RENOWNED Singapore-born pianist Seow Yit Kin is selling his bungalow along Chancery Lane for S$21.888 million.
Mr Seow, who is now in his early 60s, grew up in the single-storey detached house.
The price works out to S$1,227 per square foot (psf) based on the freehold land area of 17,844 sq ft. The District 11 property is in the Bukit Tunggal Good Class Bungalow (GCB) Area.
Bungalow agents generally described the psf price as reflecting the current market value for a GCB redevelopment site in the locale. Two nearby properties sold in May 2013 and December 2014 went for S$28.5 million or S$1,378 psf and S$25.39 million or S$1,061 psf respectively. Both were also sold with old houses on-site, according to Samuel Eyo, managing director of Singapore Christie's International Real Estate (Residential).
Mr Eyo highlighted that the property in the latest deal is on a site which has a wide road frontage and quite a regular shape, and is near good schools like Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road), Singapore Chinese Girls' School and St Joseph's Institution. "The location is also easily accessible via Whitley, Dunearn and Thomson roads."
Born in 1955, Mr Seow was a former Anglo-Chinese School student. His talents were noticed when he was five and a half, and when he was 12, he was personally invited by the late Yehudi Menuhin to join his famous school in England.
Mr Seow went on to study at the Royal College of Music in London. and won prizes at the BBC Piano Competition in 1974 and at the Tel Aviv Piano Competition in Israel in 1977, followed by concert engagements in America, Europe and Asia.
The party buying the bungalow is understood to be related to Ng Joo Soon, the founder of the Dovechem group.
Another recent transaction in a GCB Area was in Oriole Crescent; at S$14 million, the price works out to S$1,645 psf on its land area of 8,511 sq ft.
Year to date, nine deals totalling S$204 million have been inked in GCB Areas based on caveats information. The tally for the whole of last year was 37 deals amounting to S$788.53 million.
Source: SRX (03 May 2017)