Urban innovators recognised at PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore) 2017

Singapore's most respected and most recognised real estate awards system is independently judged by an panel of industry experts.

- GuocoLand wins 7 awards including the highest honour for Best Developer (Singapore)

- Oxley Holdings Limited's Ching Chiat Kwong named Real Estate Personality of the Year

SINGAPORE - 7 November 2017: The PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore) 2017, presented by Kohler and supported by the country's No. 1 property site PropertyGuru.com.sg, recognised the country's best developers and real estate projects and design on Tuesday night (7 November) during an exclusive gala dinner held at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre at Marina Bay Sands.

GuocoLand, developer of the acclaimed integrated development Tanjong Pagar Centre, claimed some of the evening's biggest awards, including Best Developer (Singapore), and was hailed as an exemplary urban innovator.

"One of the Singapore's leading developers, GuocoLand believes that every project should possess ‘poetic ambience' and offer a lifestyle that's comfortable and usable. GuocoLand achieves its goal by incorporating well-designed public spaces, sustainable and green amenities, and choosing the most premium locations for the benefit of consumers.

"The company is a leader in urbanisation with high-profile projects such as Tanjong Pagar Centre, rejuvenating a neighbourhood in the process," said the independent judging panel. The said project, which was hailed as the Best Green Development, also features Wallich Residence, winner of the Best Luxury Condo Development gong.

"We're grateful for this prestigious award for GuocoLand. We always think about the end-user and how we can build he best project for them, so this honour means a lot," the company said upon accepting the trophy.

Best Boutique Developer went to Lian Beng Group Ltd, which also received special awards in sustainable development and corporate social responsibility, along with honours for some of its joint venture projects. A young company, Lian Beng has already earned Green Mark certifications for its strict adherence to positive construction practices.

Other big winners of the year included mixed-use development Stars of Kovan by Property Enterprises Development (S) Pte Ltd, hailed as "glamourous" by the judges; and Best Condo Development (Singapore) awardee High Park Residences by Fernvale Development Pte Ltd, a new project that focuses on affordability and practically catering to young families.

Now in its seventh year, the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore) competition paints a positive image of Singaporean real estate as it continues to lead the ASEAN region in green building, sustainable design, and technological and architectural innovation.

More than 20 current developments from nearly 20 companies and joint ventures were rewarded during the ceremony that was attended by over 300 guests.

"The PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards definitely raises the bar for real estate excellence and it's recognised for being ethical, fair, and independently judged by a panel of experts in the industry, which solidifies its credibility," said Hari V. Krishnan, CEO of PropertyGuru Group, who delivered the evening's opening remarks.

"Consumers, or as we like to call them homebuyers, look to the Awards to find the best developers, and ultimately this helps them in making informed property decisions."

The independent judging panel was again led by renowned architect Minkqee Tan, chief designer at MINKEE Architects Pte Ltd, said it was no surprise that Singapore remains a real estate leader in the region.

"Singapore is the only triple-A economy in the region and one of such rare ones in the world. It has an Independent and stable local currency, low interest rates, and an excellent banking system that supports property investment. That, combined with the high standards in public housing, ensuring that both the public and private realms, are conceptualised and realised in fashions that are well connected, and undeniably relevant to the Singapore economy and population," Tan said.

He added that "these high standards has no doubt created a flow-on effect on the private sector that is - more often than not - obliged to keep up with these same standards."

Tan's panel of judges included respected industry experts: Alexander Karolik Shlaen (CEO, Panache Management); Robert Greg Shand (Greg Shand Architects); Lim Wenhui (Partner, SPARK Architects); Clement Ong (Head of Strategic Planning and Investment, Banyan Tree Group); Benedict Lim (Managing Director, Real Estate Transaction, Ernst & Young Corporate Finance Pte Ltd); and Natalie Breen (Real Estate Legal Leader & Partner, PwC Legal International Pte Ltd).

As always, the judging process was strictly supervised by BDO, the world's fifth largest network of accounting and auditing firm, including actual site inspections and intensive panel deliberations.

The only award not judged by the panel was the 2017 Singapore Real Estate Personality of the Year award, which was selected by the editors of PropertyGuru Property Report magazine. The coveted award went to multiple-winner Oxley Holdings Limited's executive chairman and CEO, Ching Chiat Kwong, who has been known to take risks as a real estate leader.

"This award shows the appreciation for the Oxley Holdings team. With perseverance and hard work, anything is possible, even in real estate," said Ching.

Main winners will now advance to the seventh annual PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards Grand Final competition (8 November), where delegates and regional nominees from around Asia will gather to honour the best in Asia's real estate sector. The grand finale follows the second day of the PropertyGuru Asia Real Estate Summit, a two-day, C-level conference for proptech, smart cities, evolving markets, and China's Belt and Road initiative.

The seventh annual PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore) 2017 was supported by title sponsor Kohler; co-sponsors Regus, Mitsubishi Electric, and POSCO; official portal partner PropertyGuru.com.sg, Singapore's No. 1 property site; media partners Southeast Asia GLOBE, Oxford Business Group, Realestate.com.kh, Indesign Media Asia Pacific, and PropertyGuru Property Report, Asia's leading luxury real estate, architecture and design publication; supporting association European Chamber of Commerce Singapore; and official supervisor BDO, the world's fifth largest auditing and accountancy firm led by executive director Roger Loo and manager Jan Weidlich. 

FULL LIST OF WINNERS & HIGHLY COMMENDED

PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore) 2017 

DEVELOPER AWARDS

Best Developer

WINNER: GuocoLand

Best Boutique Developer

WINNER: Lian Beng Group Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Pollux Properties Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: TEE Land Limited

DEVELOPMENT AWARDS

Best Luxury Condo Development

WINNER: Wallich Residence by GuocoLand

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Spottiswoode Suites by Spottiswoode Development Pte Ltd (a JV between Lian Beng Group Ltd and Centurion Properties Pte Ltd)

Best Private Condo Development

WINNER: High Park Residences by Fernvale Development Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Parc Riviera by EL Development (West Coast) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Queens Peak by HY Realty (Dundee) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Stars of Kovan by Property Enterprises Development (S) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Symphony Suites by EL Development (Yishun) Pte Ltd

Best Executive Condo Development

WINNER: The Visionaire by QingJian Realty (Sembawang) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: iNz Residence by QingJian Realty (Choa Chu Kang) Pte Ltd

Best Landed Development

WINNER: Belgravia Villas by Fairview Developments Pte Ltd (a unit of Tong Eng Group)

Best Retail Development 

WINNER: Tanjong Pagar Center (Retail) by GuocoLand

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Stars of Kovan by Property Enterprises Development (S) Pte Ltd

Best Office Development

WINNER: Guoco Tower by GuocoLand

Best Hotel Development

WINNER: Sofitel Singapore City Centre by GuocoLand

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Novotel Singapore on Stevens, Mercure Singapore on Stevens by Oxley Holdings Limited

Best Industrial Development

WINNER: T-Space by Goldprime Land Pte Ltd (a JV between Lian Beng Group Ltd and Oxley Holdings Limited)

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Mandai Foodlink by Wealth Property Pte Ltd (a JV between Lian Beng Group Ltd and The Legacy Industrial Pte Ltd)

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Solaris @ Kallang 164 by Soilbuild Group

Best Mixed Use Development

WINNER: Tanjong Pagar Centre by GuocoLand

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Le Quest by QingJian Realty (BBR) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Paya Lebar Quarter by Lendlease

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Stars of Kovan by Property Enterprises Development (S) Pte Ltd

DESIGN CATEGORIES

Best Luxury Condo Architectural Design

WINNER: Spottiswoode Suites by Spottiswoode Development Pte Ltd (a JV between Lian Beng Group Ltd and Centurion Properties Pte Ltd)

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Wallich Residence by GuocoLand

Best Private Condo Architectural Design

WINNER: Stars of Kovan by Property Enterprises Development (S) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Kingsford Waterbay by Kingsford Property Development Pte. Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Parc Riviera by EL Development (West Coast) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Symphony Suites by EL Development (Yishun) Pte Ltd

Best Condo Interior Design

WINNER: Stars of Kovan by Property Enterprises Development (S) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Le Quest by QingJian Realty (BBR) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Kingsford Waterbay by Kingsford Property Development Pte. Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Parc Riviera by EL Development (West Coast) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Wallich Residence by GuocoLand

Best Retail Architectural Design

WINNER: Stars of Kovan by Property Enterprises Development (S) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Tanjong Pagar Centre (Retail) by GuocoLand

Best Office Architectural Design

WINNER: Oxley Tower by Oxley Holdings Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Guoco Tower by GuocoLand

Best Hotel Architectural Design

WINNER: Novotel Singapore on Stevens, Mercure Singapore on Stevens by Oxley Holdings Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Sofitel Singapore City Centre by GuocoLand

Best Condo Landscape Architectural Design

WINNER: High Park Residences by Fernvale Development Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Kingsford Waterbay by Kingsford Property Development Pte. Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Parc Riviera by EL Development (West Coast) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Symphony Suites by EL Development (Yishun) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Visionaire by QingJian Realty (Sembawang) Pte Ltd

Best Commercial Landscape Architectural Design

WINNER: Paya Lebar Quarter by Lendlease

HIGHLY COMMENDED: T-Space by Goldprime Land Pte Ltd (a JV between Lian Beng Group Ltd and Oxley Holdings Limited)

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Tanjong Pagar Centre (Retail) by GuocoLand

SPECIAL AWARDS CATEGORIES

Special Recognition in CSR

WINNER: Lian Beng Group Ltd

WINNER: Oxley Holdings Limited

Special Recognition in Sustainable Development

WINNER: EL Development Pte Ltd

WINNER: Lian Beng Group Ltd

Best Green Development

WINNER: Tanjong Pagar Centre by GuocoLand

HIGHLY COMMENDED: iNz Residence by QingJian Realty (Choa Chu Kang) Pte Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Paya Lebar Quarter by Lendlease

Best Universal Design Development

WINNER: Paya Lebar Quarter by Lendlease

HIGHLY COMMENDED: iNz Residence by QingJian Realty (Choa Chu Kang) Pte Ltd

BEST OF SINGAPORE CATEGORIES

Best Condo Development (Singapore)

WINNER: High Park Residences by Fernvale Development Pte Ltd

Best Housing Development (Singapore)

WINNER: Belgravia Villas by Fairview Developments Pte Ltd (a unit of Tong Eng Group)

PUBLISHER'S CHOICE

Real Estate Personality of the Year

WINNER: Ching Chiat Kwong, Executive Chairman and CEO, Oxley Holdings Limited

For more information about the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore), email info@asiapropertyawards.com or visit: AsiaPropertyAwards.com/singapore/

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About PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore):

Returning for a seventh year on 7 November 2017 at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre, the annual PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore) 2017 is part of the regional Asia Property Awards programme established in 2005. With a professionally run awards system supervised by BDO, the world's fifth largest auditing and accountancy firm, the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards (Singapore) is the most prestigious real estate event in the Lion State, with the top and emerging names in real estate celebrating the best developers, projects and design.

About PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards:

The PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards, the region's biggest and most prestigious real estate awards series, is recognised as the ultimate hallmark of industry excellence in the Asian property sector. Boasting an independent panel of industry experts and trusted supervisors, the Awards has an unparalleled reputation for being credible, fair and transparent.

Established in Thailand in 2005 to ‘recognise the region's finest in real estate', the Awards acknowledge, reward and celebrate the extraordinary achievements of developers and developments at a domestic and regional level. The Awards is a milestone event in the real estate industry calendar and is attended by key decision makers as well as esteemed trade and consumer media. Annually, the Awards covers 17 key markets in the Asian continent via a series of domestic gala ceremonies, hosting up to 600 senior industry figures, to recognise excellence within each Asian market, culminating in a Grand Final at the end of the year.

In 2017, the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards celebrates its 12th anniversary, and features nine domestic gala ceremonies in eight countries: Cambodia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Singapore. The Awards series has also been expanded this year to include categories for Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Mongolia, Laos, India, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and South Korea.        

Domestic winners from these 17 markets will then advance to the final round and compete for regional awards. The regional winners will be announced on the night of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards Grand Final to be held in Singapore on 8 November 2017.

For more information, please visit AsiaPropertyAwards.com 

About PropertyGuru Group:

PropertyGuru Group is Asia's foremost online property company. Voted by consumers in 2016 as ‘Asia's Most Influential Brand for Online Property Search', PropertyGuru helps over 16 million people find their dream home - every month.

Headquartered in Singapore, PropertyGuru.com.sg was launched in 2007 by two entrepreneurs. They had a vision to simplify the property search process and help renters, buyers, sellers and investors make confident property decisions - faster. 

Today, it has grown from being a media company to a high-growth technology company. Beyond operating a suite of No.1 property portals and award-winning mobile apps, the Group also manages a host of industry-leading property offerings such as publications, events, awards and a project marketing technology platform - across eight countries in Asia.      

For more information, please visit www.propertyguru.com