If you've been watching the East Coast corridor and wondering whether prices there have peaked, a recent sub-sale at Tembusu Grand just gave you your answer. And it's not the answer the fence-sitters were hoping for.
A sub-sale at Tembusu Grand in District 15 has just set a new project record at $2,881 psf. To put that in context, when this project launched back in April 2023, the average price was $2,465 psf. That's a jump of roughly $416 psf, or close to 17% above the launch average, and the project hasn't even gotten its Certificate of Statutory Completion yet.
This is a sub-sale, meaning an early buyer is selling before the project is fully completed. What makes this significant isn't just the headline number. It's that this is happening with only five units left unsold across the entire development. More than 95% of the project is sold. Supply is essentially gone, and prices are still climbing.
This isn't happening in a vacuum either. The broader RCR (Rest of Central Region) market has been pricing new launches in the $2,300 to $2,700 psf range. A sub-sale hitting $2,881 psf puts Tembusu Grand firmly at the top of that band, and it signals that well-located, well-bought units in District 15 are holding their value with room to spare.
In my view, this transaction tells you three things at once. First, the Katong and East Coast belt is not softening. If anything, the demand from families who want to be near good schools, near the coast, and near the lifestyle cluster along East Coast Road continues to be structural, not cyclical. That doesn't go away when interest rates fluctuate.
What I'm seeing on the ground is that buyers who purchased well at launch are sitting on meaningful paper gains, and some are now monetising that. But here's the thing most people miss: the fact that sub-sale volume in this project is still low despite these gains tells you that most early buyers are holding. They don't need to sell. That's a very different market psychology from the speculative flipping you saw in the 2007 to 2012 cycle. Today's buyers are more deliberate, more financially stable, and more patient.
In 25 years I've watched this pattern before. When a project is nearly sold out, when early buyers are posting record sub-sale prices, and when the surrounding area still has limited new supply coming, that's usually not the ceiling. That's the new floor setting itself.
If you're an HDB upgrader eyeing the RCR: This record psf should be a real signal about timing, not a reason to panic. A typical three-bedder in a project like this, at current psf levels, is looking at a quantum in the $2.2 million to $2.9 million range. For upgraders selling an HDB flat in the $600,000 to $1 million range, the equity gap is real. You need to be honest about your CPF position, your cash reserves, and your ABSD exposure if you still own the HDB when you exercise the OTP. If the numbers are tight, Executive Condominiums or OCR resale condos around the $1,500 to $2,000 psf range may give you a better entry without overextending.
If you're a private condo owner in District 15 or nearby RCR: This is worth paying attention to for your own asset positioning. Owners who bought into similar D15 projects years ago at $1,300 to $1,800 psf are now sitting on significant equity. If you've been thinking about recycling that capital into a newer or better-located unit, the window to do that with strong sale proceeds on your current home is open right now. Don't wait until the projects you want to buy into are also sold out.
If you're an investor looking at sub-sales or resale units in the RCR: Be disciplined about your entry price. A $2,881 psf sub-sale sets a benchmark, but that doesn't mean every unit in every nearby project justifies a similar premium. Location within District 15 matters enormously, and so does the remaining lease, the unit facing, and the floor level. Do the yield math carefully. At these quantum levels, gross rental yields are typically in the 2.5% to 3.5% range for the East Coast corridor. Your bet here is on capital appreciation, not rental income, so you need conviction on the long-term demand story.
Tembusu Grand's new record isn't just a number for one project. It's a data point that resets expectations for the entire East Coast and RCR corridor, and it reinforces what I've been telling clients for months: well-located, well-priced new launches in Singapore don't stay affordable for long. If you're trying to decide whether now is the right time to buy, sell, or hold, I'd rather you make that call with the full picture in front of you. Drop me a message on WhatsApp at +65 9750 1055 or visit keithtanboonkee.com and let's map out exactly where you stand.
25 years experience · 1,000+ transactions · 4,379 TOP units managed
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