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The Singapore government has raised the land supply for private housing for the second half of 2022, which includes making available the first site in Marina South, Marina Gardens Lane, which is next to Gardens by the Bay.

This site is set to kick-start development in the precinct, CNA and The Straits Times both reported.

The supply of private homes under the Government Land Sales (GLS) programme for the second half of this year has been raised by 26 per cent to 3,505 units, from 2,785 units in the first half of the year, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said on June 7.

The supply of 3,505 units is the highest since the second half of 2014 when 3,915 units were released, though analysts call this a measured increase, ST reported.

In all, there are 14 sites under the GLS programme for the second half of this year -- six confirmed list sites and eight reserve list sites.

Of the sites on the confirmed list, Marina Gardens Lane, Tampines Avenue 11 and Tengah Plantation Loop (EC) are new sites.

The other three sites, Bukit Timah Link, Hillview Rise and Lentor Gardens are transferred from the reserve list in the previous programme.

These sites are likely to attract a healthy level of bidding activity, Catherine He, head of research at Colliers told CNA.

About the Marina South site

The Marina Gardens Lane land parcel is next to Gardens by the Bay and will be directly linked to Marina South MRT station, it was also reported.

The entire 45ha Marina South precinct overlooks the Marina Reservoir and the Straits of Singapore and will comprise a mix of retail, office, hotel and residential uses that can yield more than 10,000 homes, the government said, according to ST.

The Marina Gardens Lane site itself can yield 795 residential units and would be the most popular, ST reported.

"Developers who buy this site will have the first-mover advantage in the precinct's development as it is the first residential site out of five sites along the same stretch," Steven Tan, chief executive of OrangeTee & Tie, told ST.

But the sizeable site and the potential huge outlay of more than S$1 billion may attract only a handful of developers, Lee Sze Teck, Huttons Asia's senior director for research, also told ST.

About Government Land Sales (GLS) programme

GLS programmes release state land for private development.

They are planned and announced every six months.

Land on the confirmed list is launched for sale at pre-determined dates, with most land parcels sold through tenders.

Land on the reserve list is not released for tender immediately, but made available for application.

A reserve list site is put up for tender when a developer indicates a minimum price that is accepted by the government.

Top photo via URA