Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Updated: Verticas Residensi Preview




Finally it is out. Wing Tai Asia's long overdue launch of Verticas Residensi in Bukit Ceylon. I've just got an invitation for an "Exclusive Private Preview" this weekend. They have set up a very impressive show room at the site.

The price will be starting at RM2.35 million and goes all the way up to RM6.35 million!! There will be a total 423 units, completing in April 2011. This means the smallest unit which is a 2 bedroom will be above RM2 million. I understand the size starts from 1400sf which means RM1600psf! This is certainly setting a record for KL, not just Bukit Ceylon! Wing Tai Asia's maiden project which is the Meritz is now trading at RM1 million for the smallest units which are just over 1000sf.

I am curious, as well as hopeful how this project will perform because it will certainly set a new benchmark. Even the upcoming One Residency in Bukit Bintang has slid down to RM680psf since the peak expectation of RM800psf. Somerset Seri Bukit Ceylon is hovering around RM850psf. One unit at old Menara Bukit Ceylon transacted at RM320psf last year. So, nothing else will come close to Verticas Residensi in Bukit Ceylon.

The invitation card says "Visit us for an enriching living experience".... certainly need to be very rich to consider this project...

Updated 29th August 09: So, I finally got to visit the show room and learnt more about this project.


This is certainly a very interesting project. There will be 4 towers in total. Tower A being launched now has about 170 units which, at over 40 storeys they have 5 units per floor and 4 lifts serving them. This is kinda low density although the entire project with over 600 units sits on under 1 acre of land. Tower B and D will be launched later while tower C has been sold en bloc to Lanson properties which is running a serviced apartment in Ampang Hilir today.


I am particularly attracted to Type A1 2 bedroom units. This is a 1400sf corner unit which at the right floor has a direct view over Bukit Ceylon and the KL Tower. The main attraction of these unit is the extremely airy and bright rendering with windows in every room. The kitchen has a wet and dry part; hence this is very good for own stay and long term stay. Regency Tower blocks any hope of a KLCC view below the 21st floor. Hence, any units above the 21st floor comes with a premium. But the architect, the same one who designed Meritz doesn't like balconies. So despite the views, one is not able to step out and enjoy it.


However, the developer has come up with a 27th floor viewing deck. But enjoying the view in the intimate company of a loved one is totally out with this well thought common facility.


The price? Starting from around RM760psf or slightly over RM1 million for the smallest 2 bedroom units. The cheaper ones faces the back which means you are looking at Times Square, Pudu Raya and the afternoon sun. But I don't like this unit's layout because one of the bedrooms faces Type A1's kitchen and one bathroom has no natural light. So Type A1 is the way to go...


Anyway, the Type A1 nice layout would have won my money but unfortunately, the downpayment at 20% is a bit steep and too much to tie up for 3 years. This is despite other perks such as free interest during construction and 1st year, no maintenance fees in the 1st year and free 2nd car park.... I am also a little concerned about the landslide issues affecting Bukit Ceylon.

27 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Sinleong...this is a very interesting blog. You were mentioned about One Residency...mind to share more about it? What's the fair value to enter this if wanna get one bedroom unit there. Thanks in advance

sinleong said...

one residency has 1 big flaw... no parking. if you have a car, you need to pay rent for the parking on top of your maintenance fees. bidara 38 is also like that. that's why the value never go up.

kvin said...

I visited the verticas yesterday and it is not as expensive as you mentioned actually. A decent 3 bedrooms sized at 1800sqft is around 1.5mil @ 10th floor, so a sqft at verticas cost around RM833.33persqft. It is also partially furnished with kitchen and electrical appliances and it also come with 2 carparks.

I have been told it is currently early bird promotion, where is only given to the first 50 customers, so make your move. The number is running at 20+ yesterday.

Anonymous said...

Sinleong..ya, i got what you mean. But i was told that one residency provide 1 car park free for 5 years. Then RM150pm for the next 5 years. I think total carpark space around 650+ carparks.

Anyway, from you expert view in bk ceylon. If i would like to buy subsales in one residency one bedroom, how much RMpsf i should pay for it? Currently RM738psf=550k is quoted in the market. But the yield for this price may not be attractive. Looking for at least 7% yield (RM3k rental) so my entry price has to be 500k the max. What do you think?

sinleong said...

kvin, you are right. the price starts from RM800 plus psf. Early birds get a 8% discount (which probably costed in...). The RM2.35million starting price was from their preview invitation card which I received. I will try to scan a copy to point out this anomaly. Despite the discounts and their 20:80 purchase plan, the take up rate is still surprisingly slow.

sinleong said...

on one residency... who would want to buy the unit from you 5 years down the road when they have to pay RM150 extra for car park on top of the RM300 to RM400 plus maintenance fees.

although the 1 bedroom unit in one residency is much bigger than the one in somerset, i wouldn't place too higher a premium on the extra space, even if you are just satisfied with a 7% yield. the benchmark for a high end 1 bedroom rental is RM3500 now. don't forget with bigger floor space, your maintenance fees are higher. so it means your returns are diluted by even higher costs and plus car park cost 5 years later...

if you are willing to pay RM500k, i recommend you buy a 640sf 1bedroom unit in somerset.

Anonymous said...

Thanks Sinleong...I got it. I was interested because its location and it is brand new so i was thinking to ride on the pavillion price i.e. in 5 years time the property value around this area should be up up up.

As for car park...many service suite also no car park after i search around like Marc Residence (1 bedroom unit) and Parkview all don't include car park. Don't you think pay RM150 better than paying extra 50k for a carpark? of course, the carpark will go up too but i think 50k it can easily last for 20years along with inflation. Just my thought only :).

Well..agree that somerset should be a better bet as it is proven. Lion group in term of management and maintenance...is a real question mark. Some more need to compete with Park Royal with it is ready next door. Thanks alot.

Anonymous said...

Hi Sin Leong

How about some articles on Menara Antara, Regency Tower and Maple suites in Bukit Ceylon.

With recent auction for units in Menara Antara starting from 400k, what do you think the impact would be on the area.

Thanks

sinleong said...

Regency Tower is not for sale. There is a block owner who keeps all units for rentals only. Same with Maple Suite. I am trying to find an opportunity to view Menara Antara but lately the owner's have rather unrealistic price expectation...

Anonymous said...

Hi Sin Leong.

you did a interesting write up on verticas residensi. St Mary offered a 1 carpark policy, wardrode not provided, no bathroom window, odd-shape floor layout, congested access road, commercial rate for utility & E&O/Lion Group management. your advice; St Mary still a worth buy despite all the above mention matter.???

sinleong said...

haha..u almost made me regret... but there is no 100% perfect property. it's always case of goodd outweighs the bad. and i still think st mary has a much better location, being more central. the 10% down cf verticas' 20% also played a factor.

Anonymous said...

st mary. does you ever take into consideration; that a developement with the take up rate are investor's unit out-number own stay's unit.?? Is this an unhealthy balance for investor in st mary.?? History of Unhealthy balance are visible in a few development in KL city. Is the said development in KLCC are a better location than St Mary location or Bkt Ceylon.??? The matter of location are very subjective.!!! Nothing is consider central.

Anonymous said...

I have regretted buying 1 unit in Verticas. We are facing so much problems now with the prelimineries that I am wondering if we will have more problems later when the project is completed. Almost everything that we requested had to be followed up with many calls . The sale and the Admin staff don't seem to communicate with each other well. The project is marketed as high end Condo but I am surprised with such glaring inefficiencies.

sinleong said...

i'm surprised they have not learnt anything from previous high end projects like the Meritz. what are the sort of problems that you faced?

Anonymous said...

What was the problem with The Meritz? I am facing administrative problems.

Andrew Tan said...

how all above high-end residences compared to Swiss Garden Residences off Jln Pudu?

sinleong said...

location, location, location... swiss garden is in pudu area. you can't exactly pass off pudu area, where drug addicts and lots of shady characters hang out as an expat enclave..

john3288 said...

Hi Sin Leong

I came across you blog whilst looking for information on this project. Just to let you know that the developer is marketing Tower B in Singapore this weekend.

I live in Singapore so I am not very familiar with high end condo in KL. I am interested in a type A3a 2 bedroom unit on the 16th floor of 1,495sq feet selling for RM1.74m or RM1,164 psf after 8% discount. The package on 10:90 financing offered is:

1. No mortgage payment till TOP
2. Interest absorbed until TOP
3. One year free maintenance
4. Free legal fees
5. Free stamp fee
6. Cash rebate of 3% (RM52,200) on VP

I would appreciate you opinion on

1. Is the price offered fair vis-a-vis the current market in KL
2. What is the current rental psf for a prime property in Jalan Ceylon.
3. I understand that the area is prone to landslides. Has this affected the attractiveness of this project?
4. Are there currently better alternative prime investment properties in KL?
5. Finally do you think this is a good medium term investment? (5-8 years).

Thanks

Regards

JT

sinleong said...

hi John,
RM1164psf is an unprecedented price in this part of KL. bear in mind this is not part of KLCC, it's bukit ceylon, another expat enclave but still seen as setting a benchmark when it was launched at RM800psf (units facing City Gardens similar to your type A3a were going for RM700psf).
another point to note is that RM1.74m is only buying you a 2 bedroom unit. currently rentals for HIGH-END 2 bedroom units in the KLCC area is RM8000 to RM10000. The highest rents achieved in Bukit Ceylon (Seri Bukit Ceylon and One Residency) are between RM5000 to RM8000. But it's hard to find tenants in this range.
Verticas is of course a higher class, better concept and better materials. And assuming rent appreciates by about 20% in 5 years time... you might get RM10,000/month. that's just over 6% returns. however, rent has not gone up in the past 2 years in KL. in fact, it has gone down.
this area is not prone to landslides. what happened is, a stupid developer cleared part of bukit ceylon and they didn't beef up the foundation causing landslides. but this happened inside the project area and the project has since been suspended. need to note that this project is almost opposite of verticas.
one of my concerns about verticas is jalan ceylon, the road fronting the project is very narrow - just 2 lanes. and there is no possibility to widen this road. it might not be able to support the high density. but thats a reality in most parts of central KL anyway.
i made a comparison between st mary and verticas in my blog because i was considering the 2. but ended up buying st mary for many personal reasons. there are also some very exciting projects coming up in KL soon i.e. quattro klcc, st johns wood, sixceylon and vipod@klcc. you might like to compare all of these. i think after all considered, if you are still keen in verticas, unit A3a on the 16th floor should still be there for you. we are not seeing any super duper take up for high end properties in kl lately...

john3288 said...

Thanks SL.

The developers of the Pavilion residences were marketing their property in Singapore in early March and I was considering the smaller units in Tower 2 which were selling for about RM1,270 psf upwards. In the end I did not buy because it was too pricey, Pavilion is leasehold and the traffic situation in Bukit Bintang is pretty bad although I think they did managed to sell a few units to Singaporeans.

Regarding Verticas's pricing, because of the 3% rebate on VP, the final price psf will be RM1,129. Also as the developer is bearing the interest cost and there are no repayments to be made until TOP in 2 years time, the present value of the unit is about RM1,572,000 using a discount rate of 3.7% (present borrowing rate). This will bring the psf to about RM1,051.

I am aware that Verticas location may not be as prime as Pavilion or KLCC. My concern is whether the the asking price reflect the current market value of a comparable unit in Jalan Ceylon (albeit there will be premium as Verticas is new) and vis-a-vis similar condos under development in the Golden Triange. What is your take on this?

Regarding the upcomming projects, do you know what kind of pricing Sixceylon will be launch at?

On St Mary's what is the present asking price from the developer? Also are there any good units still available which maybe I should consider?

Thanks

JT

sinleong said...

John,
frankly, there is no comparable unit in bukit ceylon. all others are quite old. as i said, verticas is actually setting a new benchmark. even in the case of the upcoming launches here i.e. suasana and sixceylon, i understand that the smaller units will be priced around RM1000psf and larger units will be lower psf. this is based on bolton's announcement that their price is starting from RM635k and the smallest unit will be about 600sf.
pavilion residences is leasehold but the vipod@klcc coming up across the road is expected to be freehold. watch out for this one. st mary's going about RM1200psf now which in my opinion is quite ok for the location BUT you really need to look at the project closer as not everyone will appreciate the layout, location and concept. they also offer a 10:90 scheme now but what surprises me is that there are hardly any new sales since the rush at last year's launch. i only bought it for personal reasons cos my office is right next door.

Andrew Tan said...

I only own a corner unit@920psf in Swiss Garden, close proximity with Verticas.

sinleong said...

it will be interesting to see how swiss garden and verticas perform and at what rentals. seri bukit ceylon is very successful due to the association with ascott. obviously swiss garden and verticas is going on the same direction - swiss garden hotel and verticas is with lanson place. however, all of you who invested in swiss, verticas and even st mary's are entering at a more than double the starting price of seri bukit ceylon. i find it quite a struggle to get tenants paying premium rental for seri bukit ceylon at RM5psf. and verticas need to be around RM6.50psf in order to achieve 6% yield. can do?

john3288 said...

When was Seri Bukit Ceylon completed? Would you classify Seri Bukit Ceylon 4 star and Verticas as a 5 star development?

The asking selling price for apartments in Seri Bukit Ceylon is currently between RM800psf to RM900psf depending on the unit size. This is a premium of about 40% to 45% for a similar sized unit in Verticas. Although you say that there is nothing at this moment that is comparable to Verticas in that area, do you think that this premium is justified and fair considering that both are in the Bukit Ceylon area, the age and the difference in quality of the 2 developments.

sinleong said...

John,
If Ser Bukit Ceylon is 4 star, Verticas would be 5 star. So, it may seem the price is justified in terms of quality in the location but in my opinion, in terms of rental yield, it is not.

SL

Anonymous said...

Sin Leong,
I noticed that rental in bukit ceylon area is creeping downwards the past few months. In fact, you said in 2010"rent has not gone up in the past 2 years in KL. in fact, it has gone down."
Why is that so? Is it because One Residency, being the latest kid on the block is attracting the tenants and leaving Bidara and Somerset rental to decline....
Will the implementation of MRT bring in more expatriates. Your thoughts?

sinleong said...

Oversupply... MRT wont make much difference I think...