Singapore
A mansion in the heart of Singapore’s central shopping district has just gone on the market for the price of $242 million. Jones Lang LaSalle Property Consultants

A property in Singapore just now hitting the market has set a record for the most expensive piece of real estate in the world. Priced at $242 million, the two-story home, which boasts a swimming pool and tennis court, is located on an elevated 85,000-square-foot lot at 33 Nassim Road, near the city’s Botanic Gardens.

According to a Time Newsfeed report, the property is being sold by a holding company belonging to Cheng Wai Keung, chairman of the Hong Kong property developer Wing Tai Holdings.

“These kinds of assets come onto the market once in 10, 15 or even 20 years,” Karamjit Singh, head of investments and residential at real estate company Jones Lang LaSalle in Singapore, told Bloomberg.

The large property could entice foreign billionaires looking to profit from dividing it. But according to those knowledgeable in the local real estate market, the deal will stand or fall on whether the value of the land matches the astronomical price tag.

“If the land is worth $150 million to $200 million, then this might be a legitimate buy,” real estate broker Douglas Newby told Bloomberg.

Based in Dallas, Newby is currently the broker for the most expensive property for sale in the U.S. – a $135 million home on a 25-acre site owned by former Texas Rangers owner Tom Hicks.

In Singapore, residential prices climbed to a record in the first quarter as an increase in the ranks of millionaires drove up demand. Singapore is Asia’s most-expensive housing market after Hong Kong, according to a Knight Frank LLP and Citi Private Bank report released last year that compared 63 global locations.

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