In this article, we’ll unpack the performance of an Executive Condominium (EC) in Pasir Ris that made waves among buyers and investors when it first hit the market back in 2012.
If you were on the lookout for a new EC at the time, you might remember the speculation building up to the launch of Watercolours, a 416-unit development along Pasir Ris Link in District 28.
The weeks leading up to the sales launch of the Watercolours saw speculation that the project might not be well-received by buyers. The development was far from Pasir Ris MRT station, and it would be several years before Downtown East would be transformed into the hub of amenities that we know it to be today.
I recall that back then, Downtown East was just a smaller selection of shops, a cinema, a bowling alley, as well as an aging chalet complex. Its transformation only really kicked off after 2015.
However, when the Watercolours actually hit the market, its take-up rate upset the initial expectations and the EC was more than two times oversubscribed during its first sales launch. This strong turnout largely stemmed from its competitive pricing which buyers quickly homed in on.
The sales launch was unexpectedly aided by the performance of nearby projects, like Sea Esta and Ripple Bay, which entered the market at around the same time in 2012. Buyers quickly took note of the lower prices at Watercolours compared to these other new developments.
Perhaps the biggest clincher that buoyed the appeal of Watercolours was a new Design Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS) project, the 447-unit Pasir Ris One on Pasir Ris Drive 1, which had a launch price that was nearly on par with Watercolours.
Since Watercolours featured a larger range of condo facilities, and would eventually be privatised, the contrast between the proposition offered by Pasir Ris One and other nearby developments helped to solidify the perception of Watercolours as a value buy among EC homeowners at the time.
Throughout the development of Watercolours, and after its completion in 2014, the transformation of Downtown East into a major retail, restaurant, and lifestyle hub – large enough to rival Pasir Ris Central – began to strengthen the area’s overall liveability and the resale appeal of units at Watercolours.
Given the dramatic early history of this development and the area around it, how has the development fared so far? And what do buyers in this part of Pasir Ris Link see as the key appeal of this project?
Past performance is a useful signal, but it's not a forecast. The projects that outperformed over the last cycle aren't guaranteed to do so again, and the reasons they outperformed may no longer apply.
The more useful question is whether a particular property still makes sense at today's price, given your budget, objectives and timeline. That's where many buyers find it helpful to get a second opinion.
Over time, that's also why we decided to work with agents who shared the same data-driven and advisory-led approach behind our editorial, consultants who could help readers think through decisions more objectively, rather than simply push transactions.
Today, the team has worked with more than 2,000 clients across over $5B in property transactions.
A quick snapshot of Watercolours
| Lease start year | 2012 |
| Completion year | 2014 |
| Land size (sqm) | 18,576 |
| No. of units | 416 |
| Unit types available | 2, 3, 4 |
It is worth noting that the unit mix also includes two-bedroom units, with 48 of this unit configuration available in the development. We pick up this point for two main reasons.
First, when the EC launched for sale, less than a handful of investors would have considered this part of Pasir Ris as a strong and proven rental market. Next, ECs mainly cater to homeowners and Pasir Ris is characterised as an established residential area for families.
Although a growing number of buyers today may consider two-bedders as a viable unit type for families, this was not the case back in 2012 when one- and two-bedders were mainly seen as rental assets.
So why did the developer include some two-bedroom units at Watercolours? A possible reason could lie in the project’s relatively aggressive pricing-based sales strategy. As we described at the start of this article, Pasir Ris was experiencing an influx of new condo launches at the time; projects like Ripple Bay, Sea Esta, and Seastrand were launching or already available to buyers.
We reckon that by including smaller two-bedders into its unit mix, Watercolours managed to trumpet a relatively low and headline-grabbing entry price when it first launched for sale. Back then, it could claim that its units were priced from around $500,000. This is a component which we’ll analyse later in this article.
Meanwhile, here are the transacted prices as of end-2025:
| Average transacted prices for Watercolours in 2025 | |||
| Unit type | Average $PSF | Average price | Transaction volume |
| 2-bedroom | $1,247 | $980,000 | 1 |
| 3-bedroom | $1,205 | $1,333,041 | 19 |
| 4-bedroom | $1,281 | $1,585,750 | 4 |
| Likely buyer profiles | Less suitable for |
| Buyers seeking price efficiency, and larger units for comparable or lower prices than nearby projects | Buyers who prioritise being within walking distance of an MRT station |
| Buyers seeking an affordable entry into private housing, in terms of quantum | Buyers looking for the strongest capital appreciation potential |
| Buyers who see Downtown East as being a viable replacement – or possibly even equal to – the main hub of Pasir Ris | Buyers who consider access to Pasir Ris’ main malls and MRT station to be essential |
Let’s look at how private home prices in District 18 (D18), where Watercolours is located, has performed.
This will help to frame our expectations for the general performance of projects here. The following looks at all sales, from new sales to resale and sub-sale.
All tenures
| Year | D18 | All non-landed private properties |
| 2015 | $897 | $1,180 |
| 2016 | $976 | $1,232 |
| 2017 | $952 | $1,304 |
| 2018 | $1,122 | $1,435 |
| 2019 | $1,197 | $1,560 |
| 2020 | $1,172 | $1,513 |
| 2021 | $1,192 | $1,600 |
| 2022 | $1,223 | $1,712 |
| 2023 | $1,344 | $1,869 |
| 2024 | $1,416 | $1,886 |
| 2025 | $1,866 | $2,092 |
| Annualised | 7.60% | 5.90% |
99-year leasehold
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