Gilstead Court takes fourth stab at en bloc sale with S$198 million reserve price
Firm bidding for nearby state sites may support developer interest, while the freehold tenure and absence of land betterment charge could improve redevelopment cost certainty.
Gilstead Court launched its fourth en bloc attempt at S$198 million, or S$1,874 psf ppr, with redevelopment potential for up to 98 apartments.
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[SINGAPORE] Owners of Gilstead Court are making another attempt at an en bloc sale, offering the freehold site in the Novena area at a reserve price of S$198 million.
The price tag reflects a rate of about S$1,874 per square foot per plot ratio (psf ppr). If a 7 per cent bonus balcony plot ratio is factored in, the land rate translates to S$1,751 psf ppr, said marketing agent JLL on Monday (Aug 31).
Owners stand to receive about S$4 million for their properties.
The development comprises 48 apartments across three four-storey blocks, with 24 units measuring 129 square metres (sq m) and the remaining units measuring 136 sq m. Under the 2025 Master Plan, the 7,012-sq m site is zoned residential with a gross plot ratio of 1.4.
It can accommodate a five-storey boutique development of up to 98 apartments of 100 sq m each, subject to approval from the Urban Redevelopment Authority.
Nicholas Ng, head of land and collective sales at JLL, said: “With a high development baseline, no land betterment charge is payable even with the additional bonus gross floor area (GFA). This insulates the project from half-yearly land betterment charge rate revisions, with the next adjustment expected on Sep 1.”
Owners of Gilstead Court first attempted an en bloc sale in 2008, but failed to secure the mandatory 80 per cent consent.
In 2013, Tuan Sing agreed to acquire the development en bloc for about S$150 million.
However, the deal fell through after dissenting minority owners successfully challenged the sale. The Court of Appeal found that provisions requiring non-consenting owners to bear substantial legal and administrative costs were inconsistent with the requirement that the sale be conducted in good faith.
A third en bloc attempt was launched in June 2018, this time at a higher reserve price of S$168 million, or S$1,590 psf ppr.
The development was relaunched for sale in 2019 at a reduced reserve price of S$153 million, or S$1,448 psf ppr, after factoring in the bonus GFA for balconies, amid a series of property cooling measures introduced a year earlier.
Located in prime District 11, Gilstead Court is close to Novena MRT station, and retail and dining options.
It is also near several schools, including St Joseph’s Institution (Junior), Anglo-Chinese School (Primary) and Singapore Chinese Girls’ Primary School.
Nearby, recent state land tenders have attracted firm interest from developers.
In November 2025, a plum Newton site garnered eight bids; it was topped by HH Investment at S$566.3 million, or S$1,820 psf ppr.
In June this year, a tie-up between City Developments Ltd and Hong Realty trumped three other bidders with a S$542.4 million, or S$1,865 psf ppr, offer for a Peck Hay plot.
Within the same district, Sustained Land this month acquired a sprawling site in Thomson Lane for S$578 million, with plans for a large residential development. A land betterment charge payable for the redevelopment, estimated at S$436 million, would take the total land cost to more than S$1 billion, or close to S$1,293 psf ppr.
The tender for Gilstead Court closes on Oct 13.