AN UNUSUAL auction of an apartment at King's Mansion off Tanjong Katong Road has attracted strong bidding - driving up the sale price to $1.59 million, well above expectations.

The condominium's management corporation had taken the rare step of selling the three-bedroom property after the owners had disappeared for more than a decade.

The auction, conducted on Wednesday, came after the foreign owners had failed to pay property fees, which could have run up to $30,000 or more.

The management corporation had tried repeatedly to get in touch with the four owners and their lawyers - but to no avail.

The sale price was considered fairly strong in a generally weak auction market, analysts said.

The starting bid for the freehold 1,604 sq ft high-floor unit was $1.18 million, which was within the guide price of $1.1 million to $1.2 million.

Five bidders chased the price up, with a local businessman succeeding in buying the unit at $1.59 million, said Knight Frank's auctioneer, Ms Mary Sai.

This price works out to about $991 per sq ft (psf), considerably higher than the starting bid of $735 psf.

A somewhat larger unit at King's Mansion, at 1,808 sq ft, sold for $1,106 psf a few months back, according to a caveat lodged in February.

After deducting fees and other expenses, such as costs associated with arranging this week's auction, the management corporation is expected to keep the rest of the money in a trust for the owners.

Mystery surrounds why the owners departed the scene and why they have failed to make themselves known despite publicity prior to the auction.

If they ever do reappear to claim the balance of the sale proceeds, it is likely they will make a tidy profit.

This article was first published in The Straits Times on May 3, 2008.