[Property Review] Sanctuary Green: Wide Outdoor Spaces, Big Living Spaces
Living in the Central Business District or Downtown Marina Bay can get pretty expensive. With per-square-foot (PSF) prices rising above $2500, a tiny 2-bedroom apartment could set you back as much as $2,000,000.
However, just a stone's throw away from the CBD lies the upmarket stretch of condominiums along Tanjong Rhu - where trading a few mins' extra daily commute for a $1200psf price tag definitely makes a deal worth considering. Let me bring you around one of these condominiums - GuocoLand's Sanctuary Green.
Here's my take on Sanctuary Green in a nutshell:
The Good Stuff
Location - Next to the CBD & Marina Bay - aside from the obvious fact that it's so very close to town, there's also the Kallang waterfront & gardens bay east at your doorstep. Evening jogs will always be scenic and inspiring. A lovely place to live at!
The Property - Spacious grounds, appears very well kept and gives me the feels of actually being in one of those tropical beach resort hotels
Pricing - Despite its desirable location, prices aren't sky high and actually pretty affordable
The Not-So-Good Stuff
Noise - Until you grow accustomed to it, many units suffer noise from the East Coast Parkway that runs right behind the development - that said, not all units are affected by this and how bad the noise is really is a matter of personal perception
Overview & Site Plan
Address:
181/183/185/187/189/191 Tanjong Rhu Road
Year Built (TOP):
2004
Developer:
FCC Ltd. (A unit of GuocoLand)
Number of Units:
522
District & Tenure:
15 / 99-years leasehold
Sanctuary Green's 522 units are stacked into 5 blocks: Surf Tower - 15 floors, long multi-lobby block - Blk 181 (the largest)
Sails Tower - 15 floors, tower block - Blk 183
Shore Tower - 11 floors, tower block - Blk 185
Sea Tower - 19 floors, long multi-lobby block - Blk 187
Sand Tower - 11 floors, tower block - Blk 191
What I like most about Sanctuary Green is how there's this impression of space wherever you go. The towers are placed a nice distance from each other, allowing plenty of breathing room for air to travel between and keep the place cool.
In fact, one of the unusual design aspects of Sanctuary Green is how its towers come in a mix of larger-long blocks and square tower blocks - all with varying heights. This adds some character to the development, compared to many condominiums which are purely about stacking units atop and beside one another.
The site wraps around Parkshore Condominium (the only freehold estate along the Tanjong Rhu stretch) - stealing its view of the sea. South facing units in blocks 183, 185 & 187 have a view of Marina Bay and the sea in the distance - which is a lovely thing...aside from the fact that the very very busy East Coast Parkway (ECP) runs right in front of them as well, providing 24/7 noise entertainment.
Unit Mix
Sanctuary Green features a mix of 2/3/4 bedroom units in a wide variety of layouts and sizes. Contrary to the design habits of present day new launches, units here were designed in regular shapes without any unnecessarily long corridors, large bathrooms or odd-sized "study" rooms.
Layouts are mostly livable and functional, with the few odd units having big outdoor terrace spaces.
2 Bedrooms
Size Range: 775-1270sqft
Unlike many of the newer condominiums in the market which feature "open concept" kitchens conjoined with the living/dining room, Sanctuary Green's 2 bedroom units come with an enclosed kitchen and yard space.
Units with greater floor space are likely to include an outdoor terrace or PES.
3 Bedrooms
Size Range: 1119-1765sqft
Most 3 bedroom units feature full-sized living and dining spaces and tend to be on the "larger" side (considering that most 3 bedroom condo units built in that era measure between 1000-1200sqft in size).
Again, the units with greater than average floor size (e.g. 1600+sqft) are likely to include an outdoor terrace or PES space.
Here are examples of some of the more common 3 bedroom layouts in Sanctuary Green.
4 Bedrooms
Size Range: 1593-3918sqft
The 4 bedroom units in Sanctuary Green offer plenty of space, with types range from a 3-storey penthouse to a duplex, to ordinary linear layouts.
Location & Public Transportation
Public Buses & MRT
Thus far, the entire Tanjong Rhu stretch has been largely dependent on only TWO bus services - 11 & 158. Neither of these buses are useful for anything more than a trip to the nearby Kallang Wave Mall or Stadium & Kallang MRT stations.
158: to Geylang, Aljunied MRT, MacPherson Estate, Upper Paya Lebar Rd, Serangoon Central
There's also a premium bus service to Shenton Way which operates during the morning rush hour for a fare of $5.
Fortunately Sanctuary Green sits within walk-able distance to Stadium MRT station on the Circle Line - I mean, it's still a good 10-minute walk, but that walk is one I'd be happy to take daily given the scenery on offer. From Stadium MRT, connecting to any other part of Singapore should be a breeze given Singapore's reliable (hurhur) MRT system.
In addition, residents can look forward to the future Tanjong Rhu MRT Station on the new Thomson-East Coast Line which should be ready in 2024. By then, Tanjong Rhu residents will be spoilt for MRT choices with two lines connecting them to a variety of stations downtown.
Driving
Sanctuary Green is surrounded by expressways - ECP, MCE, KPE, PIE, Nicoll Highway ... all of the expressways can be reached in less than 10 minutes.
The only thing I won't really enjoy for the next few years will be squeezing my way out of Tanjong Rhu. The roads there are now a narrow mess - thanks to the building of the Tanjong Rhu MRT Station (well, short-term pain for long-term gain, they say!)
Fortunately, once you've escaped Tanjong Rhu Road, getting to the CBD, Orchard or even anywhere along the East & West Coast of Singapore should be a breeze with the expressways nearby.
What's Nearby
Great City Views, Water & The Stadium
Adding on to the idea of space - the entire area around Tanjong Rhu offers plenty of recreational space. Take a walk along the waterfront, go on a long run down the bay across to the Marina Barrage, take in the sights and sounds of the picturesque Marina Bay area.
Food - Food - Food
While you won't get your local coffee shop anywhere in the area, there are plenty of food options in nearby Kallang Wave Mall & Kallang Leisure Park, both of which are within walking distance.
If you're the type that gets hungry past midnight, there's also the famous Kallang McDonalds not too far away to fill you up.
Supermarkets
Fairprice Xtra - Kallang Wave Mall
Cold Storage - Kallang Leisure Park
Facilities
Sanctuary Green may not be the newest condominium around, but its facilities look far from dated - in fact, the entire development looks rather pristine (impressive for a 15 year-old estate!). From a large lagoon-shaped resort pool, to reflexology walks and a garden with a koi pond (again...food for the Marina Bay otters...), you can almost picture yourself on holiday within the comfort of your own condo.
Come explore what's on offer with our signature photographic collection!
Pricing & Property Value
You'd expect prices in Sanctuary Green to be a little higher, given its location and profile - especially since there are new launches in Changi selling at higher prices (well, the property market does get a little queer these days). But it is what it is and if you asked me, I'd say - without doing any comparisons - that I'd be happy paying $1.55 million for an 18th floor 1216sqft unit here.
However, in Singapore comparing property values is somewhat important, given the finite nature of our land tenures...if you're buying a condo that's close to 20 years old, you'll want to have an exit strategy that may not necessarily involve selling my property on the resale market.
For that, here's a comparison of Sanctuary Green's average PSF transacted versus a few of its leasehold neighbours:
Sanctuary Green's average PSF is actually on the lower side, considering that its one of the newer condos in the area.
I would consider that a positive point for two reasons:
There's room for its price to appreciate on the resale market (even if only slightly) given that there are older condos next door selling at higher PSFs - as these condos grow older, their differentiating factors play a smaller role and so the gap between their prices tends to shrink
There's plenty of room for a bigger haul in the case of an en-bloc sale - your next door neighbours at Pebble Bay with land that has 8 years less on its tenure will be asking for a higher price (since their current PSF is much higher) and this will help you and your fellow Sanctuary Green owners demand a price close to Pebble Bay's...a significant jump above your current PSF
Speaking about en-bloc...this may sound like pure speculation, but there's reason to believe that the Tanjong Rhu stretch will one day be valuable to developers - just as there have been land parcels along Meyer Road which have been previously sold en-bloc to developers and launched at prices exceeding $2500psf - the same could possibly happen in the next en-bloc cycle. To me this is an exit strategy.
My Humble Opinion
I quite like the idea of living along Tanjong Rhu - the opportunity for taking evening walks down the waterfront and being able to cycle across to Marina Bay. The whole location concept does somewhat appeal to me. Some residents may say its a little crowded in the area - I feel its perception - Bukit Timah isn't any less congested with cars and condominiums!
So if I were to pick a condominium along Tanjong Rhu, it would be Sanctuary Green. Price point is ideal for both entry and there's a promising exit strategy. Furthermore, having explored the estate in detail, I can't find many negatives about the area. It appears well maintained, is bright, spacious and most units should have reasonably comfortable layouts.
Perhaps as usual, the one stopper for many buyers will be its age - 16 years (as of 2020). However, put in perspective...many of Singapore's condominiums are ageing and so 16 years isn't that bad relative to its price.
Do you live in Sanctuary Green and have any thoughts or feedback to share about this review? Drop me a message!
Here's cheers to @vivianmok_ for her appearance in my photo feature for Sanctuary Green!
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