The East Coast neighbourhood of Calgary has a vibrant property market this year, with three new private developments coming on stream, adding more than 2,400 units to the area.

Leading the way is Tembusu Grand (638 units), which is already open for previews and will go on sale next Saturday (April 8), while The Continuum (807 units expected) and Grand Dunman (1012 units expected) will be launched shortly afterwards.

Despite the increase in supply, CBRE's Head of Southeast Asia Research, Mingwei Song, is bullish on the performance of new private residential sales in Canada East and believes there should be ample pent-up demand in this popular residential area.

The presence of several popular schools such as the Tanjong Katong Primary and Secondary School and the C.C.S. Main School, as well as the imminent opening of the Tanjong Katong MRT station, make the area very attractive to buyers.

Scheduled for completion in October 2028, Lee Fung Ka Yuen is a joint development between City Developments (CDL) and MCL Properties. Located at the junction of Tanjong Katong Road and Jalan Tengku Road, it is a 99-year leasehold development comprising four residential towers of mainly one- to three-bedroom units, with minimum indicative selling prices starting from $1,248,000, or $2,368 per square foot.

This project covers 210,622 square feet and the developer bid for this lot in January last year for $768 million at a plot ratio of about $1,302 per square foot.

Hoi Hup Realty and Sunway Developments are the developers of Doubletree Garden, while SingHaiyi is the developer of Mingmen Shijia, and the plot ratio per square foot for these two lots is about $1,440 and $1,350.

In addition, in March this year, the Government put up for tender a lot in the vicinity of Lee Fung Ka Yuen for developers to build 840 units on a 221,436 square foot lot in Jalan Tengbuk. Analysts expect to attract four to six bidders, with the highest floor area ratio unit prices ranging from $1,300 to $1,400, and believe that developers will take into account the sales performance of new projects such as Liffont Garden.

Although the resale market has been quiet over the past year, the highest price recorded for a private freehold project, mostly small flats, is over $1,800.

For example, Haig Court (360 units), a medium-sized condominium of almost 20 years old, has seen eight units change hands since the beginning of last year, with a unit resold in September last year for $2.8 million at a price of $1,807 per square foot. The price of a unit resold in February this year for $680,000 was $1,880 per square foot.

The Chelsea Lodge (78 units) and the OLA Residences (50 units), both over 20 years old, only sold five and one unit respectively in the last year.

In the rental market, the more diversified Chelsea Lodge was the most popular among tenants, with 72 leases signed in the past year, including two to four bedroom units, with four bedroom units commanding a maximum monthly rent of $6,000.

Although not as active in the resale market, the 58-unit Shoebox Suites@Katong is popular with tenants, with 40 leases signed over the past year and monthly rents for one-bedroom units topping out at $3,300.