Every buyer looking at Union Square Residences asks me the same thing sooner or later: CanningHill Piers is right on Clarke Quay and already finished, so why not just buy that? It's a fair question. The answer depends less on the river than on when you need the keys, and how much of the price you want to pay for being first.
Short answer: CanningHill Piers suits you if you want to live in or rent out a finished home now and value the MRT-and-mall convenience. Union Square suits you if you can wait until 2028 and want a lower entry price per square foot on the stacks CDL has adjusted. Neither is the better buy for everyone.
The two side by side
| Union Square Residences | CanningHill Piers | |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Under construction, keys 2028 | Completed 2026 |
| Homes | 366 | 696, in 2 towers |
| Tenure | 99-year leasehold | 99-year leasehold, about 94 years left |
| Price | Launched Nov 2024 at an average $3,200 psf; last 12 months $2,662 to $3,828 psf, average $3,157; selected stacks adjusted from $2,605 psf | Subsale range about $2,885 to $3,945 psf |
| MRT | Clarke Quay (NE5) a walk away, Fort Canning (DT20) and Chinatown in range | Linked to Fort Canning (DT20) underground, Clarke Quay (NE5) a short walk |
| Rent | Untested until 2028 | 2-bedroom about $6,500 to $9,000 a month |
What the market is telling you
CanningHill Piers is priced as a finished, connected address. You pay for certainty: you can see the unit, the view and the noise before you sign, and a tenant can move in this year.
Union Square is priced as a future one. Its 12-month average of $3,157 psf sits almost exactly on its $3,200 launch average, and CDL's adjusted stacks start below every comparable Singapore River launch since 2025. That gap is the price of waiting two years.
What the market isn't telling you
This is where my years with multinational managing agents matter. Three things decide what each one is like to own:
Scale and who you share the building with
CanningHill Piers has 696 homes and shares its development with a mall. Mixed developments split costs and decisions between residential and commercial owners, so read how the shared areas are managed before you buy. Union Square's 366 homes make for a smaller, simpler management council.
Everyone getting keys at once
CanningHill Piers is in that phase now: many owners are trying to rent or sell in the same months, which is why rent-free periods and furniture packages are common. Union Square will face the same in 2028, at a smaller scale. If you buy at CanningHill Piers now, you are buying into that competition; at Union Square, you are timing your exit around it.
Noise is a floor decision
Clarke Quay's bars run late from Thursday to Saturday. At CanningHill Piers, river-facing units below about level 25 hear it. Union Square sits a little further from the strip, beside low-rise conservation shophouses that URA rules keep low.
What I think
If you need a home or a rental income within a year, CanningHill Piers is the honest answer, provided you pick the floor carefully and price it against recent transactions, not asking prices. If you can wait for 2028, Union Square's adjusted stacks are the more interesting entry, and I'd rather pay $2,600 to $2,900 psf for a well-chosen unit there than the top of CanningHill Piers' range for convenience I won't use until later.
Who should skip both
Anyone who needs a gross rental yield above about 3%: at these prices, city-fringe new homes don't deliver it. And anyone who may need to sell within three years, when stamp duty and a crowd of other sellers both work against you.
For more on each, see the full Union Square analysis, why a developer discount isn't automatically a red flag, and CanningHill Piers: sell, rent or hold. Other projects with units left are on Price Check.
Questions buyers ask
Is CanningHill Piers better because it is nearer Clarke Quay?
Nearer means more convenience and more noise. Its direct link to Fort Canning MRT and the mall below are real advantages for daily life and for tenants. Whether that is worth its higher psf depends on whether you need the home now and which floor you buy.
Why are some Union Square units cheaper than at launch?
CDL sold over 37% of the project at full launch prices, then adjusted selected stacks. That is usually about clearing particular units, not a judgement on the location. Check each discounted unit against the building's own transactions and its neighbours.
Which is easier to rent out?
CanningHill Piers today, because it exists and has the MRT link. A 2-bedroom rents for roughly $6,500 to $9,000 a month. Union Square's rents can't be tested until 2028, when it will compete with whatever else is new on the river.
Which has the lower holding risk?
Union Square has less to compete with at completion, 366 homes against 696, and a smaller council. CanningHill Piers lets you start earning rent now. Your answer depends on whether you need income now or can carry the wait.
Can you help me compare specific units?
Yes. Send me the two units you are weighing and I will set each against its own building's recent transactions, rents and management position, in writing and free.
Is this project right for you?
I'll compare your shortlist on price, size, rent, the building and your exit in a free written Property Decision Review. No obligation.
Get my free Property Decision Review →Sources
- CDL launch results, Union Square Residences, November 2024, as reported by EdgeProp and 99.co
- URA caveats, Union Square Residences, 12 months to September 2026
- Comparable Singapore River launches: River Green, Zyon Grand, River Modern, URA caveats 2025 to 2026
- CanningHill Piers subsale and rental listings, PropertyGuru and 99.co, September 2026
- URA, Singapore River conservation area guidelines
- IRAS, Seller's Stamp Duty rates
This article is for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute financial, investment, or legal advice. Property investments involve risk. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Readers should seek independent advice from licensed professionals before making any property or financial decision. James Ong is a licensed real estate salesperson (CEA Reg No. R008385F) with PropNex Realty Pte Ltd and is not a licensed financial adviser.
James Ong | CEA Reg No. R008385F | PropNex Realty Pte Ltd
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