Property investors, local and foreign, are once again looking at shophouses with renewed interest, in particular freehold conservation shophouses.
Investors’ preferred units are either freehold or 999-years leasehold, and can be fully leased. Some of the more popular units are in the Kreta Ayer Conservation Area of the Chinatown Historic District. Two 3-storey freehold conservation shophouses on 22 and 23 Mosque Street are looking for interested buyers and JLL reports the single land lot to have a gross floor area of around 7,800 sq ft with an indicative price of $23 million.
Centrally located, with the Chinatown and Telok Ayer MRT stations nearby, and a variety of boutique hotels and modern upscale eateries in the vicinity, these shophouses are primed for development and rental. Investors who buy into the shophouses here can no doubt enjoy reaping the fruits of their investments quickly.
Just a short walk away, CBRE is launching 3 adjoining shophouses at 77 to 80 Amoy Street for tender with an estimated pricing of $64.3 million which comes up to approximately $2,700 psf for the 3-storey units with attics. Up to row at 44, 45, 46 and 49 Amoy Street, OCBC has also put up four 999-year leasehold, 2-storey shophouses with attics for tender, marketed by Cushman and Wakefield. With this flurry or activity in the shophouse front, owners will do well to consider cashing out while the interests are high.
