The Fennel at Sentul

Quite timely after my rant about the lack of architectural value in Bukit Ceylon, we now wander off to Sentul where a lot of exciting and artistic stuffs are happening. Quite literally...

Sentul used to be a rough area. Back as far as 2000, developer YTL came in and promised to reinvent the place into Sentul West and Sentul East, beginning with the launch of The Maple and Tamarind. I remember I went for the launch of the Tamarind when I could get a 3-bedroom unit for a cool RM200k... but I did not. Today this has appreciated 3 times over to RM600k....

picture above: The Tamarind (courtesy of ytlcommunity.com)

Then YTL gated the park which was once Malayan Railway land and invited KLPAC (the KL Performance Arts Center) to set up shop, the whole place suddenly has life and meaning. Sentul is slowly transforming, although very slowly... it is very exciting to see what it is turning out to be. There are now new commercial buildings coming up which truly does not identify with the typical Malaysian landscape but it's truly refreshing...

pictures above: D7 (courtesy of skyscrapercity.com)

My next foray into Sentul was an attempt to purchase an apartment at Mutiara Sentul, a couple of years back which ended up in disaster. But I still think Sentul is quite a promising area. Connectivity wise, it's  in the middle between the KL city center and the northern and eastern parts of the city with expressways into PJ and Mont Kiara. We also have the existing LRT stations, monorail and also the KTM Komuter right in the heart of Sentul. The only problem is, the place is still considered rough, especially at night when it gets relatively quiet unlike vibrant Bangsar and Bukit Bintang and this needs to change for Sentul to be successful. 

Recently we see a few bill boards advertising YTL's latest project, The Fennel which is really, a twin of the Capers. They are now currently rising in construction in the KL skyline looking like some alien robots just landed.

picture above courtesy of 37 Exposures @ forum.lowyat.net

So that brought me to their showroom which unfortunately turned out to be disappointing. Not only because the 1st 2 of 4 blocks launched were fully sold out within 2 days of their launch back in August, the sales girl in attendance was totally unhelpful. Every question I asked her she told me to refer to their website which made me wonder what is the expensive show room and her employment for. YTL should just advertise their website and forget about having a showroom at all. Finally, after hearing me grunt a lot, she decided to answer my questions which I just found out cannot be obtained from even their website...

This is not only a freehold property, it is also a residential title which is so rare these days. The price was about RM600psf and there was only a 3-4% hike between the 1st and 2nd launch. That means, the price range was somewhere between RM700k and RM900k which is rather interesting considering they are relatively large and nicely laid out 2 to 3 bedroom units from 1100sf to 1500sf. 

There are typically 3 types of layout - Type A1 and B1 are 3 bedroom units. Type C4 is a spacious 2-bedroom unit.

The type A1 below has the smallest size starting from 1186sf.

Type B1 below is the largest at 1554sf. However, for a 3-bedroom unit, I find the A1 much better although the B1 has an additional maid room. All 3 bedrooms in the A1 are en-suite. 

The sole 2-bedroom unit is pretty spacious at 1,200sf. But the 2nd bedroom is not en-suite as well.

So, that leaves the A1 as the best choice unless you are thinking of having a maid.

The best thing I like about the units are they are designed with "Asian-style" kitchen which allows for proper cooking unlike those open style kitchen some developers are so fond of these days. All in, the freehold title, the residential title, the friendly living layout, connectivity of public transportation and proximity to KL and PJ city centers make this The Fennel a good grab for our collection in my opinion... Not forgetting that with this entry price, owners can also afford to let out very competitively from RM3,500 onwards for a decent 6% yield. For 3-bedroom units of this status, that will be very attractive to tenants.