Evia, Gamuda Land and Ho Lee Group paid $1.01 billion — $980 psf ppr — for Chencharu Close, Khatib's first private mixed-use site. The bid cleared Frasers-Mitsubishi-Lum Chang by 19.8%. About 875 units sit above 135,627 sqft of commercial (mall, hawker centre, bus interchange) five minutes from Khatib MRT, with three BTO projects — Hills, Green and Grove — already Under Construction next door. Floor launch PSF $2,185, likely averaging $2,450–$2,550; Lentor Modern resale at $2,277–$2,464 PSF is the closest reference point.
Khatib's Tengah moment — and the first private ticket in
Quick location note: the Chencharu Close site is in Khatib, not Yishun Central. Both sit within the wider Yishun HDB planning area but locals treat them as distinct. Yishun is the town centre with Northpoint City; Khatib is the quieter northern neighbour with Khatib MRT and Khoo Teck Puat Hospital.
Three BTO projects are already Under Construction within walking distance — Chencharu Hills, Chencharu Green, Chencharu Grove. A fourth is planned. These are the opening acts of a new 70-hectare estate that HDB is building out to 10,000 homes by 2040 (≥80% public housing). One private ticket: Chencharu Close.
Same set-up as Tengah's Copen Grand and Lentor Modern: a private mixed-use launch as the first private project into a brand-new estate. Chencharu Close is Khatib's version.
On 4 September 2025 the tender closed with three bids. Evia Real Estate + Gamuda Land + Ho Lee Group took the site at $1,012,588,989.89 — $980 psf ppr.
Source: HDB, via EdgeProp
Top bid was 19.8% above Frasers-Mitsubishi-Lum Chang ($818 psf ppr) and 46.2% above Sim Lian ($670 psf ppr). A 46% spread between first and third is unusually wide. Evia leads. Same name behind Piccadilly Grand (Farrer Park integrated development with its own hawker centre, sold out, now trading above $2,400 psf in resale). Same set-up brought to Khatib, on a 2.1× larger site embedded in an estate being built for 10,000 future families.
What $980 psf ppr actually says
$980 psf ppr through our GLS formula gives a floor of $2,185 psf, where launch could start. Once the full unit mix and premium floors price in, launch likely averages $2,450–$2,550 psf across the condo. CBRE and PropNex analyst commentary lands in that same upper band, corroborating where pricing typically settles for mixed-use first-movers. A 1,000 sqft 3BR therefore sits between $2.19M and $2.55M. Lentor Modern resale at $2,277–$2,464 psf is the closest reference point.
How we review: the QPE framework
Every review runs through our QPE framework — Quality, Exit, Price. GLS articles stop at the land-cost calculation; full QPE scoring requires floor plans and confirmed pricing.
The land: what $980 psf ppr actually bought
316,997 sqft (29,450 sqm) along the eastern edge of the Chencharu precinct (former ORTO leisure park site). HDB launched the tender 26 September 2024 under the Confirmed List of the 2H2024 GLS Programme.
| Detail | Chencharu Close GLS |
|---|---|
| Site area | 316,997 sqft / 29,450 sqm |
| Maximum GFA | 1,033,000 sqft / 96,008 sqm |
| Plot ratio | ~3.26 |
| Tenure | 99-year leasehold |
| Estimated residential units | ~875 |
| Total commercial GFA | 135,627 sqft |
| Bus interchange | 58,125 sqft (ground floor) |
| Hawker centre | 37,674 sqft |
| Retail mall | ~40,000 sqft |
| Project completion | 84 months from tender acceptance |
| Top bid | $980 psf ppr (Evia-led consortium) |
| Total land cost | $1.013 billion |
Plot ratio 3.26 means HDB wrote density into the tender. The 135,627 sqft commercial programme (bus interchange, hawker centre, retail mall) is HDB-mandated, written into tender conditions as non-negotiable. By design, the Chencharu Close condo is inseparable from the commercial infrastructure of the new town. Same set-up Evia used at Piccadilly Grand: Farrer Park integrated, 407 residential units above One Farrer Centre's hawker + supermarket. Piccadilly sold out, now trades above $2,400 psf in resale.
Further south, the Miltonia Close EC site layers another 430 private units into the wider Yishun corridor. Orchid Country Club rezones residential from 2031.
By the time Chencharu Close TOPs around 2030, the three Under Construction BTO projects (Chencharu Hills, Green, Grove) will have absorbed the opening wave of new HDB residents. Same sequence Tengah went through with Copen Grand and the inaugural BTOs.
Chencharu Close price: what $980 psf ppr translates to
The GLS pricing formula
| Layer | Calculation | Running Total |
|---|---|---|
| Land cost | $980 | $980 |
| + 72% development costs | Construction, fees, marketing, financing | $1,686 |
| + 8% harmonised costs | Standardised adjustment | $1,821 |
| + 20% profit margin | Developer margin | $2,185 |
Developer breakeven: $1,821 psf. Floor PSF from our formula: $2,185. Launch likely averages higher once unit mix and premium floors price in. PropNex's published breakeven of $1,080 psf (land stage only) is consistent. Land plus construction plus financing reaches the $1,800s by launch.
What that floor-to-average range translates to
| Unit Type | Estimated Size | Floor PSF ($2,185) | Likely Avg PSF ($2,450) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-Bedroom | 450 – 500 sqft | $983K – $1.09M | $1.10M – $1.23M |
| 2-Bedroom | 650 – 750 sqft | $1.42M – $1.64M | $1.59M – $1.84M |
| 3-Bedroom | 950 – 1,100 sqft | $2.08M – $2.40M | $2.33M – $2.70M |
| 4-Bedroom | 1,250 – 1,450 sqft | $2.73M – $3.17M | $3.06M – $3.55M |
A 3BR sits between $2.08M and $2.70M across that floor-to-likely-average range. Even at the lower end, this is more expensive than any existing private condo trading in Khatib or wider Yishun. At the higher end, within touching distance of Lentor Modern resale.
What pushes pricing from the floor to the likely average
The $2,185 floor and $2,450–$2,550 likely-average aren't competing estimates. They are the bottom and top of the same range. Three things push pricing toward the upper band:
- Mixed-use scarcity premium. Integrated developments transact at 10-15% premium over standalone condos. Lentor Modern resale $2,277-$2,464 psf vs nearby Lentor Mansion non-mixed-use at $2,150-$2,275 psf is the cleanest live comparison.
- First-mover scarcity. The commercial components are exclusive to this site. No subsequent Chencharu plot will include them.
- Supply drought. Last private mixed-use launch in Yishun was The Wisteria in 2015. Yishun has absorbed almost zero new private inventory in a decade.
PropNex's head of research points to an average above $2,300 psf; CBRE commentary cited by EdgeProp lands at $2,450–$2,550 psf. Both corroborate the upper band. What is less certain: whether the absolute price ($2.45M for a 1,000 sqft 3BR) finds buyers in a corner of the north that has never tested resale above ~$1,450 psf.
How Chencharu Close stacks up against recent GLS bids
| GLS Site | Region | Top Bid (psf ppr) | Date | Est. Launch PSF |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chencharu Close | Khatib, D27 | $980 | Sep 2025 | $2,185 |
| Lentor Gardens | Lentor (D26) | $920 | Apr 2025 | $2,052 |
| Tampines Ave 11 (Parktown) | Tampines (D18) | $885 | Jul 2023 | $1,974 |
| Canberra Crescent | Canberra (D27) | $793 | Aug 2024 | $1,768 |
Chencharu came in $95 psf ppr above Tampines Avenue 11 — the last comparable mixed-use GLS with bus interchange and hawker centre. The Canberra comparison is more uncomfortable: $793 in August 2024 → $980 thirteen months later in the same district = 23.6% land cost jump with no corresponding resale jump. Some absorbed by mixed-use premium, the rest by confidence that Yishun's resale ceiling will move with the launch.
Why Evia bid 19.8% above the next bidder
ERA Singapore CEO Marcus Chu attributed the top bid to "the more complex site-specific requirements, including the need to build a hawker centre and bus interchange, when compared to other attractive GLS sites, rather than a broader shift in developer sentiment" (ERA press release). The simpler reading on the spread: Evia has done this before. Piccadilly Grand is a successful integrated project with near-identical commercial components. A 20% premium over less experienced bidders is pricing the learning curve. A $1.01 billion cheque is Evia saying, with their own balance sheet, that Chencharu Close is worth Lentor pricing at launch.
Who Chencharu Close is for
Chencharu Close is one of those rare launches where own-stay and investor logic point the same way. The mall, hawker and MRT podium delivers convenience for the person living there, and rental yield + resale ceiling for the person holding it.
For own-stay buyers
Khatib and Yishun HDB upgraders are the primary market. A family moving from a 5-room HDB with $1.6M-$2.0M of equity + CPF can afford a compact 3BR at formula price. Daily routines stay the same: same MRT, same hawker (now in the podium), same neighbourhood. Only the address gets a private postcode.
First-time private buyers in the north — couples in their 30s from Yishun, Sembawang, Admiralty wanting to stay near family. An estimated 2BR at $1.4M-$1.8M is dual-income accessible.
Right-sizers from older private condos in the area: Castle Green, Yishun Sapphire, Orchid Park, Seasons Park. Trade age for convenience. Mall is one lift ride down.
The same walk-to-everything daily experience that Lentor Modern, Parktown Residence, and Pinery Residences residents have already validated.
For investors
Yield-focused (1BR/2BR): estimated $1.10M-$1.60M with direct MRT connectivity. Rental pool: young professionals at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, Seletar Aerospace Park staff, Yishun Industrial workers, North-South Line commuters.
Appreciation-focused (2BR/compact 3BR): Exit 5-7 years after TOP targets Chencharu Hills/Green/Grove BTO owners coming off 5-year MOP. A specific, identifiable, growing buyer pool, not a speculation.
The pool of BTO upgraders coming off 5-year MOP next door is what sets this apart from most OCR options.
Who should look harder
Families needing 4+ bedrooms near established schools. Post-harmonisation 3BR common rooms clear livable threshold but not always generous. Families with 2-3 kids should target 4BR ($3M+). Decide whether Khatib works for school priorities versus Lentor 4BR alternatives (Lentor Mansion, Hillock Green) at similar prices with a more established school catchment.
Chencharu Close review: why we have not rated it yet
For GLS, downside risk is not rated. No floor plans, no confirmed pricing, no transaction benchmark to set a price gap against.
What we can say plainly: the set-up here lines up with the best integrated launches of the past five years. Brand-new estate, BTO upgrader pool building next door, 5-minute walk to Khatib MRT, hawker + mall + bus interchange in the podium, and a developer with a directly comparable project at Piccadilly Grand (now trading above launch).
The open question is exact launch PSF. Floor likely $2,185, averaging $2,450–$2,550 once the full unit mix prices in. Whether early-bird pricing comes in nearer the floor or the likely average determines whether this is a strong preview buy, a wait-for-third-phase buy, or a resale opportunity after the first few quarters.
Right posture for buyers: register interest, attend preview, study floor plans, shortlist stacks once unit mix is released.
Data sources: HDB Final Tender Results for Chencharu Close (Sep 2025), EdgeProp Singapore property news (Evia Real Estate bid announcement), CBRE Singapore tender commentary, ERA Singapore Research (Chencharu Close GLS site analysis), PropNex property commentary (Chencharu Close mixed-use project), URA Realis transaction data (Lentor Modern, Lentor Mansion, Hillock Green, Lentoria, Springleaf Residence, North Gaia, The Wisteria, The Criterion, Parc Life), Yahoo News Singapore reporting. Analyst estimates attributed to PropNex head of research Wong Siew Ying, ERA Singapore CEO Marcus Chu, and CBRE Research.
Published by MJ Review Homes (reviewhomes.sg) | PropNex Realty Pte Ltd | Shaik Amar R058640H | Myra Jalil R058979B | +65 9690 5440 | +65 9738 3705
Chencharu Close GLS Site
District 27 — 5 min walk to Khatib MRT (NSL), captive BTO upgrader pool next door
Tap or hover over any dot for details
Chencharu Close — QPE Score
All information provided is for general reference only and is based on current planning assumptions. Details are subject to change without notice and may vary depending on final design development, regulatory requirements, and operational considerations. No representation or warranty is made as to the accuracy or completeness of the information provided.
Let's talk it through.
Get a quick read on whether Chencharu Close fits your situation — pricing, layout, exit, all in one chat.
Message MJ on WhatsApp
