Analysts say $450m compensation for Pearls Centre acquisition fair
Channelnewsasia.com | Posted:
29 March 2013 1845 hrs
SINGAPORE:
The government's S$450 million compensation package for the acquisition of
Pearls Centre is fair, say analysts Channel NewsAsia spoke to.
However,
some tenants who did not receive an ex gratia or goodwill payment are appealing
to the authorities.
Compensation
for properties at the multi-storey Pearls Centre varies.
According
to Pearls Centre management, for commercial units facing the road, the
compensation is S$9,000 per square foot.
Shops
that are near the escalator get S$3,000 per square foot.
Other
areas get at least S$1,200 per square foot.
As
for residential properties, the figure is S$1,100 per square foot.
Analysts
say the compensation is reasonable.
Christine
Li, head of research and consultancy at OrangeTee, said: "As the
government has not been topping up commercial leases for quite some time,
developers are not really prepared to pay today's market value, even if this
site was put up for collective sale. So, we think that the (compensation) price
is largely in line with fair value."
However,
some tenants like Mr Ravishankar did not receive the ex gratia payment, which
can be as high S$30,000.
He
has been running an Internet cafe on the ground floor of the centre for about
six
years.
He
said he contacted the Singapore Land Authority.
Mr
Ravishankar said: "There is no reason given. So I just simply called them,
then asked them what is the reason. They said they cannot tell me, it's a
case-by-case problem. They asked me to appeal through the email."
Pearls
Centre management says that out of its 250 tenants, about 30 per cent were
affected.
Kok
Chee Choon, committee member of Pearls Centre management, said: "We've
received more than 10 calls from those who did not receive the ex gratia
payment. After we've gathered their feedback, we'll be appealing to the
authorities next week to try and get some compensation for these tenants."
For
the ex gratia payment, the Singapore Land Authority says it considers tenants'
age, the duration of their operations, the scale and nature of their business,
and whether they are Singapore citizens.
Martin Koh | 86666
944 | R020968Z
Sherry Tang |
9844 4400 | R020241C
Senior Sales
Director
DTZ Property
Network Pte Ltd (L3007960A)
Email: marshe_inc@yahoo.com.sg
