Tembusu Grand

Overview & Key Facts

Tembusu Grand is a 638-unit condominium at 92 Jalan Tembusu in District 15, developed by Tembusu Residential Pte Ltd — a joint venture between City Developments Limited (CDL) and MCL Land. The 99-year leasehold commenced in 2022, leaving approximately 95 years remaining (expiring 2121). The development occupies a generous 210,622 sqft site in the heart of the Katong–Mountbatten precinct, one of Singapore’s most culturally distinctive and enduringly popular residential corridors.

Tembusu Grand is a meaningful project for both developers. CDL and MCL Land together secured the Jalan Tembusu Government Land Sales (GLS) site with a top bid of $768 million ($1,302 psf ppr) in early 2022, outcompeting six other bidders in a period of intense developer competition for well-located city-fringe sites. The land cost signals both the developer’s conviction in D15’s long-term residential premium and the recognition that quality GLS land in the East Coast corridor commands a price discipline that requires strong execution to justify. CDL, Singapore’s largest listed property developer, and MCL Land (a Hongkong Land subsidiary) together bring complementary track records: CDL from Amber Park, Irwell Hill Residences, and Canninghill Piers; MCL Land from Leedon Green, Parc Esta, and Piccadilly Grand.

The development is distributed across four towers of 20 and 21 storeys, offering a unit mix from 1-bedroom-plus-study (527 sqft) to 5-bedroom (1,711 sqft), with two exclusive penthouses at 2,691 sqft. At an average transacted price of $2,352,682 and average PSF of $2,461, Tembusu Grand occupies the premium city-fringe tier of the Singapore residential market — a PSF that reflects the Katong–East Coast corridor’s sustained desirability, the developers’ land cost discipline, and the development’s positioning as a quality family home product within one of Singapore’s most established heritage residential enclaves.

The average monthly rent of $5,984 implies a gross yield of approximately 3.1% — a materially more attractive yield than most comparable CCR and prime OCR/RCR new launches, and a figure that makes Tembusu Grand genuinely competitive as both a lifestyle purchase and a rental investment vehicle. For owner-occupiers, the East Coast address, the CDL-MCL Land execution quality, and the Katong lifestyle catchment combine to create a residential proposition with broad market appeal — especially for families drawn to the precinct’s school options, park connectivity, and heritage neighbourhood character.

Location & Connectivity

Tembusu Grand sits on Jalan Tembusu in the Katong–Mountbatten neighbourhood — a precinct that combines genuine cultural depth, strong school catchment, East Coast Park proximity, and the lifestyle amenity of the Katong–Tanjong Katong heritage strip. For buyers seeking a Singapore residential address with character, neighbourhood walkability, and long-established residential credibility, District 15 East consistently ranks among the most compelling options outside the Core Central Region.

MRT connectivity is the development’s most actively discussed attribute. Dakota MRT (CC8) on the Circle Line is approximately 930 metres away — a 10 to 12-minute walk, or a short bus ride. Paya Lebar MRT (EW8/CC9), a dual-line interchange serving both the East-West Line and the Circle Line, is approximately 1.5 kilometres away. Critically, the forthcoming Tanjong Katong MRT station (TE25) on the Thomson-East Coast Line will be within a 5-minute walk of the development, providing a direct line to the CBD, Orchard, and Woodlands when completed. This TEL station represents the single most significant infrastructure upgrade for Tembusu Grand’s connectivity profile, and will materially improve the development’s transit accessibility for residents commuting to the city centre.

The lifestyle geography of the Katong address is one of the strongest in Singapore’s city-fringe residential market. East Coast Park — Singapore’s most-used recreational coastal park — is accessible within a 10-minute cycle or drive. The Katong–Tanjong Katong heritage strip on East Coast Road and Joo Chiat Road offers Singapore’s most concentrated cluster of Peranakan shophouses, independent dining, specialty coffee, and boutique lifestyle retail. Parkway Parade shopping mall is a short distance away. The neighbourhood’s character combines urban convenience with preserved heritage streetscape in a way that Orchard-adjacent and Marina Bay-adjacent addresses simply cannot replicate.

The school catchment is a particular draw for family buyers. Within 1km, schools accessible in Phase 2A and 2B priority include Tanjong Katong Primary School, Haig Girls’ School, and Kong Hwa School. Tao Nan School and CHIJ (Katong) Primary are within approximately 1.5–1.6km, qualifying for 2B priority. Secondary schools in the broader catchment include Tanjong Katong Girls’ School, Tanjong Katong Secondary, and CHIJ Katong Convent — a concentration of well-regarded schools that consistently makes D15 one of Singapore’s most sought-after family residential precincts. For parents prioritising primary school proximity, few non-CCR addresses match the quality density of D15’s school catchment.

The broader East Coast corridor is supported by multiple medium-term infrastructure tailwinds. The TEL completion, ongoing rejuvenation of the Paya Lebar sub-regional centre (major commercial and retail expansion), and the URA Master Plan’s designation of the Greater East Coast region as an important residential and commercial growth node all point to sustained demand for D15 residential addresses over the coming decade.

Schools & Education

4 primary schools within the 1 km Priority Phase balloting radius.

Facilities

Tembusu Grand delivers a 41-facility programme across its 210,622 sqft site — a facilities density that is deliberately generous relative to the development’s 638-unit count, reflecting CDL and MCL Land’s positioning of Tembusu Grand as a family-lifestyle product rather than a compact urban investor play. The facilities design draws conceptual inspiration from the Tembusu tree’s sculptural form and the Katong heritage landscape, with an emphasis on lush landscaping, layered recreational zones, and a signature hotel-style hospitality layer.

The centrepiece aquatic amenity is a 50-metre lap pool — competition-length and rarely included in sub-800-unit developments at this price point. Alongside the lap pool, residents have access to a leisure pool, spa pool, relaxing pool, and a wading pool for younger children — a comprehensive water amenity programme that caters to serious fitness users and families simultaneously. The surrounding pool deck incorporates landscaped pavilions, BBQ stations, and lawn areas that extend the recreational perimeter beyond the water features themselves.

The Tembusu Club is the development’s most distinctive facilities feature: a private dining and observation deck at Level 2 offering views over the lushly landscaped estate and the surrounding Katong precinct. The Tembusu Club positions the development’s social facilities as a premium amenity experience rather than a functional utility — a deliberate CDL brand decision consistent with their broader luxury-tier developments. The gymnasium, yoga studio, tennis court (at Level 5), and fitness-focused amenities round out a comprehensive active-lifestyle programme.

“The 50m lap pool and the Tembusu Club together set this apart from most D15 condos. You can entertain at the private dining room and then walk down to the pool. The scale of the facilities for 638 units is genuinely impressive.”

— Buyer review via 99.co

What genuinely differentiates Tembusu Grand at the service level is the inclusion of a Residential Services counter — effectively a hotel-style front desk staffed by Residential Hosts who handle parcel collection, transport booking, restaurant reservations, and day-to-day concierge requests. While some services will be chargeable, this level of built-in hospitality infrastructure is unusual in a mid-tier city-fringe development and reflects CDL’s conscious effort to import hotel-living service expectations into the residential context. For busy professional and expatriate households, the Residential Services model meaningfully reduces daily friction in ways that a conventional condominium management office cannot.

Unit Sizes & Layout

Tembusu Grand’s 638 units span five bedroom configurations across four towers (Blocks 92A–92D), ranging from 1-bedroom-plus-study (527 sqft) to 5-bedroom (1,711 sqft) with two penthouses at 2,691 sqft. The unit mix deliberately skews toward mid-sized family configurations — 2-bedroom, 3-bedroom, and 4-bedroom layouts form the core of the development’s offering, positioning Tembusu Grand clearly as a family-oriented product rather than an investor-compact or shoebox-dominant development. This configuration philosophy is consistent with CDL and MCL Land’s shared positioning of the development as a quality home for the Katong family buyer.

The unit design takes architectural cues from the Tembusu tree — Singapore’s national tree — and the surrounding Katong heritage landscape. Layouts are characterised by efficient space planning, full-length balconies in most configurations, and natural light optimisation across the four tower orientations. The specification reflects CDL’s quality positioning: fully fitted kitchens with quality appliances, premium bathroom fittings, and engineered timber or marble flooring across bedroom and living areas. The development’s interior design philosophy is contemporary-residential rather than ornate luxury, appropriate for a product targeting Singapore’s well-educated professional and family demographic.

The 1-bedroom-plus-study configuration at 527 sqft is compact by D15 standards but efficiently planned for single-occupant or investor-buyer use cases. The 3- and 4-bedroom units at approximately 1,044 to 1,485 sqft represent the development’s strongest family living proposition: generous enough for a family of four, priced at a quantum that remains accessible for dual-income professional households, and located in one of Singapore’s most desirable family residential precincts. The 5-bedroom and penthouse units at the top of the range extend to genuinely spacious proportions — the penthouses at 2,691 sqft rival landed home floor plates while retaining the service and amenity infrastructure of the condominium format.

At an average PSF of $2,461, Tembusu Grand was priced at launch as the most attractively valued of the three major D15 new launches in 2023 (Grand Dunman at $2,500 PSF; The Continuum at $2,732 PSF), despite CDL and MCL Land’s premium developer credentials. This deliberate pricing strategy — value-competitive within the peer set while delivering CDL-quality execution — contributed to a strong 53% take-up on launch day (338 units sold), reflecting genuine buyer conviction in the development’s value positioning.

Pricing & Market Position

Across 645 recorded transactions (all-time), sale prices range from $1,248,000 to $4,244,000, averaging $2,355,034.

Over the last 12 months, transactions averaged $2,540 psf.

Rents range from $3,300 to $11,500 per month across 218 rental transactions. Current rental yield sits at approximately 2.4%.

Rental Yield by Bedroom Type

Blended yield hides the spread between unit sizes — smaller units at TEMBUSU GRAND typically rent harder per dollar of purchase price. The final column shows monthly rent per $100,000 invested, so unit sizes compare on equal capital:

Price Appreciation

From 2023 to 2026, the average PSF has appreciated by 9% (from $2,473 to $2,697 psf).

Neighbourhood Comparison

The three dominant D15 new launches of 2023 — Tembusu Grand, Grand Dunman, and The Continuum — offer a directly comparable set of choices for the D15 residential buyer, and the three-way comparison is the essential reference frame for evaluating Tembusu Grand’s positioning.

Grand Dunman (1,008 units, 99-year, Dakota MRT adjacent, $2,500 PSF average launch) is the MRT-connectivity leader of the trio. Dunman Road places the development within a short walk of Dakota MRT (CC8), and the scale at 1,008 units creates a development mass that functions almost as a precinct in itself. Grand Dunman’s MRT proximity and competitive launch PSF made it the highest-volume seller on launch day (550 units, 54.6% take-up). For buyers who place direct MRT access at the top of their priority stack, Grand Dunman is the structurally stronger case within D15’s 2023 cohort. Tembusu Grand concedes MRT proximity to Grand Dunman but counters with a smaller, more intimate development scale (638 vs 1,008 units), the CDL-MCL Land dual-brand quality premium, a richer facilities density per unit, and a marginally closer proximity to the Katong heritage strip and school catchment.

The Continuum (816 units, freehold, Haig Road, $2,732 PSF average launch) is the tenure-premium option. As the only freehold offering among the three, The Continuum commands approximately a 10–11% PSF premium over Tembusu Grand — a premium justified for legacy buyers and multi-generational planning, but one that requires a materially higher investment quantum and implies a lower rental yield. The Continuum’s freehold tenure is its single strongest differentiator; in all other dimensions (MRT proximity, school catchment, facilities scale), it is broadly comparable to Tembusu Grand without matching the CDL–MCL Land brand premium or the 50m lap pool and Tembusu Club facilities programme.

Beyond the 2023 cohort, the most relevant longer-standing D15 comparables are Parc Esta (1,399 units, 99-year, Eunos MRT, MCL Land, 2022 TOP) and Amber Park (592 units, 99-year, Amber Road, CDL, 2023 TOP). Parc Esta trades at approximately $2,100–$2,200 PSF in resale, reflecting the Eunos (rather than Katong) address, its larger scale, and four-year lease decay since TOP. Amber Park resale transactions average approximately $2,400–$2,500 PSF, closely tracking Tembusu Grand’s launch PSF — a useful reference given CDL’s involvement in both and the comparable D15 address quality. Both comparables support the view that Tembusu Grand’s $2,461 PSF represents fair market pricing for CDL-grade execution at a prime D15 address, with the TEL-driven connectivity upgrade providing incremental upside relative to the historical D15 PSF trajectory.

The older stock in the immediate Katong–Jalan Tembusu corridor — including Katong Regency and various older freehold boutique blocks along Joo Chiat and Amber Roads — prices in the $1,600–$2,000 PSF range, reflecting lease decay and older specifications. These represent the discount entry point to the D15 lifestyle catchment for buyers who can accept older vintage, rather than genuine substitutes for the quality and facilities standard of Tembusu Grand.

Lease Decay Analysis

The 99-year lease runs from 2022, meaning approximately 4 years have already been consumed. Roughly 95 years remain — still comfortably within the range where most banks will offer full financing without restrictions.

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 ~85 years remaining, which is still very bankable. The risk profile changes for longer holds.

ShiokNest Scores

Our proprietary scoring system evaluates TEMBUSU GRAND across multiple dimensions.

What Residents Say

“We chose Tembusu Grand for the school catchment above everything else. Tanjong Katong Primary is within 1km, and with the TEL coming, the MRT gap concern is essentially resolved. The Katong address is irreplaceable for families who want a neighbourhood with character, not just a condo.”

— Owner feedback via PropertyGuru

“The Tembusu Club and the private dining room are genuinely hotel-quality. We have hosted family dinners there several times and the experience has been consistently excellent. CDL and MCL Land have not cut corners on the fit-out.”

— Resident comment via 99.co

“The 50m lap pool at 7am with no queue is what I needed. At 638 units on such a large site, you never feel crowded. The facilities to unit ratio here is much better than most new launches I have seen in this price range.”

— Tenant review via SRX

“Katong is not just a postcode — it is a lifestyle. East Coast Park at the weekend, the Katong shophouses for dinner, the heritage Peranakan streets. You pay the D15 premium and you get a genuine neighbourhood, not just a condo in a generic urban block.”

— Investor comment via EdgeProp

“The Residential Services desk is a genuine differentiator. Having someone manage parcel collection and help with transport bookings is a small thing, but for a busy household it reduces friction meaningfully. It feels more like living in a serviced residence than a standard condo.”

— Owner feedback via SgHomeInvestment

The resident and buyer feedback pattern at Tembusu Grand consistently centres on three themes: the irreplaceable Katong neighbourhood character, the CDL-MCL Land execution quality across both the facilities and unit finishes, and the TEL connectivity upgrade as a forward-looking infrastructure tailwind. The development attracts a recognisably family-oriented demographic — Singapore professionals with school-age children, East Coast corridor loyalists upgrading within the precinct, and expatriate families drawn to the heritage neighbourhood character and East Coast Park proximity. Investor buyers consistently cite the 3.1% gross yield as a genuine income return — one of the stronger yields among comparable D15 new launches — alongside the school-catchment premium as a structural rental demand driver.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Verdict

Tembusu Grand’s investment thesis rests on three durable pillars: Katong heritage address premium, CDL–MCL Land execution quality, and the TEL connectivity upgrade that systematically addresses the one structural concern historically associated with the East Coast corridor. Together, these pillars support a residential proposition that is genuinely compelling across multiple buyer profiles — unusually so for a single development.

The financial metrics are more balanced than most Singapore new launches at this price point. A 3.1% gross yield at average rent $5,984/month against an average price of $2,352,682 represents a genuine income return — one that covers a meaningful proportion of financing costs for leveraged buyers and provides a real rental income story for pure investors. The $2,461 PSF launch pricing was, at the time, the most attractive value proposition among the three major D15 2023 new launches, and the post-launch take-up of 53% on day one confirmed that buyers recognised and acted on that positioning.

Tembusu Grand is the right answer for family buyers and city-fringe investors who want CDL–MCL Land quality execution, an irreplaceable Katong heritage address, a generous facilities programme, and an incoming TEL connectivity upgrade — all at a PSF that was priced with discipline relative to the 2023 D15 peer set.

The 99-year leasehold commencing 2022 with approximately 95 years remaining is structurally strong: CPF usage is fully unrestricted, bank financing is unconstrained, and lease decay is effectively irrelevant for any buyer with a realistic hold horizon of under 30 years. Compared to the generation of D15 condos with 60–75 years remaining, Tembusu Grand’s leasehold status is close to functionally equivalent to freehold for most buyers, and the 9.0 lease rating reflects this accurately.

The primary considerations for prospective buyers are the current MRT walking distance (10–12 minutes to Dakota MRT, addressable by the TEL), the 99-year tenure for buyers with legacy planning priorities (The Continuum is the freehold alternative), and the premium quantum relative to older D15 stock. None of these are structural deficiencies — they are trade-offs that define the target buyer profile rather than disqualifying factors. For that target buyer — a Singapore professional family, an East Coast lifestyle loyalist, or a yield-seeking investor who wants quality at a fair price — Tembusu Grand delivers a residential proposition that is among the strongest available in the D15 market for its launch vintage and price tier.

CDL and MCL Land have delivered a development that honours both the Tembusu tree concept and the Katong heritage context it inhabits. The execution quality, the facilities generosity, and the Residential Services hospitality layer together create a product that will age well as the East Coast corridor’s TEL-driven connectivity transformation matures over the next five years. For buyers who have been watching D15, Tembusu Grand is a well-timed, well-priced, and well-executed entry into one of Singapore’s most enduringly desirable residential precincts.