Property Herald: HDB shophouses listed for sale in Bedok area

Introduction

Small retailers in heartland shops face various challenges, from rising costs to competitions from larger shopping malls. Some of these modern suburban retail malls are located in the town centre with direct access to public transportation nodes, such as MRT stations. The presence of a large and successful suburban mall in a HDB housing estate can be detrimental to these small businesses as the former practically suck the oxygen out of the room.

An example can be seen in the housing estate of Bedok.

Bedok Mall is part of the Bedok Integrated Transport Hub. It is directly connected to the Bedok MRT Station and Bedok bus interchange, which attracts many shoppers to the mall. The mall has also become a competitor to many of the HDB shops in the Bedok area.

Since the opening of Bedok Mall, many shoppers and residents in the Bedok area would go to the mall for shopping, dining and all the other things that one would enjoy in a suburban mall.

Some of the shops and businesses in the area around the mall, especially those selling goods and services that can be found in Bedok Mall, have found that their business has been adversely affected.

Map of area around Bedok MRT Station

Source: Onemap

Advantages enjoyed by Bedok Mall

One clear advantage of Bedok Mall is its accessibility to public transport, both the MRT and bus services. Commuters can easily go to this mall, attracting many shoppers.

The second advantage that Bedok Mall has over most of the shops in the HDB blocks is that the mall is air-conditioned. Most of the other shops in HDB blocks are not air-conditioned. In the hot and humid weather of Singapore, air-conditioned premises usually attract more shoppers and diners.

The third advantage of Bedok Mall is its size and wide offerings of shops, retail services and dining options. Hardly any block of HDB shops or shophouses can match the retail and dining options of Bedok Mall.

HDB shophouses

HDB shophouses are usually 2-storey public housing and shop units, consisting of a shop on the ground floor with access to a HDB flat on the second storey. They are mostly built in the 1970s and 1980s with 99-year lease.

In the face of the fierce competition from larger shopping malls, some owners of HDB shops and shophouses are seeking to sell their properties. Table 1 shows the details of the HDB shophouses currently listed for sale.

Table 1: HDB shophouses in the East Region currently listed for sale

Street name	Price ($)	Price ($psf)	Size (sq ft)	Year of completion	Est. age of property (years)
Bedok North Street 1	$2,900,000	$1,823	1,591	1979	46
Bedok North Street 1	$3,180,000	$1,931	1,647	1978	47
Bedok North Street 1	$3,850,000	$2,418	1,592	1979	46
New Upper Changi Road	$3,880,000	$2,556	1,518	1988	37

Source: Mogul.sg Research

In the East region where Bedok is located, the asking price floor rate of HDB shophouses currently listed for sale range from $1,823 psf to $2,556 psf. The average asking price is $2,185 psf.

Table 2 shows the details of the HDB shophouses currently listed for sale in the other parts of Singapore. The range of asking prices can vary widely. A reasonable range would vary from $1,100 to $2,200 psf.

Table 2: HDB shophouses in locations other than the East Region currently listed for sale

Street name	Price ($)	Price ($psf)	Size (sq ft)	Year of completion	Planning region
Ang Mo Kio Avenue 4	$3,500,000	$2,198	1,592	1981	North-east
Hougang Street 21	$8,100,000	$4,856	1,668	N.A.	North-east
Jalan Bukit Merah	$1,650,000	$1,095	1,507	N.A.	Central
Jurong East Street 24	$2,480,000	$1,372	1,808	1983	West
Jurong East Street 31	$2,188,888	$1,130	1,937	1983	West
Race Course Road	$2,880,000	$1,953	1,475	1985	Central
Woodlands Street 13	$2,400,000	$1,448	1,658	1984	North
Yishun Ring Road	$3,500,000	$1,787	1,959	N.A.	North

Source: Mogul.sg Research

Types of businesses that could be successful in such HDB shops

Due to the competition from well-located suburban malls, the types of businesses that could be successful in HDB shops located further from the town centre must be those that can attract a group of loyal customers. The shop must be a destination retail shop where the customer will deliberately go to the shop because they need to go there, such as clinics and tuition centres.