TJ's interest in property was sparked after returning from the UK- where balconies are not counted in one's square footage!- and finding that the Singapore property had totally changed in the 7 years she was away. When not reading and watching articles & videos about property, she is busy cooking and baking for friends, family & her blog Greedygirlgourmet
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Previously, I’d covered a few reader-requested tours, such as that of Woodlands Park. With all the buzz about AI and how it can potentially replace humans, I was curious as to what it would suggest for this landed tour series, so I fed ChatGPT the past articles I’d done on landed estates in Singapore and asked it to suggest the next one, that would be of interest to Singaporeans. Lo and behold, it recommended Binjai Park, a VERY exclusive landed enclave in District 21, home to some of Singapore’s exclusive Good Class Bungalows (also known as GCBs, which make up only around 2,800 properties in the entire country.) I guess ChatGPT must suffer from the delusion that Singaporeans are all super rich!
Luckily, I spotted some smaller houses in the vicinity, so I decided to proceed with the walkabout. The “smaller” houses (semi-Ds) will still set you back around $7-8 million (based on past transactions) but at least that’s more attainable than a GCB!) As shown in the photo above, the houses run perpendicular to the Binjai Park GCBs. Since not everyone is interested in GCBs – whether for vicarious living or a potential investment – let’s look at the semi-Ds first.
The semi-Ds can be found along a few streets: Dunearn Road (parallel to the main road and thus the noisiest), Jalan Jambu Mawar, Jalan Jambu Batu, and Jalan Jambu Ayer. These streets are the buffer between the GCBs and Dunearn Road, as they’re located closer to the main road.
The good news is that they’re a shorter walk to public transport (the bus stop or King Albert Park MRT – about 15 minutes walk away, depending on where you live) as well as very close to the amenities located at the shophouses. The bad news is, that you might be able to hear some road noise, depending on where your property is located. (Dunearn Road gets VERY busy thanks to all the schools located in the area.) Having said that, the noise levels here are quite OK.
Because the properties here are all on the larger side- and maybe because of the illustrious neighbours (I saw a security officer patrolling outside one of the GCBs, which was VERY keen on privacy (it had teeny windows.)- the roads are very empty and parking is not an issue here. (This may change closer to mealtimes, as there are a few restaurants located at Binjai Park and no MSCP or underground carpark.)
Note: some are leasehold, but at 999-years from 1875, enough to last your family several generations.
As seen, the semi-Ds are not small, and there’s lots of room to expand upwards.They’re all built in a variety of styles.Some are quite vintage.Looking down a 2nd row of semi-Ds. Roads are still very empty. This was around dinner time, but on a weekday – it may be more crowded on weekends when people come to eat at Lino or Ivins.Jalan Jambu Ayer is the longest of the roads with semi-Ds. It runs across Binjai Park and behind the row of shophouses, where it becomes a row of semi-Ds facing a row of smaller detached houses. (I say “smaller” in comparison to GCBs only, of course.)Next row of properties, slightly more cars here.Houses here aren’t on the market often (none for sale at the time of writing) but there were a few construction projects when I visited.As shown, the older properties have a lot of land i.e. lots of space to park, which is probably why there’s no shortage of street parking space. (Didn’t see any single-story landed homes here though, so the properties can’t be too aged.)Across the road (Binjai Park) are the shophouses I mentioned earlier, with walk-up apartments located above. You’ll find a small selection of commercial units there – but quite a good mix as there are restaurants and a supermarket – I’ll show you the shops in a bit.Before we see the shops, let’s walk around the last road of “smaller houses” – the part of Jalan Jambu Ayer where we can find both semi-Ds and detached houses that are not GCBs.More semi-Ds here.Had to zoom out or I wouldn’t have been able to photograph 2 houses in the same frame (they’re too wide.)
And now for the shops!
Ivins has been around for DECADEs. (Peranakan food.) I used to come here as an infant, so that’s how long it’s been in the area!There’s also a Fairprice Express and, yes, as you can see, this is the kind of estate where there’s a dedicated butcher for pets. Don’t get me wrong – I love animals more than most humans – but a butcher for pets does strike me as quite a “privilege project” – something only a neighbourhood with GCBs can support. (Does that sound a bit snide? It wasn’t meant to be.)
There’s also a butcher for humans, Ryan’s Grocer, along the same row.
One North has always occupied an odd position in the Singapore property market. On the one hand, most people acknowledge…
Ryan J. Ong ·
16 Oct 2023 ·
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Walk down a bit and you’ll reach the restaurant, Lino.We’re pretty close to the main road and Methodist Girls’ School here.After Lino is this small kopitiam. (This awkward photo was taken to avoid photographing people directly.) It’s nice to have landed houses near local food, and not just fancy eateries.An Italian restaurant that apparently has been around for a long time.One of several massage places here. Prices not as exorbitant as I would have expected.This is what you see when you stand outside the shophouses and look over the road.
OK now we’ve seen the “affordable” houses and the shops, let’s head down Binjai Park Road to look at the GCBs!
Walking into the estate from the shophouses.One of the first big houses.One thing that distinguishes a GCB from a “regular” big house is the build up. The house cannot exceed 35% of the plot size, which helps keep the area nice and spacious. (As opposed to “regular” landed houses where owners often like to build right up to the property boundary!)Another distinguishing factor is that the houses cannot be more than 2 stories high.Thirdly, the plots have to be at least 1,400 square metres, making for the nice rambling grounds you see above. (There are a few GCBs under the 1,400 limit, as these were created before the regulations came about.)Interesting artwork on the walls of one house that I passed.This strikes me as the sort of estate where almost everyone drives or has a driver, so I hardly saw any residents walking in or out of the estate (There were quite a few construction workers though.) In contrast, the roads were surprisingly busy and I saw quite a few cars going in and out.Some properties are quite private. There’s one with windows so tiny, it reminded me of the arrow-slits in a fortress. (I didn’t take a photo as there was a security guard patrolling and the owner seems pretty keen on privacy.)I’ve been to many GCB estates but sometimes the houses just feel like, well, big houses. The properties at Binjai Park are a little different, because some of them are up a slope, making them feel quite imposing, really.A few houses being rebuilt.Unique looking house.More traditional-looking property.After a while, you reach a crossroads. (That’s another reason Binjai Park is a busy road – it’s not a cul-de-sac but leads to several other roads, such as Jalan Kampong Chantek and Swiss Club Road.To the right of the T-junction.To the left.
This brings us to the end of Binjai Park, but I’ll venture a little further to show you another “affordable” option for those who want to live here but can’t pay for a GCB: Binjai Crest (a cluster house.)
Walk down the turn to the left.You’ll pass a few big houses before coming across the cluster estate, Binjai Crest.Binjai Crest.At the time of writing, there were 2 properties for sale around $3 million. This is in contrast to the $38-$40 million that the GCBs are asking for. (Obviously, the cluster houses are much smaller, but they enjoy some of the peace and tranquillity that the GCBs do.)Unlike the semi-Ds we covered earlier, the cluster house is pretty far in though. Taking public transport will be inconvenient. As mentioned before, in terms of pedestrians, I only saw one expatriate toddler walking around the estate with his two helpers, one school kid, and several construction workers.
Anyway, we’ve seen the cluster houses, so let’s walk back to the T-junction.
Turn left again down Swiss Club Link (i.e. walk straight down from Binjai Park) and you’ll be near the Korean International School, Chatsworth International School, British Club, Hollandse School and more.There’s also the Swiss Embassy.And the Swiss School.
This tour is focusing on Binjai Park, so we’re pretty much at the end of today’s tour.
Before we go, here’s a photo of the cars heading out too. (See what I mean about how the estate has more cars than pedestrians?)
Now that we’ve seen Binjai Park, what do you think of the estate? Let me know in the comments!
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TJ's interest in property was sparked after returning from the UK- where balconies are not counted in one's square footage!- and finding that the Singapore property had totally changed in the 7 years she was away. When not reading and watching articles & videos about property, she is busy cooking and baking for friends, family & her blog Greedygirlgourmet
