Higher strata office and retail transacted values in 1H2025: Knight Frank
Among strata office complex in the Downtown Core, Manhattan House on Chin Swee Road stood out, logging 27 deals in 1H2025. “A possible reason for the enhanced rate of interest could be that clients were acquiring to make the most of an opportunity for a possible en bloc sale to materialise,” the record adds in.
Looking in advance, the expectation for the strata commercial industry remains tentative, in the middle of a backdrop of escalating geopolitical pressures, ongoing protectionist actions by the United States and worsening worldwide conditions. In addition, the strata retail field continues to be born down by rising operating costs and moving buyer behaviour, motivating retailers to take on slow development strategies, says Knight Frank.
In the strata office market, a total of 189 transactions were documented in 1H2025, more than the 170 offers logged in 2H2024. However, the common unit cost of strata office properties reselled declined, decreasing from $2,878 psf in 2H2024 to $2,787 psf in 1H2025.
Noteworthy strata retail deals in 1H2025 include the sale of units at Orchard Towers for $54.5 million, or $2,825 psf, in January. Generally, strata retail units negotiated at $3,004 psf in 1H2025, measured up to $2,999 psf in 2H2025.
In the strata retail market, there was an uptick in sales worth in 1H2025, in spite of a limited dip in volume. There were 113 strata retail deals in the initial half of the year, contrasted to 116 in 2H2024. “As with strata workplace units, certain strata retail deals might not have been captured as caveats were not lodged,” Knight Frank includes.
Because of this, overall strata office sales amount was marginally higher than the 2nd half of previous year, inching up just 0.6% to $699.6 million in 1H2025.
According to Knight Frank, the Downtown Core and the Rochor planning areas saw the highest possible number of deals. Caveats lodged show 44 units in the Downtown Core changing hands for $471.1 million, though the firm adds that the number of actual offers might be greater, as some buyers chose not to lodge signs.
Strata business offers saw stable energy in 1H2025, according to a research record by Knight Frank Singapore. Caveats lodged show that both the strata office and strata retail markets reported greater negotiated values in the first fifty percent of the year contrasted to the second half of past year.
Nonetheless, strata retail sales value completed $292.3 million in 1H2025, 35.5% higher than the $215.8 million in 2H2024. The increase was underpinned by a somewhat much higher range of larger deals, states Knight Frank. While most purchases in 2H2024 were smaller sized offers of under $4 million, there were 10 in 1H2025 that were above $5 million, including 4 negotiated at over $15 million.
The biggest strata workplace deal by absolute price in 1H2025 was the revenue of multiple units at 20 Collyer Quay for $91.8 million in March, complied with by the sale of three units at Tokio Marine Centre in January for $67.5 million.
Nevertheless, the firm marks that possibilities remain in both the strata workplace and strata retail markets. “Palatable and relatively competitive rate quanta in these niche sections offer timely and off-beat chances that can be attractive for cautious capitalists and end-users,” states Mary Sai, executive director for capital markets at Knight Frank Singapore.
