Leonie Condotel
Overview & Key Facts
Leonie Condotel is a 128-unit development on Leonie Hill Road in District 9 (CCR), developed by Far East Organization and completed in 1997. The address sits in the Leonie Hill residential enclave — one of Singapore’s most prestigious but understated private housing corridors, running between Great World City and the Orchard Road retail belt. The name “Condotel” reflects the development’s originally designed hybrid model combining serviced apartment and conventional condo formats, which has implications for unit layout, building services, and MCST structure that buyers should clarify before purchase.
The most powerful data point here is the rental record: 434 transactions averaging S$10,662 and a median of S$11,100. This is among the largest rental datasets for any boutique D9 development in our database and provides a robust basis for yield analysis. Great World MRT (Thomson-East Coast Line) at 170 metres places the development in the exceptional sub-400m MRT tier — a 2-minute walk to one of the TEL’s most strategically located stations.
The critical lease context: at 99 years commencing from approximately 1995–1997, the remaining lease is approximately 70 years as of 2026. This places the development exactly at the threshold where lease decay headwinds begin to materialise in earnest. Within 10 years, the lease will drop below 60 years — triggering the 30-year maximum loan cap. This is the primary financial constraint that buyers must price into any purchase decision. The Great World MRT proximity, the Orchard-adjacent address, and the Far East Organization pedigree support the narrative; the lease trajectory works against it.
Location & Connectivity
Leonie Hill Road is a quiet, tree-lined residential lane that runs from River Valley Road to Orchard Boulevard, sitting at the intersection of the River Valley and Orchard Hill residential precincts. The Leonie Hill precinct is defined by luxury residential towers (The Orchard Residences, The Trillium, Centennia Suites, and the River Valley GCB belt to the south) — a consistently high-prestige address classification maintained across multiple property cycles. The hill itself provides elevation above the Great World City retail and residential cluster, with some units commanding river or city skyline views.
Great World MRT (Thomson-East Coast Line) at 170 metres is one of Singapore’s most underutilised connectivity assets from a market recognition standpoint. Great World on the TEL provides direct services to Orchard (1 stop), Newton (2 stops, with North-South Line interchange), and Stevens (2 stops, with the Downtown Line’s orbital). Heading south on the TEL: the Marina Bay financial district, Shenton Way, Marina South. The TEL’s rapid expansion is steadily upgrading the practical connectivity of this station. Somerset MRT (North-South Line) at 660 metres extends the option set.
Day-to-day lifestyle infrastructure is anchored by Great World City (supermarket, cinema, F&B, services) immediately adjacent. The Orchard Road retail belt — ION Orchard, Paragon, Ngee Ann City — is one MRT stop north. The Singapore Botanic Gardens, UNESCO World Heritage Site, is accessible via Newton interchange. Kheng Cheng School at 210 metres is the nearest primary school; Fairfield Methodist School (Primary) at 700 metres and ACS Junior at 1.24km provide additional primary options within a competitive but manageable school-ballot radius.
Schools & Education
2 primary schools within the 1 km Priority Phase balloting radius.
| School | Type | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Kheng Cheng School | primary | Within 1 km |
| Fairfield Methodist School (Primary) | primary | Within 1 km |
| Gan Eng Seng School | secondary | ~1.2 km |
| Gan Eng Seng Primary School | primary | ~1.2 km |
| ACS (Junior) | primary | ~1.2 km |
| St. Anthony's Primary School | primary | ~1.3 km |
| Chatsworth International School (Orchard) | international | ~1.4 km |
| Outram Secondary School | secondary | ~1.5 km |
Facilities
At 128 units and given its condotel origins (Far East Organization, 1997), Leonie Condotel would have been built with a higher-than-average service specification: likely a full-service podium with swimming pool, gymnasium, meeting rooms, and potentially 24-hour concierge or front-desk services that distinguish it from purely residential condo blocks. The “condotel” format was a Far East Organization speciality in the 1990s and 2000s — developments with hotel-grade fitout and management targeting the long-stay corporate and diplomatic tenant market at the CCR premium tier.
The practical implication for current buyers is threefold: (a) the original high-specification fitout may have aged significantly after 28+ years (1997 vintage); (b) MCST levies may be structured differently from standard condos if hotel-management services remain embedded; and (c) some unit configurations may reflect the condotel original layout (serviced apartment or hotel room formats) rather than conventional 2BR/3BR/4BR residential floor plans. Buyers should inspect the specific unit and review MCST records carefully.
Great World City immediately adjacent substitutes effectively for any neighbourhood amenity gaps: FairPrice supermarket, multiple F&B levels, cinema, clinics, and retail services are a 2-minute walk. The Leonie Hill prestige precinct provides park-like low-density surrounds with mature trees, contributing to a quiet living environment despite the Orchard-adjacent location.
Neighbourhood Comparison
The D9 CCR competitive set is anchored by new launches: Irwell Hill Residences (99yr, 540 units, $2,728 psf), River Green (99yr, 524 units, $3,135 psf), and The Avenir (FH, 376 units, $3,190 psf). These developments offer modern amenity packages, active resale markets, and current CPF/loan eligibility without lease headwinds.
Against these benchmarks, Leonie Condotel’s 70-year lease and 1997 vintage create a structural pricing discount that is the source of both the risk and the opportunity. Buyers acquiring at a meaningful discount to The Avenir freehold pricing — adjusted for lease amortisation — can generate a rental yield from the S$11,100 median that the newer launches at $3,190 psf struggle to match. The trade-off is the condotel-era fitout, the approaching lease threshold, and the progressively narrowing buyer universe. For an investor comfortable with the lease mathematics and planning a rental-income hold, the Leonie Hill location plus Great World MRT creates a credible proposition at the right purchase price.
| Development | Tenure | TOP | Units | ~Avg PSF |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LEONIE CONDOTEL | 1997 | 128 | — | |
| IRWELL HILL RESIDENCES | 99 yrs lease commencing from 2020 | 2021 | 540 | $2,728 |
| RIVER GREEN | 99 yrs lease commencing from 2024 | 2025 | 524 | $3,135 |
| RIVER MODERN | 99 years leasehold | — | — | $3,238 |
| THE AVENIR | Freehold | 2021 | 376 | $3,190 |
| KOPAR AT NEWTON | 99 yrs lease commencing from 2019 | 2021 | 378 | $2,512 |
Lease Decay Analysis
The 99-year lease runs from 1997, meaning approximately 29 years have already been consumed. Roughly 70 years remain — still comfortably within the range where most banks will offer full financing without restrictions.
| Year | Lease remaining | Implication |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (now) | ~70 years | Full bank financing available |
| 2027 | ~69 years | CPF usage still unrestricted for most buyers |
| 2036 | ~59 years | Approaching 60-year threshold — CPF limits begin for some |
| 2056 | ~39 years | Significant financing restrictions for next buyer |
| 2096 | Expiry | Lease reverts to state |
For a buyer purchasing today with a 10-year horizon (exit around 2036), the lease situation is essentially a non-issue — you’d be selling a property with ~60 years remaining, which is still very bankable. The risk profile changes for longer holds.
ShiokNest Scores
Our proprietary scoring system evaluates LEONIE CONDOTEL across multiple dimensions.
What Residents Say
“Leonie Hill is one of those addresses that never loses its prestige. The hill character, the mature trees, the proximity to Orchard without the noise — it’s a genuinely quiet CCR enclave that corporate tenants who know Singapore well specifically request.”
— Corporate relocation specialist in Singapore via Singapore Expats housing forum
“Great World MRT at 170 metres changed everything for this address. TEL puts you at Orchard in one stop, Newton interchange in two. The Leonie Hill location that was previously slightly inconvenient for MRT users is now one of the best-connected spots in D9.”
— D9 property investor via EdgeProp market commentary
“The condotel history is real — the layout and building services are different from a typical condo. But for the corporate tenants we place there, the full-service character is a selling point. They get Great World City downstairs and Orchard a MRT stop away.”
— Leasing agent active in D9 via PropertyGuru agent network
Strengths & Weaknesses
- Great World MRT (Thomson-East Coast Line) at 170m — exceptional sub-200m TEL access
- 434 rental transactions — largest rental dataset for any boutique D9 development; strong yield evidence
- Median rent S$11,100/month — robust corporate/diplomatic tenant demand
- Far East Organization pedigree — 1997 condotel-grade build specification
- Leonie Hill prestige address — consistently high residential classification
- Great World City immediately adjacent — supermarket, F&B, cinema at 2-minute walk
- Kheng Cheng School 210m away; Fairfield Methodist Primary 700m
- Somerset MRT (NSL) 660m for North-South Line access
- Orchard Road retail belt 1 TEL stop north
- 70-year remaining lease — drops below 60yr in ~10 years, triggering max 30yr loan cap
- Progressive CPF and loan restriction as lease approaches 60 years will suppress resale demand
- 1997 vintage condotel — fitout likely aged; MCST structure may differ from standard condo
- Zero resale caveats on record — no public psf benchmark
- Condotel unit configurations may not match conventional residential layout expectations
- Lease trajectory makes this unsuitable for buyers planning resale in 10–15 years
Verdict
Leonie Condotel is a nuanced investment case where two powerful positives (Great World MRT at 170 metres; 434-transaction rental dataset at S$11,100 median) are partially offset by two significant constraints (70-year lease with 10-year threshold to the 60-year CPF/loan restriction; condotel-era fitout requiring verification). Buyers who can purchase at a price that adequately discounts the lease trajectory — and who plan to rent rather than depend on capital appreciation — have a defensible medium-term hold case. The Great World TEL hub is likely to drive additional rental demand as the TEL network matures and more residential and commercial developments activate around the station.
Buyers who need CPF access for the maximum loan tenure or who are focused on resale upside should approach with caution. The lease clock is ticking in a way that will increasingly price out younger buyers dependent on CPF. Long-hold investors planning a 10–15 year hold with rental income as the primary return should model the lease-driven exit constraint explicitly.