Lentoria and Lentor Mansion, both launched in early 2024, are among the myriad of new launches in the Lentor Hills Area, including past launches such as Lentor Modern, Hillock Green, and Lentor Hills Residences.

What makes both of these projects so interesting to compare is that they have a lot of similarities: next to each other, within 1km of CHIJ St Nicholas Girls’, and launched within two weeks of each other.

One notable difference between the two projects is that the land for Lentoria was acquired before the changes in GFA but Lentor Mansion was acquired after. Thus, these two projects are perfect examples for analysing the real life implications of harmonisation of GFA.

Source: URA

What are the changes in GFA definitions all about?

Firstly, the important concept to know is that when the Government sells a plot of land, the land value is based on the GFA. Before harmonisation of GFA definitions, areas such as air con (AC) ledge and curtain walls were not included in the GFA when calculating the land value.

However, these areas (AC ledge, curtain walls) do not have any land cost but were included in the strata area when developers sold them to consumers.

After the harmonisation of GFA definitions, all strata areas are counted inside the GFA when calculating the land value, including air con ledge and curtain walls.

Thus, developers have to adopt new strategies due to the changes. One of the ways was to reduce land bid prices to maintain a similar profit margin (read more here). This is evident above when we look at Lentoria’s and Lentor Mansion’s land bid price.

In this article, we will be exploring the other implications of the changes in GFA definitions, especially when designing their unit.

Implication 1: AC Ledge

Source: Lentoria, Lentor Mansion

The first question that comes to your mind might be why the Lentor Mansion 2-bedroom unit is smaller than the 1-bedroom. Actually this has a large part to do with the new GFA rules.

Even though air con ledges are now included in the GFA calculations, there is an exception.

Source: URA

As you can see, the developers of Lentor Mansion have opted to make the AC ledge a non-strata area so that they are able to save on the land cost. Consequently, the non-strata area also cannot be sold to consumers. This is different for Lentoria.

Lentoria’s AC ledge was automatically not included in the GFA when the developers bought over the land as it was before the changes in GFA definitions. However, it was included in the strata area and was sold to the consumers.

This explains the similar size but Lentor Mansion is able to squeeze out one more bedroom as the strata area of Lentoria 1-bedroom included the AC ledge.

Another effect is that even though the developers of Lentor Mansion did not have to pay for the area of the AC ledge when purchasing the land, they still have to bear the construction cost for the ledge while not being able to sell this area to consumers.

This resulted in the AC ledge of Lentor Mansion being shorter than Lentoria AC ledge, leading to units in Lentor Mansion having fewer compressors.

As a buyer, not paying for the AC ledge certainly is a cause for celebration but not being able to cool the house down during a hot day might not be worth it.

Implication 2: Windows

Something interesting is that Lentoria has the usual full height windows, while Lentor Mansion decided to build ¾ height windows.

Lentoria Windows

Lentor Mansion Windows

As glass is generally a more expensive material compared to concrete, developers might want to preserve their profit margin after the changes in GFA definitions by not building full height windows anymore.

For consumers, the trade off for not having full height windows might be less appealing as they are one of the distinctive features of a condominium.

However, there are still ways to make it aesthetically pleasing by adjusting the placement of furniture as shown below.

Lentor Mansion Bedroom

Without full height windows, homeowners can now place furniture against the wall as there is no curb, offering them the full use of their paid-for space with the transition to a ¾ height window.

Other Implications

1. Flooring

Lentor Mansion's choice of vinyl flooring, in contrast to Lentoria's marble/porcelain flooring, suggests a strategic move by developers to protect their profit margin, considering the generally lower cost of vinyl compared to marble/porcelain.

Source: Lentor Mansion, Lentoria

2. Sliding Doors

The sliding door that Lentor Mansion uses is the wall-hung sliding door instead of a pocket sliding door.

Source: Lentor Mansion

Wall-hung sliding doors are cheaper compared to pocket sliding doors in construction. Additionally, pocket sliding doors, embedded within the wall, necessitate thicker walls.

Since GFA is measured to the midpoint of wall thickness, using wall-hung sliding doors can create the perception of a larger space due to its thinner walls.

3. Balcony

Shown below is a comparison of balcony sizes for Lentoria and Lentor Mansion.

Source: Lentor Mansion, Lentoria

In general, Lentor Mansion has a smaller balcony size compared to Lentoria. For buyers who prefer more outdoor space, Lentoria might be the choice to go. However, for buyers who prefer more utilisation of indoor space, they might opt for Lentor Mansion.

We can see that after the harmonisation of GFA definitions, not only do the developers have to strategically adjust their land bid price, there are also other effects when designing their units.

It will be interesting to see how the future design of condominium units will evolve due to the GFA changes.

UPDATE!! (18/3/2024)

Lentoria managed to sell 19% of its units during their launch while Lentor Mansion sold a whopping 75%!

Source: The Straits Times

Despite four prior launches, including Lentoria, Lentor Mansion still managed to sell out 75% of its units during its launch phase, indicating a strong demand and market appeal for the development.

This could be due to how Lentor Mansion being the more affordable choice and appealing to mass market consumers.

As we can see in the above comparison, Lentoria 1-bedroom and Lentor Mansion 2-bedroom units have the same size and the 2-bedroom is cheaper. As a consumer, I would buy the 2-bedroom in order to maximise my value for money.

Furthermore, Lentor Mansion is a bigger project, consisting of more than 400 units. Not only does this mean their management fee is cheaper, they would also get to enjoy more amenities within their development.