Honest Insights On Grand Dunman

Grand Dunman is a 1,008-unit, 99-year leasehold development on Dunman Road, a short walk from Dakota MRT, completing around 2027. It grades an A (7.8) on our New Project Scorecard (NPS) — one of the stronger new launches in the east, on the strength of its transport, schools and scale. But the scorecard is only half the story for a buyer today: this project has sold well, and what remains is a narrow, lopsided slice of the original mix. The family-sized two-, three- and four-bedders are gone. What you can still buy is small one-bedders — priced below fair value — and a row of large penthouses carrying a premium. This is an honest look at the grade, the units actually left, and how long you'd likely need to hold each. Methodology published. No spin.

The NPS grades a project's district-level fundamentals over a 10-year window — capital appreciation, schools, project size, MRT access and rental growth — from real URA transacted data. It is backward-looking by design. For the holding period, we use the published NPS calculator: fair value is the median transacted PSF nearby for each bedroom type, the project grows at its modelled rate, and we report the years needed to clear a 3% annual return — gross of stamp duty, financing and selling costs.

The scorecard: a genuine grade A

Grand Dunman's 7.8 is one of the higher NPS scores among current launches, and the sub-scores are broadly strong.

There is no weak link here. A Circle Line station on the doorstep, a deep school catchment, and 1,008 units of scale combine into a modelled price growth of about 3.95% a year — comfortably above a 3% target. On fundamentals, this is exactly the kind of project the scorecard rewards. The question for a buyer in mid-2026 isn't the grade. It's what's left to buy.

What's actually left — and what it costs

Of the original 1,008 units, only 86 remain, and the mix is unusual: the entire run of two-, three- and four-bedroom family units has sold through. What's available is small one-bedders and one-bedder-plus-study layouts, and a stack of large five-bedders and penthouses. The line that matters is each bedroom's fair value — the median transacted PSF nearby (1-bedders ~S$2,691; 5-bedders/penthouses ~S$2,463).

The split is clean. The one-bedders are the value — the 549 sqft layout (the deepest remaining pool at 50 units) is about 4% under fair value, and the 710 sqft 1BR+Study is nearly 12% under. The penthouses carry a premium — the larger floors ask 5–11% above the median for their size. Here are the deepest one-bedder pool and a representative five-bedder:

What that fair value is built on — the resale nearby

The Dakota area has a deep resale market — the scorecard counts 149 transacting projects within 1km — so the comparables are solid.

The two cleanest comparables are both fresh-ish 99-year leasehold — Waterbank @ Dakota and Dakota Residences — trading around S$2,023–2,131 psf as 13-to-16-year-old resale, no lease adjustment needed. Grand Dunman's blended fair value sits near S$2,580, so the new launch asks roughly 22–28% above comparable resale. That premium buys a brand-new unit, fresh facilities and a longer lease — and against a strong grade-A backdrop, the one-bedders priced below their own fair value are the disciplined entry. The Sunny Spring's ~S$1,227 is an old freehold low-rise and sets the floor, not the benchmark.

The holding period, both ways

Using the NPS calculator's model — 3.95% expected growth, a 3% target — here is the estimated holding period for each stack, on price growth alone and with the area's ~3.0% rental yield added.

Because the project's modelled growth (3.95%) clears the 3% bar, the one-bedders and the fairly-priced five-bedder reach a 3% return in the 4–6 year tier on price growth alone. The penthouses don't — at a 5–11% premium, the modelled growth takes more than a decade to overtake the price you paid, and they only land in the 4–6 year tier once rental income is counted. As always, the figures are gross of stamp duty, financing and selling costs, and the seller's stamp duty makes four years a practical floor.

The honest verdict

Grand Dunman is a strong grade-A project — Dakota MRT, a deep school belt, 1,008 units of scale, and modelled growth comfortably above target. On fundamentals it earns its A. But fundamentals aren't what you're choosing from at this stage: the family units are gone, and the decision is between value one-bedders priced below fair value and penthouses priced above it.

For a single, a couple or an investor after a liquid, well-located one-bedder, the remaining 549 and 710 sqft stacks — 4–12% under fair value, in a grade-A project — are a disciplined buy that the model clears in 4–6 years. For the penthouses, you're paying a 5–11% premium for the largest floors; that can be the right call for an owner-occupier who wants the space, but on the numbers it's a long hold or a rental play, not a quick re-rate. The grade is excellent; just be clear which half of the leftover stock you're buying.

See the full scorecard and run your own unit price through the holding-period calculator at tribesg.com/nps.

Sources: NPS quality grade, sub-scores, expected growth, fair value and nearby resale comparables per the TRIBE New Project Scorecard (URA Data Service transacted PSF; figures as at June 2026). Available units, sizes and PSF from the project price list as at 17 June 2026; availability changes as units sell. Holding periods computed with the published NPS calculator model (median transacted PSF fair value, modelled growth, 3% target; gross of stamp duty, financing and selling costs). Project rendering and unit floorplans are from the developer's marketing materials (artist's impressions; floorplans indicative, not to scale). Scores and holding periods are model outputs, not financial advice.

Silas Tan is a District Director at Huttons Asia and co-founder of TRIBE. He built the New Project Scorecard (NPS) and Resale Project Scorecard (RPS) on URA transacted data. This article is for informational purposes and does not constitute financial or investment advice. CEA Registration R000303I.