A luxury unit of apartment at St Regis Residences was sold in a jaw dropping loss of $15.8 million, the biggest loss ever recorded yet on an apartment sale in Sinagpore.

The penthouse was previously purchased by a Japanese billionaire, Katsumi Tada, who shelled out a record-smashing $28 million, or $4,653 psf in 2007.

The two-storey which located at Tanglin Road is said to have a swimming pool on the upper floor and view over Nassim Road greenery.

Tada's generous offer back then awarded the lucky seller a profit of $12.77 million, but it has turned out to be a bad investment and underscores how fortunes have turned in the high-end property market, where more instances of loss-making transactions are surfacing.

The new owner is Andy Chua, who owns Yun Nam Hair Care. He snapped up the 6,017 sq ft apartment at the 173-unit project in a cash transaction of $12.2 million, or $2,028 psf, according to records lodged with the Singapore Land Authority.

The sale was executed in Tokyo and took just two weeks to complete, instead of the usual eight to 12 weeks, possibly due to it being a cash sale or when either party was "in a haste to wrap it up", said market watchers. Meanwhile, Tada is believed to have left the property vacant all this time.

Samuel Eyo, the Managing Director of Singapore Christie's Homes, said Chua probably got a bargain as the price was low for luxury projects in the area, which sell for between $2,500 psf and $3,000 psf. What sealed the deal was probably because Chua paid in cash.

On the other hand, Tada is by no means the only high-end owner to want to cut his losses as luxury home values have dived 20 per cent from their peak in 2013. A 2,626 sq ft unit at luxury condo The Coast at Sentosa Cove went for just $1,190 psf in January, booking a loss of $1.215 million for its seller.

Tada, the 17th richest man in Japan with a fortune of US$1.7 billion (S$2.4 billion) according to Forbes, is the President of Daisho Group. The firm acquired The Westin Singapore hotel from BlackRock for $468 million in December 2013, setting a record at $1.5 million per hotel room key.

Chua made headlines last year when he paid US$2.2 million to score a private lunch with US investment guru Warren Buffett.