The Mkz

Overview & Key Facts

The MKZ sits at 131 Mackenzie Road in a pocket of District 9 that defies easy categorisation. It is technically CCR — part of the Core Central Region — yet its immediate streetscape is the vibrant, aromatic, resolutely unglamorous fringe of Little India, not the sanitised luxury corridors of Orchard or River Valley. That tension is the development’s most interesting quality, and the chief reason it attracts a very specific kind of buyer: one who values freehold CCR land at a genuine sub-$2,000 psf entry point and is unbothered by the cultural intensity of the neighbourhood surrounding it.

The 42-unit boutique development was completed in 2017 by RL Central Pte Ltd, the development arm of Roxy-Pacific Holdings — a Singapore-listed developer with a track record of small-format freehold residential projects in city-fringe and inner-city locations. Roxy-Pacific’s MO is deliberate: acquire compact freehold sites, deliver boutique buildings with efficient floor plates and basic-but-sufficient amenities, and price for the investor and compact-lifestyle owner rather than the family upsizer. The MKZ fits this template precisely. The single 6-storey block contains 42 units ranging from 1-bedroom-plus-study configurations at 441–517 sqft up to 4-bedroom PES units at 1,098 sqft, with the bulk (21 units, 50% of the building) being 2-bedroom apartments of 495–603 sqft.

With only 9 resale transactions recorded over the full sales history and an average transacted price of S$1,122,531, The MKZ occupies a singular niche: the most affordable freehold entry point in CCR District 9 for investors seeking yield. At S$1,750 psf average over the past 12 months and a gross yield of 4.12% on 105 recorded rental transactions, the investment arithmetic is the headline story. For context, freehold peers like The Avenir (River Valley) trade at S$3,190 psf with yields below 3%. The MKZ trades at barely half the PSF and yields meaningfully more — reflecting the Little India location discount, the boutique scale, and the compact unit sizes that attract short-to-medium-term tenants over long-horizon owner-occupiers.

Location & Connectivity

Mackenzie Road runs parallel to Serangoon Road — the spine of Little India — one block east, connecting Rochor Canal Road at the south to Race Course Road at the north. The MKZ sits near the southern end of this stretch, placing residents at the precise convergence of three distinct Singapore urban worlds: the heritage shophouse fabric of Little India to the north, the colonial civic grandeur of Dhoby Ghaut and Fort Canning to the south, and the Rochor/Bugis cultural-arts corridor to the east. It is, by any measure, an extraordinarily central address.

The MRT picture is a genuine highlight. Little India MRT station (DT12/NE7) — a dual-line interchange serving both the Downtown Line and the North-East Line — is approximately 0.30 km from the building, a 4-minute flat walk. This gives The MKZ residents one-seat access to the CBD via the Downtown Line (Telok Ayer, Downtown in under 15 minutes), and direct NEL access to Dhoby Ghaut, Outram Park, and HarbourFront. Rochor MRT (DT13) is 0.75 km away, adding a second Downtown Line node. Dhoby Ghaut MRT (CC1/NE6/NS24) — one of Singapore’s most connected three-line interchanges — is 0.87 km, reachable on foot in under 12 minutes. Few condos anywhere in Singapore sit within walking distance of a dual-line interchange and a three-line interchange simultaneously.

For drivers, access is efficient if occasionally congested at peak hours: Rochor Road and the Central Expressway (CTE) slip road at Cavenagh Road are within two minutes’ drive, connecting to the wider expressway network. Orchard Road is a 7-minute drive; Raffles Place and the CBD are 10 minutes. The one caveat: parking is limited to the building’s own basement carpark, and on-street parking along Mackenzie Road is metered and competitive during business hours.

Day-to-day amenities are exceptional for the price point. Tekka Centre, one of Singapore’s most celebrated wet markets and hawker centres, is a 5-minute walk — serving some of the most authentic Indian, Malay, and Chinese food on the island at hawker prices. The Verge mall (Sheng Siong Hypermarket, pharmacy, food court) is 0.35 km away. Mustafa Centre — the 24-hour hypermarket and institution of Singapore life — is a 10-minute walk north on Serangoon Road. Fort Canning Park, Singapore’s hill-top heritage green space, is a 12-minute walk south. Plaza Singapura, Cathay and Dhoby Ghaut’s shopping belt are 0.87 km away — walkable on a good day, one MRT stop on a hot one.

Schools & Education

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

Facilities

The MKZ is a boutique 42-unit development and its facilities reflect this honestly. The building offers a swimming pool with pool deck, a gymnasium, an outdoor seating area, a BBQ pit, covered car parking, and 24-hour security. There is no tennis court, no function room, no steam room, and no children’s pool — this is a practical amenity set sized for a 42-unit building, not a resort development. Maintenance fees run accordingly lean, which is a real attraction for investors who want tight operating costs on a rental unit without bleeding monthly MCST levies to fund a half-empty squash court.

“Best location and a great quiet condo! Facilities are not the best but the apartments are really nice and the building is well-kept. For the price and the freehold title, it’s hard to argue against it. My tenant has renewed twice.”

— Owner review via 99.co, 2024

The pool is modest in scale but functional, and resident feedback consistently describes the building as quiet and well-maintained given its proximity to the bustle of Serangoon Road. The key insight on facilities: buyers and tenants who choose The MKZ are choosing it for the address and yield, not for the amenity package. Those who need a lap pool, a full gym, and a tennis court should budget for a larger development such as Sophia Hills or Soleil @ Sinaran. Those who want a sharp freehold CCR investment with strong rental demand and low carrying cost will find the facilities here entirely proportionate.

Unit Sizes & Layout

The MKZ’s 42 units are compact by any measure, but the efficiency of the floor plates — a hallmark of Roxy-Pacific boutique developments — makes the spaces feel liveable rather than cramped. The dominant unit type is 2-bedroom (495–603 sqft, 21 units), which is the sweet spot for rental demand in this corridor: affordable enough for a young professional couple, large enough for a work-from-home setup, and at a total price of S$900k–S$1.1m, accessible to investors with standard loan quantum. The 1-bedroom-plus-study (441–517 sqft, 2 units) are the highest-yielding format — typically targeting single expatriate professionals and international students at nearby LASALLE College of the Arts (0.61 km) or SMU (1.15 km). The 3-bedroom (700–732 sqft, 14 units) configuration is an unusual offering at this scale: genuinely 3-bedroom in layout, albeit with compact individual room sizes.

The single 4-bedroom PES unit (1,098 sqft) at ground level is The MKZ’s outlier — the only unit with private outdoor space, and at S$1.9 million (the highest recorded transaction at the development), it represents a different buyer profile entirely. Stack orientations in a 6-storey block with limited setbacks mean upper floors have open-sky views toward Little India’s low-rise shophouse fabric on the north and west, while lower floors face into Mackenzie Road itself. The road is not a major arterial route, and resident feedback consistently describes the building as quieter than expected given its proximity to Serangoon Road. Units on the upper floors benefit from morning sun and Little India rooftop views; lower-floor units facing the road carry some ambient street noise from evening activity.

Pricing & Market Position

Based on 9 recorded transactions, sale prices range from $888,888 to $1,580,000, averaging $1,122,531 (~$1,750 psf).

Rents range from $1,900 to $6,600 per month across 105 rental transactions. Current rental yield sits at approximately 4.1%.

Price Appreciation

From 2021 to 2025, the average PSF has appreciated by 6.7% (from $1,717 to $1,832 psf).

Neighbourhood Comparison

Within the D9 CCR landscape, The MKZ’s closest comparables are not the luxury towers of River Valley but rather the other city-fringe boutique freeholds along the Mackenzie–Race Course Road corridor. Mackenzie 88 (also freehold, Rochor area) trades at a similar compact-boutique profile with comparable MRT proximity. Moving south toward the established luxury corridor, the comparison becomes philosophical rather than direct: The Avenir (S$3,190 psf, 376 units, River Valley) offers full resort facilities, established luxury branding, and larger units — but at nearly double The MKZ’s PSF with yields below 3%. Kopar at Newton (S$2,512 psf, 99-year leasehold) offers modern facilities and a 99-year lease, but trades at 44% premium on PSF with no freehold upside. Irwell Hill Residences (S$2,726 psf, 99-year leasehold) is in a similar position.

The honest trade-off matrix is clear: buyers optimising for capital growth and luxury lifestyle should budget S$2,500–3,200 psf for River Valley and accept the lower yield. Buyers optimising for freehold tenure, yield, and CCR MRT proximity at the most efficient entry price in the district should look no further than The MKZ. There is no other development in D9 that simultaneously offers freehold title, sub-S$1.8K psf pricing, 4%+ gross yield, and a dual-line MRT interchange within 300 metres. The discount to peers is real, structural, and pricing in the Little India location — a discount that investors comfortable with the neighbourhood can harvest as yield.

ShiokNest Scores

Our proprietary scoring system evaluates THE MKZ across multiple dimensions.

What Residents Say

“Very cosy and quiet project — quieter than I expected for a building this close to Serangoon Road. The Little India vibe is actually a positive for me; great food within walking distance every day. My only wish is a slightly larger pool.”

— Resident review via Singapore Expats Condo Directory, 2025

“Bought it as an investment and it has performed well. Tenant turnover has been low — my current tenant is on the third renewal. The dual MRT access at Little India station is what I always highlight to prospective tenants: they can reach the CBD in under 15 minutes door-to-door. That sells itself.”

— Owner-investor review via 99.co, 2024

“Unique residence in the bustling city centre. Well-equipped for a small development. Facilities are lean but so are the maintenance fees. If you need a tennis court and a clubhouse, this isn’t for you. If you want a freehold address 300 metres from an MRT interchange at under $2K psf, there is simply nothing else like it in D9.”

— Buyer review via PropertyGuru, 2024

The pattern across review platforms is consistent: residents who chose The MKZ knowingly — for the yield, the freehold title, and the MRT proximity — are satisfied buyers. The friction points raised are invariably facility-scale (pool size, no function room) rather than fundamental issues. The neighbourhood itself receives more positive mentions than negative from actual residents, with Tekka Centre’s hawker food cited repeatedly as a genuine lifestyle amenity rather than a detraction. The median tenancy renewal pattern (multiple renewals per unit) is a strong implicit signal of tenant satisfaction with the location.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Verdict

The MKZ is a focused proposition: a 42-unit freehold CCR boutique yielding 4.12% gross on a S$1,750 psf entry point, with a dual-line MRT interchange four minutes’ walk from the lobby. Those three facts, taken together, make the investment case almost self-evident for the right buyer. No other freehold property in District 9 offers this combination of yield, MRT proximity, and sub-$2,000 psf pricing. The trade-off is the Little India address — a neighbourhood that many Singaporean owner-occupiers and aspirational buyers filter out on lifestyle or perception grounds, but which international tenants, young professionals, arts students, and yield-focused investors find genuinely compelling.

The weaknesses are real and should be weighed honestly. The unit count of 42 creates low liquidity: resale transaction volume is thin, and exit timing requires patience. The compact unit sizes (median 2-bedroom at 540 sqft) will not suit families, and the facilities package cannot compete with larger developments. The neighbourhood carries a noise and cultural-intensity profile that differs materially from the sanitised quiet of, say, a River Valley condo — Serangoon Road’s weekend markets, temple processions, and late-night activity are part of the texture here, and buyers should visit on a Sunday evening before committing. PSF appreciation has been modest — trending from ~S$1,717 to ~S$1,834 psf over the available window, reflecting limited capital growth ambition from a yield-led investor base rather than a compelling upside story.

The competitive comparison with CCR peers makes the value case starkly clear. The Avenir at River Valley trades at S$3,190 psf freehold; Irwell Hill Residences at S$2,726 psf on a 99-year lease; River Green at S$3,134 psf; Kopar at Newton at S$2,512 psf. The MKZ at S$1,750 psf freehold is priced at roughly 55–65 cents per dollar of those peers. The discount reflects location and scale, not tenure. For investors who have made peace with the Little India address, The MKZ offers the rare Singapore proposition of freehold CCR land at a price where the yield actually works.