Winner of the Pritzker Architecture Prize 2008 and Wolf Prize in Arts 2005, Le Nouvel Ardmore's 13,875 sq ft penthouse was sold for an absolutely record price of $51M | S$3,676 psf, in April this year. This is a record absolute price quantum for a penthouse in Singapore.
Le Nouvel Ardmore by Wing Tai is a 33-storey single-tower luxurious freehold condominium along Ardmore Road, Singapore. It received Temporary Occupation Permit a year ago.
THE buyer of the S$51 million at Le Nouvel Ardmore penthouse is believed to be Sun Tongyu, one of the founders of Alibaba. He was the former president of Alibaba Group's consumer-focused e-commerce site Taobao.
The penthouse unit sits on the top two levels of the 33-storey freehold project. Included in the 13,875 sq ft floor space is a roof terrace of 5,000 sq ft. Based on the brochure, there are five bedrooms, a family area and a study area on the lower deck, level 32. A private pool, private foyers, roof terrace, a gym and an entertainment area are on the upper deck, level 33.
On the assumption that the roof terrace is assigned a per square foot value equivalent to one-third that of the indoor area, the effective price is around S$5,000 psf.
Penthouses larger than 13,000 sq ft are rare in Singapore.
Wing Tai has moved only four units in the 43-unit freehold condo, designed by Jean Nouvel, who clinched the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2008.
If this is anything to go by, it is a sure sign that the Singapore property market is biding time. Buyers are waiting on the sidelines and some may decide to take the plunge when conditions are right.