In the bustling Singapore property market, two recent freehold development launches have caught the eye: Terra Hill and The Hillshore. Both promise unique living experiences in District 5, leveraging their hillside locations and proximity to the Greater Southern Waterfront. Let’s delve into a detailed comparison to see which might better suit your needs.
As before, we are comparing the 2 projects based on 7 factors.
Category 1: Distance to the nearest MRT Station
For Terra Hill, the nearest MRT Station is Pasir Panjang MRT Station, which is a 450m walk away, approximately 7 minutes walk according to Google Maps.
For The Hillshore, the nearest MRT Station is Haw Par Villa MRT Station, which is a 600m walk away, approximately 8 minutes walk according to Google Maps.
The 2 distances differ by a mere 150 metres, which should make Terra Hill the winner in this case. However, I think to walk 150 metres is rather insignificant. Instead the glaring difference is the availability of bus service along Pasir Panjang Road with 6 bus services. On a rainy day, this will definitely be a big plus. As for Terra Hill, it dwells within the landed enclave thus the ONLY way is to walk, be it rain or shine.
The winner for Category 1: The Hillshore!
Category 2: Number of MRT stops to the city centre (Raffles Place MRT Station)
Both these projects’ closest MRT Stations are on the Circle Line, which takes 2 interchanges over 3 lines to get to Raffles Place. Not the most straightforward way to get to Singapore’s CBD due to the walking time across interchanges plus the waiting time for trains. The good news is despite all that, it takes only 15 minutes from Pasir Panjang MRT Station to Raffles MRT Station.
From Haw Par Villa MRT Station, it is merely 2 minutes more to get to Raffles Place MRT Station. For the cost difference, it is negligible.
For this category, I would give it a tie.
The winner for Category 2: TIE!
Category 3: Distance to the nearest hawker centre
For Terra Hill, the nearest hawker centre is Pasir Panjang Food Centre, which is right next to Pasir Panjang MRT Station. The plus here is there is a sheltered overhead bridge to get to the MRT Station and Food Centre. To reach the hawker centre, the total walking distance is 550 metres at approximately 8 minutes. What is famous at this hawker, anyone?
The Hillshore does not have any hawker centres in its walking vicinity. It is however only 600 metres and 8 minutes walk from ORTO, which has restaurant dining and recreation options. It usually opens till late.
The winner for Category 3: Terra Hill
Category 4: Distance to the nearest shopping mall
There are no malls within immediate walking vicinity from these 2 projects. Terra Hill is closer to Alexandra Road at 1.4km away, which is still walkable if you are not carrying anything heavy. Down the stretch of mall options such as Alexandra Retail Centre (ARC), Queensway Shopping Centre, Alexandra Central and Anchorpoint, Terra Hill remains the closer project in comparision.
The Hillshore on the other hand, is twice the distance away from ARC at 3.3km, and 5.4km away from the next nearest mall, The Star Vista. The Star Vista is easily the biggest mall among them and with the most shopping variety., However, I would still pip Terra Hill the winner, purely on distance.
The winner for category 4: Terra Hill
Category 5: Primary schools within a 1 kilometre radius
I use this website elite.com.sg to check for primary schools within the vicinity of these 2 projects. For understanding, the blue circle is a 1km radius while the red circle is a 2km radius from the project location. The blue icon with a house landmarks a certain primary school.
For Terra Hill, the closest primary school is Blangah Rise Primary School, which is within the 2km radius (red circle).
The winner for category 5: TIE!
Category 6: Price per square foot
Located within 1 MRT Station away, these 2 projects with similar attributes would probably be priced competitively. Let us dive in for a closer look.
Terra Hill cheapest unit was transacted at SGD$1,875,000 for a 2 bedroom unit of 840sqft. (SGD$2,233 psf) with a total of 132 transactions at the point of writing.
The Hillshore cheapest unit was transacted at SGD$1,958,000 for a 2 bedroom unit of 829sqft. (SGD$2,362 psf) with a total of 4 transactions at the point of writing.
One thing to note is that Terra Hill has 270 units while The Hillshore has only 59 units. Does the number of units have an influence on the selling price? You can leave your thought in the comment section below.
The winner for category 6: Terra Hill!
Category 7: Premium over resale units in the vicinity
Singapore’s resale market is not vibrant by chance. Most of the locals may take our resale market for granted but this is exceptional when compared to many major cities or our neighbouring countries. What keeps our resale market so active for the longest time?
New and renewed developments of course, which includes both residential and commercial revamps.
For Terra Hill, I will pick Bijou completed in 2018 as the resale comparison due to its similar tenure and closest proximity in age of development. Based on the average price (S$psf), Terra Hill is at SGD$2,620 while Bijou is at SGD$1,928. This works out to a premium of 35.9%.
For The Hillshore, I will pick again the most recent last development in 2017, The Orient as comparison. Based on the average price (S$psf), The Hillshore is at SGD$2,534 while The Orient is at SGD$1,946. This works out to a premium of 30.2%.
The winner for category 7: The Hillshore!
The final score:
Terra Hill 3 vs The Hillshore 2!
Congratulations Terra Hill!
