Spending a lot of money does not necessarily get you everything you need these days, unless when it comes to purchasing a private apartment.
New homes that cost as much as $2,600 psf can offer designer furnishings and put you in a coveted district, but these homes may no longer have large common spaces or even tennis courts which are traditionally associated with a private address.
In the core central region (CCR), home buyers would not find any tennis courts in projects such as Sophia Residence, Illuminaire on Devonshire and Marina Bay Suites.
Further away from town, where home seekers have paid about $1,514 psf at Suites@Guillemard or $1,345 psf at Alexis, there is very little space around the buildings, and gyms and swimming pools are located on the rooftops. Tennis courts are also not found in these developments.
Many projects cannot offer a full range of facilities or large landscaped grounds because their sites are not big enough. An average tennis court measures 78 ft by 36 ft, taking up 2,808 sq ft. According to Lim Yew Soon, managing director of EL Development, a developer could try to tuck a tennis court into a small site, but it could become a ‘disamenity’ to nearby residents.
Developers are still careful to keep features which most home seekers cannot seem to do without, such as gyms and swimming pools. “The priority is given to swimming pools,” said Tai Lee Siang, director of DP Architects. “But where possible, it is likely that developers will still want to incorporate tennis courts.”
As it becomes more difficult to find projects offering complete facilities and big ground spaces, existing developments with these features will stand out.