The Novena neighborhood has long sat in the shadows of its popular and glam neighbors to the south. Everyone from New York to Timbuktu knows and loves Orchard. Newton is famous for its hawker centre and the buzz that comes from high density, luxury living.
Poor, Novena. She was never invited to the ball...until now.
Sorry to interrupt this romantic tale with boring mathematics, but it turns out Novena is as smart as she looks. Here are her measurements.
By MRT, Novena is eleven minutes to Raffles Place, the financial hub of Singapore. That is an extra four minutes travel time compared to that of Orchard MRT. Yet, it is 27.5% less expensive to buy in Novena and 13.8% less expensive to rent. That’s quite a savings for only four more minutes on the train.
This is not the complete financial story. Novena has outperformed her neighbors and that of the overall prime districts since the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. OMG, Novena is looking even prettier by the second.
And, I hear she’s caring, too. She is blossoming into a regional, if not global, medical hub. Facilities in Novena include Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital, Thomson Medical Centre, and Novena Medical Center, which offers a wide range of specialist clinics.
Close to the MRT station is a new commercial project called Royal Square at Novena. It is slated for completion in 2017 and features retail, dining and medical suites, including clinics that cater to international patients.
A study by business consultancy RNCOS estimates medical tourism industry in Singapore to be worth around $1.74 billion, with growth expected to continue at a compounded annual rate of about 30% until 2017.
It sounds like Novena’s going to be rich. Be still, my beating heart.
To learn more about the buying opportunites in the Prime Districts, check out srx.com.sg/property-magazine