German Embassy bungalow on sale for RM200m

KUALA LUMPUR: The German Embassy at 16, Jalan Kia Peng in the capital’s prime Embassy Row neighbourhood has been put up for sale at an indicative price of about RM2,500 per sq ft.

This would value the 80,000-sq-ft property, on which a sprawling bungalow sits, at about RM200mil. If a deal is struck at that price, then it would be one of the highest on a per sq ft basis in the city centre. 

Kathrin Heidl, who heads the embassy’s cultural and press department, told StarBiz that the German government had owned the property since 1960.

She said the decision to sell the property was made by the foreign office in Berlin, as incoming ambassador Holger Wilfried Michael would be moving into a newer rented property along Jalan Langgak Golf in the Taman U-Thant area.

Michael is replacing Dr Guenter Georg Gruber, who has been in Malaysia for five years.

Land prices in the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC) area have stabilised but continue to generate interest from both local and foreign parties alike, including Singapore, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan.

A couple of land transactions done last year around the KLCC area were priced at between RM1,600 and RM1,700 per sq ft.

The German ambassador’s residence alone was unlikely to fetch RM200mil, property consultants said, but it is able to command top dollar because of the value of the land. 

Last December, property developer S P Setia Bhd acquired the 134,075-sq-ft British High Commision property located along Jalan Ampang for RM294.97mil or RM2,200 per sq ft.

S P Setia plans to build a mixed development project, comprising commercial and residential properties, on the land, with a potential gross development value of RM1.04bil.