Botanica is a luxury apartment complex with 3 towers (2 with 41 floors, 1 with 39 floors) for a total of 606 units. Completed in 2014 on 2.8 hectares of land, it is located near Kebayoran Baru, in an area with many of the most expensive apartments in Jakarta.

I visited the property with an agent and this is my full review of it:

Location:

Neighborhood

In which neighborhood of Jakarta is Botanica located?

Location of Botanica Apartments

Strictly-speaking, Botanica is located in Kebayoran Lama. However, because it is a luxury property bordering Kebayoran Baru, it makes more sense to include it in the latter.

Kebayoran Baru is one of the wealthiest districts of Jakarta with neighborhoods like Senopati, Dharmawangsa, SCBD, Gunawarman and Pakubuwono. It is considered less polluted and cleaner than other areas of the city while remaining close to the business center.

Next to Botanica, there are several other apartment complexes, all luxurious (Pakubuwono View, Pakubuwono Residence, Pakubuwono Signature, Pakubuwono House, Simpruk Indah, Simprug Residence, etc.).

How does it look like around the apartment?

Botanica is located on a major road, Jalan Teuku Nyak Arief, which goes from Palmerah to Pondok Indah. While this is convenient and strategic, this also means that you cannot really do anything walking distance from the apartment. You will need a car wherever you want to go.

Luckily, you won’t have to go very far to reach nicer areas. In just 5-10 minutes by car, you can go to Senopati, Gandaria, or Jalan Pakubuwono.

Botanica – Street View

Street view – In front of Botanica

What are the important landmarks nearby?
Nearby, there are a few landmarks you can go to:

Malls:
The nearest one is Gandaria City Mall (5 minutes by car). It is an interesting mall targeting the mid-to-upper class and particularly young people. There is a large choice of restaurants, including Western food, Mexican, Chinese, Japanese and Korean. The cinema is one of two in Jakarta with an IMAX screen. The other anchor tenants are Gramedia, Ace Hardware, Metro, H&M, Uniqlo, and Lotte Mart.

You can also go quickly to Senayan City and Plaza Senayan, both popular high-end malls with dozens of luxury boutiques, cafés and restaurants.

Supermarkets:
Lotte Mart in the basement of Gandaria City.
FoodHall in Plaza Senayan and Senayan City.
If you like traditional markets, Pasar Mayestik is quite reputed for fresh fruits and vegetables (3 minutes away).

Restaurants and Nightlife:
This is an excellent area for eating out and partying. I recommend you to go to cafés, bars and restaurants in Jalan Senopati, SCBD, or in the Crystal Lagoon (basement of Senayan City). Current trendy venues are Monty’s, Union, Lucy in the Sky, Hakkasan, etc.

Education:
There are plenty of educational facilities within a few minutes by car from Botanica:

Several universities: Pertamina, Binus, Moestopo, Al-Azhar, Satya Negara
International schools and reputed schools: JIS Pattimura (for elementary students), Binus, Al-Azhar, Lentera, SMA Negeri 70
Pre-schools: Chiltern House, Binus Simprug, Kinderland Pakubuwono, Little Stars Pakubuwono, The Learning Castle

Hospitals:
Rumah Sakit Pusat Pertamina and Rumah Sakit Gandaria are the nearest ones. If you have a serious condition, I think it’s best to go a bit further to Siloam Hospital in Semanggi (15 minutes away).

Parks:
The garden of Botanica is nice enough for walking and running. If you need a larger space, you can go to Bung Karno stadium in Senayan.

Transportation

By car, with normal traffic conditions, how far is it from:
– Jakarta Airport (CGK): 55 minutes
– Grand Indonesia Mall: 35 minutes
– Sudirman Business District: 10-15 minutes
– Kota Tua: 80 minutes
– Kemang: 15-20 minutes

Your speed will largely depend on the traffic on Jalan Teuku Nyak Arief. If it is jammed (usually before and after office hours), it will take much more time to go anywhere.

Is there a Transjakarta bus stop nearby?
There are a few stops within 5-10 minutes walk, such as Simprung, Teuku Nyak Arif and Gedung Pertamina. They can be used to go directly to Harmoni, Pondok Indah, Sudirman, Grogol.

Transjakarta near Botanica apartments

Is there a train station nearby?
Stasiun Kebayoran is 1,2km away.

How about the MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) or LRT (Light Rail Transit)?
There was once talks of an LRT line between Kebayoran Lama and Kelapa Gading, with a stop in Simprug. It has been postponed for now.

Building Quality

Building and Architecture

What is the reputation of the developer?
The developer, PT Pikko Land Development, is a large company that owns a variety of apartment complexes ranging from low-end to upscale ones. The ones I’ve reviewed so far are Maple Park, Sudirman Park, Signature Park Grande and Hampton’s Park. They were also involved in Thamrin City, Sahid Sudirman and Simprug Indah.

I was a bit surprised to learn that Pikko was the owner of Botanica as it is much more luxurious and well-maintained than their other properties.

Overall, it’s a bit difficult to rate their reputation as Botanica seems to be managed completely differently.

Update on February 14th, 2019: I was informed that Tan Kian of Dua Mutiara Group was also an investor, via Century Properties Group. The latter is the developer of Ritz-Carlton Mega Kuningan, Ritz-Carlton Pacific Place, Pacific Place Mall, JW Mariott and South Hills. He is a partner of Tomy Winata and linked to the Suharto family. It makes more sense now as I felt Botanica was too much to handle for the Pikko group alone.

Who is the architect?
Botanica was designed by the American architectural firm Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart. It is a reputed company with a wide experience. For instance: The Four Seasons Doha, the Ritz-Carlton Charlotte, Pacific Place Jakarta or Taman Anggrek Residences.

Who is the contractor?
The main contractor was the Indonesian firm Acset (also behind Pacific Place, Residence 8, Gandaria City, etc).

What is the situation with the land certificate?
The developer has a Hak Guna Bangunan Murni, which means the property was built on its own land. As an apartment owner, you get a Strata Title di atas HGB Murni.

Design and Appearance

How does the building look like?

From Outside (Facade):

The facade of Botanica is not really interesting in terms of design. It is rather plain and boring, more like a 4-star property.

Architecture of Botanica Apartments

Facade Botanica

Facade Botanica apartments Jakarta

Facade building Botanica

Entrance:

There is an iron gate at the entrance which gives a feeling of luxury. The drop-off area is fine but not incredible.

Entrance Botanica Apartments Jakarta

Car entrance Botanica apartments

Reception/Lobby:

There is a small main lobby which is unimpressive, and then each tower has its own reception. The latter are quite nice with a high ceiling, marble floor and comfortable chairs.

Main Lobby Botanica

Lobby of a tower in Botanica

Lobby of tower in Botanica apartments

Reception at a tower in Botanica Jakarta

Landscaping and Public Areas:

What I liked the most about Botanica is the huge garden. It stretches over 200 meters long with lots of trees, plants and pools. On a sunny day, it feels like paradise.

Siteplan botanica apartments jakarta

Pool Botanica Jakarta

Lagoon pool in Botanica

Pool and garden Botanica apartments Jakarta

Jogging track Botanica Jakarta

Swimming Pool Area Botanica

Corridors and lifts:

Each unit in Botanica has a private lift so you don’t really have corridors.

Private lift in Botanica apartments

How spacious are the apartments?
There are various types and sizes of units in Botanica. Generally speaking, they are spacious as you only have 6 per floor.

– 2-bedroom units = 157m2 to 195m2 (2 bathrooms, maid room available in some units)
– 3-bedroom units = 225m2 to 288m2 (3 bathrooms, maid room available in some units)

Each unit has a balcony, a foyer and a private lift. There are also 8 townhouses and 6 penthouses.

Here are some pictures of rooms that I took during my visit:

Living room Botanica apartments

Living room Botanica apartments Jakarta

Bathtub in Botanica apartments Jakarta

Bathroom in Botanica Jakarta

Bedroom Botanica Jakarta

Toilets Botanica

Materials and Equipment

What is the quality of the materials, furniture, and equipment used in the construction?
This is an evaluation of the quality I observed (ranked from 1 – worst – to 10 – best):

In the common areas:
Tiles lobby: 9
Painting: 8
Lighting: 8
Doors: 8
Ceiling: 8
Elevator: 8
Gym equipment: 8
Pool equipment: 7
Furniture: 8
Artwork: 8

In the apartments:
Tiles/Parquet: 8
Ceiling: 8
Bathroom equipment: 8
Kitchen equipment: 8
Doors: 8

Overall Quality: 8/10

Comfort

Facilities and Services

What are the facilities provided in the property?

– Swimming pool: It is massive and one of the longest I’ve seen in Jakarta (together with Metro Park and Mediterania Residence 2). You have a main basin in the middle of the property, then smaller pools on the sides. There is also a heated semi-indoor pool. I found that there aren’t enough sunbeds around considering the number of residents.

Swimming pool Botanica Jakarta

Pool area in Botanica

Pool in Botanica apartments Jakarta

Semi-outdoor swimming pool Botanica

– Gym: It is very complete with both professional machines (Life Fitness) and free weights. It has a sauna and a jacuzzi.

Gym in Botanica Jakarta

Fitness room Botanica Jakarta

Jacuzzi in Botanica Jakarta

Sauna in Botanica

Toilets of Fitness room Botanica Jakarta

– Playground for kids:

Playground for kids Botanica Jakarta

Kids games Botanica

– Other facilities:

Tennis court Botanica Jakarta

Library room Botanica Jakarta

Library and kitchen Botanica Jakarta

Billiard room in Botanica

I didn’t take pictures of all the facilities. Some that are missing here are the theater, the jogging track, the BBQ area, the putting green, the club house and the basketball court.

What are the services available within the property?
There are quite many services available: Cafés, minimarket, pharmacy, bakery, laundry, ATM, massage.

Convenience store in Botanica basement

Small eatery in Botanica

Are there issues with the electricity supply?
None that I know about.

Are their issues with parking?
I read that there are over 1,300 parking spaces, meaning more than 2 per units. That’s more than enough.

Are there enough lifts?
Yes.

Atmosphere

Is the property busy?
Yes. With over 600 units, you can expect to always see people in public spaces, at the lobby, at the gym, at the swimming pool.

Is it noisy?
The apartments are soundproof to minimize the disturbances from the traffic on Jalan Teuku Nyak Arief. Personally, I thought the level of noise was bearable.

What is the background (ethnicity, social status) and attitude of residents?
The residents I saw were mostly expatriates, in particular from Japan and Korea. My agent told me that around 50 Japanese employees from Astra (Toyota) were living in Botanica. The rest is made of Westerners, Indonesian Chinese, and a minority of Pribumi Indonesians.

Management

Maintenance

How old is the property?
The property was completed in 2014.

Are there visible damages?
No.

Cleanliness

I found the property to be clean.

Gardening

The garden is well-maintained.

Security

– Guards on duty at the gates and reception: 24/7
– CCTV cameras: Many in the lobby and the lift.
– Access: You need an access card and to use your fingerprint to enter the lift area and to reach your floor.

Hospitality

The staff is friendly and professional.

Rooms and Prices

Prices at Botanica may vary depending on many factors such as the floor, the unit type, the room condition and the furnishings.

Be aware that you may also need to pay for additional fees: Service charge, parking fee, electricity and water bills, etc. Here is an example of prices and ratios for this property:

2-Bedroom (157m2) – Well-furnished:

• Rental 1 Year: Approximately IDR 504 million (or 43 million per month)
• Buy: Approximately IDR 6,800,000,000
• Break Even Point (Buying Price/Gross Annual Rental): 13,4 years
• Average buying price/m2: IDR 43.3 million/m2

3-Bedroom (225m2) – Well-furnished:

• Rental 1 Year: Approximately IDR 672 million (or 56 million per month)
• Buy: Approximately IDR 9,800,000,000
• Break Even Point (Buying Price/Gross Annual Rental): 14,5 years
• Average buying price/m2: IDR 43.5 million/m2

Service charge: I was told it is about IDR 3,000,000 per month for a 2-bedroom apartment. It is normally paid by the owner.

Investment Potential

Is there a potential for a price increase in the future?

A normal price increase would be around 5% per year. Here are some of the factors that may affect this rate:

– Factors pushing the prices up:

• Increase in the number of expatriates, especially Japanese, in Jakarta
• The quality of the maintenance must be high. Pikko Group doesn’t have a great track record in this matter, will it be different with Botanica?

– Factors pushing the prices down:

• Competition from new luxury tower projects like District 8, etc.

Overall evaluation of the price: Would I buy here?
Botanica is one of the most impressive luxury residences I’ve seen in Jakarta. I see that the renting price is quite high, especially because most customers are Japanese expats. I would buy here but I would need some guarantees from Pikko Group that the maintenance will be adequate.