The historic agreement between Singapore and Malaysia to settle the long-standing issue on the railway land that runs through the two countries will bring about real estate development opportunities in Singapore and Iskandar Malaysia, said a DTZ Research report.
Careful land allocation has always been a vital part of property planning and development in Singapore, considering its limited land size. Thus, reversion of the railway land will allow authorities to amalgamate the track land with nearby sites and lead to more optimal use of the land.
The Tanjong Pagar railway station site is one of the returned railway lands in Singapore that has the greatest redevelopment potential, considering its size and the government’s plans for the district. The area is coming alive with newly completed and planned hotels, apartments and offices. It is also seeing higher prices and rents, as well as greater interest from investors.
“The Spottiswoode area just north of the railway station may be totally rejuvenated, as the old existing residential developments are prime candidates for redevelopment,” said Ms. Chua Chor Hoon, head of Southeast Asia Research at DTZ.
One area that will likely see early development is Bukit Panjang, where a MRT station will be ready by 2015, providing some impetus to develop the vacant land around the area.
According to DTZ Research, the warmer bilateral relations and cheaper and smoother transport system resulting from the agreement will also boost all real estate sectors in Iskandar Malaysia.
In the office sector, there could be a shift of low-end commercial service activities from Singapore into the Johor Bahru CBD to benefit from cost arbitration. More logistics and industrial investments can also be expected from Singapore.
In the retail aspect, the agreement will mainly benefit prime shopping centres located in the city centre and destination shopping developments linked with main tourism attractions, including Johor Premium Outlet and Legoland.