Technically this is the second time we have hit the sales gallery of The
Crest. The first was back in early August but the sales gallery was
closed then and we ended up at Mon
Jervois instead. So after reading in the papers that the developers (Wing
Tai & Metro Australia Holdings) have reopened the showflats, the wife and I
decided to pay another visit to the project last week.
But with the current "re-launch", only units in Tower
105 are opened for sale.
Facilities wise, the offering is quite impressive as one would have expected. These are spread over
·
The
ground level - where you find the usual mix of swimming pools, different themed
"pavilions" and even a tennis court. But special mention goes to the
private onsen (with hot and cold tub) within the clubhouse
·
"The
Crest Club" located on the rooftop of Tower 103 - where you find the sky
gym, entertainment cum theatrette suit, terrace bar and teppanyaki grill.
·
"The
Sky Sanctuaries" on the rooftops of both Tower 101 and 105, with their
different "themed gardens".
For those with cars, there are a total of 494 parking lots
(inclusive of 7 handicapped-lots) available within the development.
Current expected TOP of The Crest is in mid of 2018. And
from what we can see at the site, constructions are already well underway for
all 3 Tower blocks.
There are 3 different unit types on display at the sales gallery
but the wife and I will stick to our usual 3-bedroom type. This is a 1,270sqft,
"dual-key" apartment.
As you enter the "main unit", you arrive at the
living/dining area. The wife and I are a bit disappointed with the rectangular space
catered for this area, which seemed a tad small. But you do get high-quality
marble floors and a ceiling height of 3m. The balcony extends out from the
living room and is not too big and yet functional enough - which is how we
liked it. It comes standard with timber decking, which is a pleasant departure
from your run-of-the-mill tiled balcony floors.

At the end of the kitchen is the yard area - not exactly a big
space but should suffice for laundry-ing and probably ironing as well. The
utility room is rather small but with some clever design (as demonstrated in
the showflat), is spacious enough to be used as a bedroom for your domestic
helper. The bathroom across from the utility is basic but adequate.
The common bedroom is pentagonal but despite the odd-shape, it is
probably one of the most spacious common bedroom that we have seen in a long
while. The triangular space at the corner of the bedroom actually works in its
favor as you can easily convert the space to a study or play area - something that's
almost impossible to achieve in the tiny bedrooms found in most new projects
these days.
All bedrooms (including the "dual key") come with "engineered timber" flooring, which is supposed to be highly durable and visually pleasing - the wife and I do not know enough about timber floors to affirm the durability claim but we can certainly attest to the "visually pleasing" bit.
The master bathroom has that "luxurious feel" synonymous
with high-end projects. However, it only comes with a shower stall - we reckon something
has to give (in terms of space) and the long bath is certainly something that
we will happily do without. If only the developers had thrown in a (overhead)
rain-shower, it would have made things complete for us.
So a Type 3BR (DK) unit on the 11th floor (which is still
available), is 1,335sqft and currently priced at $2,196,000. This translates to
around $1,645psf.
And as a comparison, a "standard" 3-bedroom unit (i.e.
non "dual key") of similar size on the same floor is priced at $2,268,000
or $1,699psf.
So why is the "standard" 3-bedder more expensive than
the "dual key" one? The difference lies in the unit facing - the
"dual key" stack faces Alexandra Road while the 3BR stack faces the
Good Class Bungalow area and on days when our Indo neighbor decide to take a
breather from their "slash and burn" exercise, you can actually see
the grounds within Botanic Gardens. For that, you pay the $50+psf extra.
What we
like:
1. The 3-bedder in The Crest is the closest to the
perfect apartment that the wife and I have seen so far. The apartment
definitely felt much larger than the 1,270sqft that it is supposed to be. The
wife and I especially loved the spacious bedrooms, which are one of the largest
(if not the largest) that we had come across in a long while.
2. Although planter boxes are found on the exterior walls of the
bedrooms and common bathroom, these spaces are not charged so you (technically)
get them for free. This practice is a nice departure from many of the other
projects, where you get charged for everything... including planter boxes that
you may not even have access to!
3. The Crest is located next to the Alexandra Linear Park Connector
- this is a 1.2km stretch of boardwalk along the Alexandra canal that stretches
from Tanglin Road
to Delta Road .
So for those who enjoy leisurely walks or fishing along the canal's beautified banks,
the park connector is a perfect compliment to the facilities available within
the development.
4. The Crest is sited off Alexandria Road and yet not too far a
walk away. This provide an added measure of exclusivity without sacrificing
ease of access to the main road. Owners of units facing Alexandria Road will also be spared the
full extent of traffic noise from this main road.
5. Redhill MRT station is supposedly a 6 minutes' walk away from The
Crest. There are also plenty of options available when come to food,
supermarkets, wet markets within a 1-km radius of the project. And not
forgetting Orchard Road
and CDB are mere minutes' drive away.
What we do
not quite like:
1. The living/dining area in the 3BR (DK), which we find a tad
small.
2. The wife and I can only identify one primary school that's
within 1-km of The Crest - Gan Eng Seng Primary. For those who do not have
primary school-heading kids, this is of little concern. But for those who do,
it may be a consideration.
Our
parting Shot
Judging from what little that we "do not quite
like" about The Crest, you can probably tell that the wife and I are sold
on the project. The Crest is definitely one that we are comfortable
recommending as a "quality buy". The only (and a deal breaker in our opinion) is with the price -
even at the reduced price of $1,600+psf, it will still make The
Crest one of the more (if not the most) expensive projects along
Alexandria Road. And what is most troubling is the fact that the site adjacent
to The
Crest was awarded to UOL in April this year... at $821psf ppr! So there
is some leeway for UOL to price their upcoming project on this site at a
comparatively lower price than The Crest, if push comes to shove.
Have you taken our survey yet? If not, please do. Thanks!
Have you taken our survey yet? If not, please do. Thanks!
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