A year on since Malaysian Prime Minister announced that he would suspend the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail Project, did it derail property prices in Jurong?
No successful en-bloc tenders – Those launched for en-blocs were the apartments next to the Jurong Lake Gardens – Parkview Mansions, Lakeside Towers and Lakeside Apartments while Ivory Heights did not manage to garner sufficient votes to launch.
Private Property Prices – Looking at prices in 2018 and year-to-date 2019, prices have remained relatively stable across the board. Owners did not bene Ivory Heights owners who were previously withheld from selling due to the en-bloc process have started selling again and around 13 units have been sold since April 2018.
Will the HSR be a game changer if Malaysia decides to proceed with it in the future? Yes it potentially is a game changer. With the Government’s plan to create 100,000 jobs in Jurong Lake District, the HSR allows Singapore to tap on a larger pool of workforce from Johor Bahru to Kuala Lumpur within a 90-minute travel.
Singapore has already acquired two large plots of land occupied by Jurong Country Club and Raffles Country Club. These plots of land will likely still be reserved for the HSR unless permanently called off by Malaysia, then they can be used for future mixed-used developments such as residences, offices and malls.
Currently the area around Jurong East MRT is already vibrant with office towers and shopping malls. The Government will also be rolling out the Jurong Region Line spanning 24 kilometres across 24 stations to be completed by 2028. Jurong Lake Gardens, the second National Garden, was opened to much fanfare earlier this year too. The land near Chinese Garden MRT is slated for future large-scale tourist attractions. For sure, the outlook for Jurong is bright but it will take time before its full potential is appreciated.
