Lentor Mansion showflat review

01 Mar 2024 Launch

Lentor Mansion preview drew huge crowds, and also the traffic police. This is at the expense of neighbouring Lentoria that had a.. cold start? I went down with my most important client (my wife!) to Lentor Mansion, and she did submit a cheque. This blog is a personal review of our potential new home.

In short, if the price is right on the launch day, Lentor Mansion is a good buy as it has ticked most boxes, yet having the lowest quantum in the Lentor region.

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≫ Launch Details

Cons

I was shocked in the showflat over the half length windows. Not full length windows that we took for granted in all condo. Why that decision? I was told it is more energy efficient 🤷🏻‍♂️

Secondly, there is no floor tiles for living room. They choose to use vinyl, which I believe no possible reasons other than lower cost.

The farcade is not to my personal liking as it is dark brown, and rough. The design concept is to mimic timber grain pattern. Together with the shorter window, it looks unimpressive.

Pros

There are only a few cons, and with that out of the way, here’s a list of why you should buy Lentor Mansion:

Short 4 min walk to MRT
Within 1km to St Nicks and Anderson, both popular schools that requires to be <1km to secure a place
Lowest entry price (vs previous 4 lentor launches)
Good efficient layout
Big project with 533 units, yet less dense

This makes the project much safer to buy, especially being close to MRT and good schools.

I can vouch for Anderson Primary as our kids study there, all thanks to my parent volunteering effort. I also know parents who moved to within 1km, just for Anderson.

But you might still wonder if the price is right when there’re cheaper resales out there.

New Launch Price vs Resale

My client (my wife!) is buying for investment. If she buys a resale today, it will to be for rental income as we have no plans to move house. When you consider the ROI (rental vs new launch appreciation), both options are equally good. I omit the math, but if you’re interested feel free to ask me.

But a new launch has the advantage of being newer with full lease. So when you’re not urgent to move in, buying a new launch is a better option.

If you can’t wait for 4 years, then you’ve no choice but to buy resale.

You might wonder: Is the higher price justified for new launch? A simple formula is to use $50 PSF per difference in their TOP years. That means if a resale is 10 years older than a new launch, then the new launch should be $500 PSF higher.

For example, the nearby The Panorama TOP-ed in 2019 (9 years apart), so the PSF difference should be $450. The past 1 year sales is aggregated below:

The average 2 bedder is now at $1,883 PSF, hence +$450, a new launch should be $2,333. But Lentor Mansion starting PSF is $2,083 (using pre-harmonization PSF), which is still much lower than $2,333. Given that Lentor is slightly further away from central (precisely 1 MRT stop away), we can give it further discount. I leave you to apply your own judgement.

Or consider this: Would you buy Panorama’s 3-bedder at $1.845m-$2.3m, or would you buy Lentor Mansion starting from $1.8m?

You can further compare with the surrounding lentor condos, and the price premium for this new launch will seem reasonable.

Future Growth

Lentor Mansion is the 5th plot to be launched, with another 2 more land plots (1 sold, another available for sale at the moment). The 2 plots will be launched in the near future, however they’re most likely not within 1km of St Nicks.

Then there are 3 more land plots that will launch in the distant future. This is good because with more launches, it helps to maintain/push the prices. Government land sale will only go up. If too low, they can don’t sell, like what recently happened for Marina Gardens site.

Plus the nearby Upper Thomson Parcel A and Parcel B are open for tender, which will add another 1,600 units.

Supply is a double edged sword. Too much supply with not enough demand, and prices will go down.

I was skeptical of Lentor at first as it seems like there’s an oversupply. However, the truth is this:

Thus far the first 3 lentor projects has only 27% unsold units (still much time left to sell)
There are similar regions like Punggol and Pasir Ris, and they turn out fine
The MRT is key to attracting people from all over the island

There is still demand.

Another growth factor is a nearby BTO that will MOP in 2028. It is opposite Anderson Primary and I have seen it build from the ground up. HDB upgraders will look towards Lentor.

That said, it all boils down to the actual prices on opening day 🙏🏻