By Joyce Teo

A HOUSING Board sale of new flats in Woodlands has attracted strong demand, with bigger flats keenly sought after.

Champions Court, a build-to-order (BTO) project, closed yesterday with 3,239 applications for just 815 units. The final update will be made at 2pm today.

The 224 studio apartments - offered for the first time in Woodlands - drew 632 applications, while 422 potential buyers chased the 182 three-room flats. Studios are priced indicatively from $57,000 to $80,000, with the three-roomers at $118,000 to $142,000.

The 224 four-room flats - from $194,000 to $227,000 - attracted 1,239 applications. The 185 five-roomers, which will cost about $247,000 to $296,000, received 946 bids.

PropNex chief executive Mohd Ismail said the robust demand for the four- and five-room flats was expected, given that they are in a mature estate and priced affordably.

Champions Court is at the junction of Champions Way and Woodlands Avenue 1 and near the Woodlands Regional Centre.

The HDB had earlier provided data that showed that comparable four-room resale flats in Woodlands were selling for $255,000 to $278,000, while five-room resale units went for $304,000 to $345,000.

The overall median cash-over-valuation for a resale flat in Woodlands was $15,000 in the fourth quarter of last year.

A sale in a more central part of Singapore is unlikely to attract the same level of demand as the flats would be priced at a higher quantum, said Mr Ismail.

'Whoever applies now will be stuck with it for eight years, including the construction and minimum occupation periods,' he said.

'Therefore, a three-room flat may not be ideal for a family with kids, in today's affluent society.'

This article was first published in The Straits Times.