ELTA Buyer Case Study: Why A First-Time Buyer Chose A $2.49M 3-Bedroom Unit

This case study is based on a recent consultation conducted by Rachel Xu (R006569F), a property agent and partner property consultant with Stacked. This write-up walks through the key decisions, trade-offs, and market considerations involved, with insights that buyers and sellers may find useful.

From own stay to an investment play

When this buyer first approached Rachel, an agent with the Stacked consultancy team, she had already encountered several agents who were trying to persuade her to buy a home near to her child’s school.

The buyer shared that most of those previous agents did not seem to fully understand her needs, as well as concerns regarding such a purchase.

Her initial property plan was to buy a home near Methodist Girls School (her daughter’s school of choice), but that changed when she brought up that there was a possibility of the family relocating abroad in a couple of years.

Since the family was already renting a four-room HDB flat at Toh Yi Drive – which was within 1km of the school of choice for her child – they felt that there was no urgency for her to quickly make a decision.

Rachel says when school placement is a factor, she usually advises buyers to wait until they get a confirmation of the outcome before deciding on any property purchase. 

“You should wait until your child has secured a place in the school of choice, then you would be clearer on the options available. You wouldn’t want to be stuck in a location that doesn’t make sense in the event the child goes to another school,” she says. 

That decision helped to clarify the buyer’s objectives, which became more investment-oriented.

As a first-time property buyer, the client came prepared with a general idea of what she wanted to purchase, and the budget she was initially comfortable with. Together with Rachel, the buyer wanted to find a good balance between her twin priorities.

First, it was a desire to secure a strong rental yield-generating property, followed by a unit that her family can live in when they return to Singapore for short periods in the future. Thus, the unit had to be of a size that would make sense from the investment perspective, while accommodating the needs of her family.

Appreciating the buyers needs, concerns, and criteria

The largest concern faced by Rachel and this client was comparing the rental yield and capital appreciation of a two-bedroom unit to a three-bedroom unit. Financially, the buyer had to keep a close eye on her cash reserves, in order to purchase an overseas property within the next three years.

As they were shortlisting a list of potential condos, the buyer also considered several freehold options like a walk-up apartment at Yong Siak Street. However, she felt that the property’s remaining lease of 41 years was too short for her comfort.

Another consideration was deciding between the higher $psf price for a new 99-year leasehold project, over the relatively lower price of a freehold property in a residential area such as Dairy Farm.

The buyer said that she wanted more clarity on the capital appreciation rate typically recorded at new launch developments versus older properties that also had a reasonable tenure and lower psf.

Blanketing all of these discussions was the buyer’s preference not to stretch beyond her budget of $2.3 million. As a result, this narrowed the list of options to certain developments that met her list of requirements – fetching decent rental yield and accommodating her family’s future living needs.

Deciding between new launch and resale properties

Based on a budget of $1.5 million, Rachel analysed the financial breakdown of purchasing a two-bedroom unit at a new project compared to a similar resale unit, and she shared with the buyer what options she had come up with.

Some of the developments suggested by Rachel included Penrose, Park Colonial, Parc Esta, ParkTown Residence, and Stirling Residences.

Back then, during January to March of 2025, there were relatively few resale options that matched the buyers criteria. Thus, most private property buyers tended to gravitate towards the primary market.

After crunching the numbers, Rachel recommended two recently launched developments – Parktown Residence and ELTA. The former is an integrated mega-project with 1,193 units in Tampines North, while the latter is a smaller development with 501 units in Clementi.

Both developments have appealing attributes. The 1,193-unit Parktown Residence has good MRT connectivity with the upcoming Tampines North station on the Cross Island Line, and several amenities in close proximity. Based on the track record of earlier integrated developments such as Sengkang Grand Residences and The Woodleigh Residences, which sold at record prices during their respective sales launches, Parktown Residence was a strong contender.

As for ELTA, the 501-unit condo by then-MCL Land and CSC Land, was a smaller development with fewer units but the layout options featured more units that came with unblocked views of the surrounding landed estates close to the AYE.

Prioritising capital appreciation over budget considerations

While the buyer initially focused on finding a two-bedroom unit, she was also concerned whether this smaller unit configuration would be a compelling option for high rental yield compared with some larger-sized units. 

Her assumption was grounded on the fact that some smaller unit types – like one- and two-bedders – might be more difficult to find a subsequent buyer, and this might lead to a loss-making exit sale.

Anecdotally, agents have also shared that the normalisation of hybrid work arrangements means that most buyers increasingly prefer larger sized units, like three- and four-bedroom units.

That said, when advising younger clients in their 20s or early 30s, Rachel recommends getting a two-bedroom unit as a “starter home”. 

“This eases the pressure to overstretch their budget and sets up a stronger foundation for them to eventually get a three-bedroom unit after cashing out,” she says. 

Between the two properties she viewed, the buyer preferred ELTA for its location in the West – an area that she was more familiar with. Together with Rachel and her calculations, they ruled out two-bedroom units as an option and adjusted her budget upwards to $2.3 million in order to focus on three-bedroom options.

While the buyer was deliberating over different two- and three-bedroom options, she also did not want to miss the opportunity of earning up to $200,000 in profit from selling a three-bedroom unit. Comparing ELTA’s two-bedroom premium unit, which spans 700 sq ft and was priced from $1.6 million, to a three-bedroom compact unit of 926 sq ft that was going for over $2.2 million, the difference in cash outlay came up to $180,000.

Maximising budget for long-term gain

As Rachel explained the pros and cons of purchasing a two-bedroom or three-bedroom unit, which greatly helped the buyer revise her knowledge of market dynamics in the property market, they came to the conclusion that a larger-sized unit would be better positioned to result in a more significant capital upside due to the larger pool of buyers.

After viewing different two- and three-bedroom units at Clavon and ELTA, she decided on a three-bedroom unit at ELTA on the 25^th floor, which was slightly above the middle of the stack facing a school. At $2.491 million (about $2,690 psf), the difference between the purchase price of her unit and a similar unit on the highest 39th floor that was sold previously was $173,000.

While the buyer was still anxious about her purchase, having significantly exceeded her initial budget, Rachel helped to allay her fears of not being able to exit her property at a good price by reminding her of the property’s inherent attributes.

She pointed out that the development was well-located in a high demand location, and that the buyer made a balanced option in an area that has demonstrated strong price appreciation. She also referenced nearby projects that have performed well, such as Clavon and Clement Canopy.

From the 25th floor, the unit that the buyer picked out would also have views towards the Pandan Reservoir. For these highway-facing units, the developers were mindful to utilize acoustic ceilings and acoustic blinds.

Rachel says that a key reason for the buyers’ eventual satisfaction was their willingness to adapt and exercise patience in waiting for the right unit to come along.

“More often than not, agents need to understand the circumstances and considerations that a client faces, and adjust the purchase advice and timing based on their needs. In this case, waiting till the client’s school registration was completed before proceeding,” says Rachel.

She adds that she felt confident working with this client because she was also open-minded to consider a broad range of options, thus getting a comprehensive view of different possibilities before making the best decision.