Zhang ShiHua 张世华: HDB DBSS Review and Photos: Natura Loft

HDB DBSS Review and Photos: Natura Loft

Despite being launched before other DBSS projects like Parc Lumiere at Simei, we were tipped off that there were quite a few choice units left at Natura Loft, in Bishan. So we checked out the HDB DBSS project in Bishan, Natura Loft over the weekend to see whats holding back home hungry buyers. Natura Loft is a 480 unit DBSS project along Bishan Street 24. There are 4 room and 5 room units in this project.

When we arrived, there was quite a crowd still mingling about the showroom selecting units. Based on the model and site plan, Natura Loft was pretty decent. It's biggest pull was immediately apparent with the entrance of both Whiteley Secondary School and Catholic High School almost sharing the same address as Natura Loft. As a matter of fact, one of my personal friends expressed interest in Natura Loft due to the location one of the schools nearby - and its no secret most of the schools close to this condominium are renowned.

Just beside is a small little heartland 'central' with several shops and eating houses popular with Bishan residents. Getting to Bishan MRT station though, will require a short feeder bus ride.

The layout of the 3 blocks was north-south oriented, with a slight leaning towards the northwest. West sun shouldn't be too big an issue, as it beats down only upon bare walls and some master bathroom windows. Views were touted to be facing towards McRitchie reservoir or the city - although after checking out the views from surrounding 20 storey point blocks, one likely has to be on a very high floor to enjoy the McRitchie reservoir view fully. Natura Loft is surrounded by approximately 10 storey standard blocks and 20 storey point blocks. With just 4 units to a level, residents will not feel overcrowded and basement parking is convenient.

The showroom was pleasent but a little overdone, the 5 room showflat had two of its bedrooms radically combined to constitute one large bedroom to amplify the feeling of spaciousness. This defeated the purpose of allowing potential buyers to get a proper feel of their future home. The sales staff that served us was a nice guy, and wasn't too pushy. However it felt weird when one of the main highlights presented was the 'bamboo' flooring used.

Large balconies with planters is still the order of the day for DBSS flats it seems and overall the design was pretty straight forward much like other DBSS flats with slight tweaks. We appreciated how the living and dining areas were not completely exposed upon stepping into the 5 room units, although we were not quite sure what to make of the substantial planter space connected to master bedrooms in some variants. The kitchen was a little bit smaller compared to some of the other DBSS units from what we remembered, but had the option of coming with built in kitchen appliances. This space however went to larger bedrooms and living rooms it seems - which is a good thing for some.

As we came to the end of the showroom tour, we were introduced to which units were left. Apparently most if not all of the 4 room units were already picked. We were slightly disappointed as we were scouting for one ourselves. The shocker however came in the form of 5 room prices. The starting price for a 5 room unit started from roughly $600,000 as compared to $539,000 at The Peak @ Toa Payoh. But after checking the details, 5-room units in Natura Loft are 120sqm - larger than the 110-117sqm 5rm units in Toa Payoh.

So perhaps whats stopping people from snapping it all up, could just be a matter of the number "$600,000" being a psychological barrier to HDB upgraders rather than the units being truly unaffordable.