Sembawang Drive EC GLS Tender Launch in May 2025: Commentary by ERA

SINGAPORE, 29 May 2025 – HDB has just launched the tender for the Executive Condominium (EC) land parcel at Sembawang Road. The site can potentially yield an estimated 265 units.

The tender for sale will close at 12 noon on 11 September 2025.

Marcus Chu, Chief Executive Officer, ERA Singapore said: “The most recent EC development in the north region, North Gaia, has recently sold out all of its units earlier in 2025. Likewise, for the rest of the EC market, stock remains low with only a few available units at Novo Place up for grabs. The introduction of a new EC development in Sembawang could plug a gap in the demand for ECs, particularly in the north region.”

“Location wise, the site is located at the junction of Sembawang Road and Yishun Ave 7, adjacent to Sembawang Springs landed estate. This gives the location a unique blend of exclusivity and quietness, while also being within reach of amenities in the neighbouring Chong Pang HDB estate.”

“The site is a 10-minute’s walk from Canberra MRT station on the North-South Line, and also falls within the 1km priority enrolment distance from Ahmad Ibrahim Primary School and Yishun Primary School, with some units potentially within the 1km range of Xishan Primary School. These are locational attributes that appeal to potential HDB upgraders.”

“ECs have consistently been a popular choice among HDB upgraders. This is due to their prices being more accessible when compared to private condos. Last year, new homes sized between 900 to 1,000 sqft in the OCR saw a 42% difference in median prices between ECs ($1.48M) and private condos ($2.10M). This gap highlights the value proposition of ECs, particularly for HDB upgraders who meet the income ceiling of $16K. Hence, buyers, particularly HDB upgraders, see value in ECs.”

“Demand for this future EC development will come primarily from HDB upgraders in Yishun and Sembawang, although we could see interest from upgraders coming from neighbouring Woodlands as well, a town that has seen a shortage of EC developments in recent years.”

Between 2026-2029 itself, we will see about 3,500 HDB flats fulfil their Minimum Occupation Period in Yishun and Sembawang. This should create a healthy supply of potential upgraders for the launch of the future project.”

“Sembawang has seen six new EC launches in the last decade, with the last being Provence Residences in 2021. This highlights a strong demand for ECs in Sembawang, being home to growing estates such as Canberra. Moreover, North Gaia, an EC in the neighbouring town of Yishun has recently sold out all its units. This further opens the potential demand for this EC project to upgraders in not only Sembawang, but Yishun as well.”

“The continued strong demand for new ECs has resulted in developers increasingly aggressive bidding strategy. Between 2015 and 2024, the average EC land costs have risen 164%, from $287 psf ppr to $733 psf ppr. As such, we could see new benchmark prices for ECs. Prices will be a far cry from Provence Residences, the last EC sold in Woodlands which was tendered for a land cost of $566 psf ppr in 2019.”

“This will be the third EC site in the year, following EC GLS sites in Woodlands and Bukit Panjang (Senja). These two sites share similar attributes to the Sembawang EC site, being located in burgeoning estates in the OCR. As a result, we expect demand to be moderated as developers will have their attention split and will be considering between the two respective sites.”

“Additionally, the date of the tender closing for the Sembawang Road EC GLS site (11 September 2025) falls on the same date as the closing for the tender of the mixed-use site at Chencharu Close, which saw its closing date moved to the same date. This batch closing could moderate developers’ interest, as both are extremely attractive potential developments within a similar location in the North region

Therefore, developers could be strategic in their bidding, depending on whether their interests are skewed towards the smaller-sized and lower-risk EC development, or the first private housing site in a new precinct with a commercial component.”

For media enquiries, please contact:

Ning Peh, Senior Marketing Communications Manager, ERA Singapore

Email: [email protected]

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