Daughter of Wah Loon Engineering founder sells Jervois Hill bungalow for S$58 million

A bungalow at Jervois Hill in Tanglin was recently sold for a cool S$58 million.

It was sold by the daughter of Wah Loon Engineering founder Alan Chong, to the grandson of Indonesian conglomerate Sinar Mas founder Eka Tjipta Widjaja, The Business Times reported.

The property occupies a freehold site with an area of 15,094 sq ft, pricing it at nearly S$3,900 per square foot (psf).

Part of the Chatsworth Park Good-Class Bungalow (GCB) area, the property was transacted in February but the title was only transferred in May to the new owner, Indonesian billionaire businessman Fuganto Widjaja.

Widjaja is also the executive chairman of Indonesian coal producer Golden Energy and Resources.

The house

According to EdgeProp, the property was initially bought by Chong for his daughter Eileen, in June 2018.

Back then, Chong paid S$41.2 million for the newly-built bungalow, which was a record price for a GCB sale at the time.

The 12,000 sq ft house has three levels, including the basement, and features a floating sculptural staircase.

Developed by property investor George Lim with sustainability in mind, the house has 300 solar panels on the roof as well as outdoor decks made of renewable wood.

It also has five en suite bedrooms with walk-in wardrobes, a wall aquarium which can hold 800 fish, a wine cellar, home theatre, dedicated games room, and a carpark that can fit 10 cars.

The potential sale of the bungalow was first reported in 2022.

At that point, it was in the early stages of being sold for close to S$59 million, according to The Straits Times.

The prospective buyer was reportedly a Singaporean investor in his 50s.

Background

Singapore has 39 GCB areas, with only about 2,700 properties classified as GCBs.

URA guidelines stipulate a minimum plot size of 1,400 square metres or 15,070 sq ft, for newly-built bungalows in GCB areas.

Generally, one has to be a Singaporean to buy a landed property in a GCB area.

Nine GCBs changed hands in the first half of 2024, in deals worth S$219m in total, according to a Jun. 8 PropNex report cited in Singapore Business Review.

This was 8 per cent higher than the GCB sales in the second half of 2023.

Top image from Google Street View