SINGAPORE – The relocation of Anglo-Chinese School (Primary) from its current Barker Road campus in Newton to Tengah in 2030 will likely boost interest in upcoming homes in the new town, said property analysts.
They predicted that future Build-To-Order (BTO) projects in Tengah would see an increase in applicants, particularly for those located within 2km of the new ACS Primary. Two upcoming executive condominium (EC) projects in Bukit Batok West, which fall within 1km of the school, are expected to see higher demand as well.
Announcing the relocation on Thursday, MOE said the new ACS Primary will also accept girls for the first time from 2030.
Properties near popular primary schools are often highly sought after by both home owners and investors hoping to rent out their units, as priority admission is given to those who live nearer to the schools.
OrangeTee & Tie’s senior vice-president of research and analytics Christine Sun said properties near popular schools can draw a price premium of up to 15 per cent, and prices of these homes tend to rise faster than others in the same district, based on transaction data from recent years.
For instance, condo resale prices within 1km of ACS Primary at the current Barker Road campus in District 11 of Newton and Novena is around $2,116 per sq ft (psf) – about 18.1 per cent higher compared with the median resale price of $1,791 psf in the same district, said Ms Sun.
Meanwhile, rental demand and resale prices of properties around the current ACS Primary in Barker Road could dip slightly after the school relocates in 2030 but should not be greatly affected as there are other schools within the area and its prime location will prop prices up, said analysts.
There is also unlikely to be any immediate impact on property prices in Tengah as the town is still under development, they added.
Huttons Asia senior director of research Lee Sze Teck said the relocation of ACS Primary may increase the appeal of Tengah and draw more younger couples and families to the new estate.
He noted that this was the case in other estates, such as when Nan Chiau Primary School was relocated to Sengkang in 2000 and Mee Toh School to Punggol in 2004.
Ms Wong Siew Ying, head of research and content at PropNex Realty, said ACS Primary’s popularity will help support the demand for homes and leasing prospects in Tengah in the years to come. “So, there is a good chance that this will help to push up home prices.”
