially at times when I forgot to buy that loaf of bread, only to realise my missing item while I was keeping the groceries. The ease of buying essentials just downstairs without getting out of the condominium will definitely make situations such as circuit breaker more bearable. Although I am pretty sure no one wants such situations to happen ever again.
Near to nature, surrounded by lush greenery
Living in a city with many skyscrapers, there are times when I just want a breather, to rest my eyes and relax. Some stacks in Dairy Farm Residences make this possible, to have a morning coffee overlooking the green, starting the day feeling fresh.
Living near trees can help with anxiety, stress and depression - University of Wisconsin
Efficient layout of unit, good size of individual rooms
All the three types of units have efficient layouts, except that the 2 bedder of 710sqft have a longer walkway from the main entrance.
Below is an illustration of the sizes in m2 for your reference.
No doubt that the size of new project units is getting smaller, the size of the bedrooms/ living room is very comfortable for Dairy Farm Residences. The developer is generous in the sizes of the rooms as the smallest bedroom size for the 2 bedder is 8.8m2. There are new projects where the bedroom sizes of are only up to 8m2 or even lesser, I can feel the ‘crampness’ when I am in the bedroom.
Accessible to major expressways
Dairy Farm Residences is accessible to major expressways, two minutes’ drive to Bukit Timah Expressway (BKE), which can lead to the other expressways. The shortest drive I ever had from Petir Road, was a fifiteen minutes drive to Takashimaya in Orchard Road. Even with public transportation, the duration of a bus ride to town can take only thirty minutes.
Walking distance to Nature Reserve
Dairy Farm is one of the seven areas in Bukit Panjang, the rest are Senja, Saujana, Fajar, Bangkit, Jelebu and its largest sub-zone, the Nature Reserve. Bukit Timah Nature Reserve is part of this last sub-zone, marked out by the greenery as shown on the map below.
You can have a great workout just by foot to and fro the Nature Reserve, where it is also an ideal spot for many joggers. During weekends, you can see many people, especially couples and families at the Nature Reserve for sports activities together.
Dairy Farm Residences is conveniently connected by cycling and pedestrian networks within the Western Adventure Loop and Rail Corridor (Central) of the Park Connector Network, offering a retreat from the hustle and bustle of urban Singapore.
No 1 bedder units in the development
The unit mix in Dairy Farm Residences suggests that the target pool of buyers for this project will be mainly couples and families, meant more for home stay.
The downside of Dairy Farm Residences are further elaborated below.
Lower Rental Yield
The formula for rental yield is as below:
Rental Yield = (monthly rental income*12 months / purchase price)*100%
Currently, based on the recent rental transactions, the rental yield for projects near to Dairy Farm Residences range between 2.5 to 2.9%. The rental yield for the properties in this area has always been on the lower side. This could be contributed to the fact that the area is not very accessible via MRT and the limited tenant pool.
Not a 5 minutes walk to nearest MRT
Although it takes less than thirty minutes to reach downtown via MRT, tenants from downtown will not find Dairy Farm Residences attractive. This is because the nearest MRT station to Dairy Farm Residences, Hillview MRT is about 10 minutes walk away.
Not within 1 km to primary schools
The nearest primary schools, Bukit Panjiang Primary School and CHIJ Our Lady Queen Of Peace, are about 1.4 km to Dairy Farm Residences. This will be an issue for parents who are enrolling their children to Primary School, as the distance to the school does not fulfill the within 1 km requirement.
Best Stacks
If you think Dairy Farm Residences is a project that you will consider, do take note of a few things before making the commitment. Block 10 and 12 are up to 5 storeys high and the view will not be as good.
There are some stacks at Block 12 and two stacks at Block 10 that are facing Petir Road which may not be ideal for some. Although Petir Road is not a major road, there may still be some traffic noise as traffic do gets slightly busier during the evenings when most return from work.
In my opinion, the best stacks for Dairy Farm Residences will be stacks 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8 as these are the nature view stacks.
Something to share
In case, there is something you are not aware of, the maintenance fees for private condominiums is calculated by the share value of per unit. This explains why the maintenance fees are higher for projects with lesser number of units, when you compare two projects with similar facilities but different number of units.
Below is an estimate of the maintenance fees for Dairy Farm Residences:
It is interesting that with 460 units, the maintenance fees are rather on the low side.
In summary, Dairy Farm Residences is a project that is ideal for home stay, away from the bustling city. It can still be an investment property if you are not too particular on the rental yield, or you are considering to keep the property for your own stay in the long run.
If you are keen in visiting Dairy Farm Residences show flat to find out more, do drop me a message. Otherwise, if you are keen to explore your options , call me and we can discuss more.
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About The Author
Serene is the Senior Associate Director of Orange Tee & Tie and has been in the real estate business since 2013. Through the years, she has assisted many clients in their different property needs. Many of these clients eventually become her friends over the years, something that she is very thankful for.
She is a fan of TV serials, Hong Kong, Taiwan, not forgetting local productions too. Singing is her way of releasing stress, especially with her ktv khakis. Whenever she gets to travel, her number one choice is definitely Taiwan, the food and the shopping is awesome! :)
She is also a mother to two lovely girls , elder sister is a bubbly 7 years old girl with the younger one coming to the terrible 2 this year. They are both her pride and joy, the elder one often helps out in the little things such as folding mailers in Serene's real estate business too.
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