Tag Archives: singapore property market

Resale prices of private homes down 0.4% in April: SRX

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Resale prices of private homes declined marginally by 0.4 per cent in April compared to March. Resale volumes also remained low, with 572 non-landed units transacted compared to 614 in the previous month.

On a year-on-year basis, the resale volume recorded in April represented a more than 50 per cent drop from the same period last year.

This is according to data from major property agencies compiled by the Singapore Real Estate Exchange (SRX).

The SRX also said that prices of resale non-landed private homes in the city area and city fringes dropped 1.9 per cent over the previous month.

Prices of those in the city area fell for the fourth consecutive month to an average of S$1,722 per square foot. Prices of those in the city fringes fetched SS$1,267 per square foot. In contrast, resale prices of private homes in the suburbs saw a 1.0 per cent increase to reach an average per square foot price of S$1,022 in April.

Meanwhile, overall rental prices for non-landed private homes in April slipped by 1.0 per cent compared to March.

On the public housing front, overall cash-over-valuation (COV) for HDB resale flats dropped S$1,000 to end at S$30,000 in April. This was the lowest monthly COV since September 2012.

However, the median resale price of HDB flats continued its uptrend to reach S$465,000 in April, up 1.1 per cent from S$460,000 in March.

According to flash figures, resale transaction volumes for HDB flats remained fairly stable in April with 1,271 HDB flats sold.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 10 May 2013

S’pore resale property market continues to slow

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Singapore’s resale property market continues to slow as buyers remained on the sidelines after the government’s latest round of property cooling measures.

Flash figures from the Singapore Real Estate Exchange (SRX) revealed that transaction volumes in both private and HDB resale markets fell last month.

Prices stayed fairly resilient as the overall median price of resale HDB flats inched up, while prices of resale private homes declined marginally in April compared to March

Meanwhile, analysts say a continued drop in HDB cash-over-valuation (COV) and slowing volumes are indicative of an imminent correction in HDB prices.

COV for HDB flats fell for the third consecutive month in April, according to SRX.

At S$30,000, April’s COV is at its lowest value since September 2012.

Still, overall median resale price of HDB flats inched up 1.1 per cent to reach S$465,000 in April.

Resale volumes of HDB flats remained stable, with 1,271 units sold.

Year on year, transaction volumes slumped 36 per cent. There were 2,000 HDB resale flats transacted in April 2012.

Earlier this year, the government lowered the mortgage servicing ratio (MSR), from 50 per cent to 30 per cent.

Mohammad Ismail, CEO at PropNex, said: “On average, banks would give 50 per cent of someone’s income to finance the monthly instalment but that has been reduced to 30 per cent and that’s a drastic drop…and that causes a lot of people to think twice. It is very glaring that the public housing is heading for a correction in price. In another word, the heyday of double-digit growth is over. For that matter, even last year’s 6-over percent growth is not likely to be repeated. Moving forward, public housing will probably experience low growth of probably 3 to 4 per cent.

“The first quarter recorded the lowest volume of transactions in 15 years. We only recorded about 4,300 transactions whereas last year the average was in the tune of 6,500.”

Meanwhile, resale transaction volumes for non-landed private homes in April slowed to 572 units, compared to the 614 units sold in March.

Year on year, this represented a more than 50 per cent drop. There were 1,240 non-landed resale units in April 2012.

Donald Han, CEO of HSR Property Group, said: “This is directly impacted because of government measures on January 11. Investors who have properties are more reluctant to release these properties into the marketplace and because of that there has been a lack of supply for secondary markets that are available for transaction.

“A lot of investors are holding back the selling of secondary market property because if they sell it, it would be harder for them to buy back again because they would be imposed 10 per cent ABSD for the second property.”

Month on month, prices of resale private homes dipped 0.4 per cent in April.

Resale prices of suburban private homes climbed 1.0 per cent to end at S$1,022 per square foot. But this was more than offset by declines in the city area and city fringes.

Both CCR (core central region) and RCR (rest of central region) saw equivalent price drops of 1.9 per cent over the previous month to reach an average per square foot of S$1,772 and S$1,267 respectively.

This is the fourth consecutive monthly drop for CCR since its price peaked in December 2012.

Analysts say this is due to falling demand from foreign investors and permanent residents – who typically buy property in the core central region – as they have been affected by the additional buyer’s stamp duty, where they are charged between a 7 and 15 per cent tax.

Analysts say the resale private property market is likely to remain quiet as buyers continue to turn to new sales.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 10 May 2013

Sales of new private homes fall by half on-month in April

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Sales of new private homes, excluding executive condominiums, halved to 1,375 units in April, compared to March.

This was down from the record 2,793 units sold by developers in March, the highest monthly sale volume since June 2007.

According to the latest figures released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, the April 2013 figure was also lower than the 2,497 new home sales recorded a year ago.

The drop was mainly due to the fewer units moved in the suburbs and city fringes in April.

URA data showed that developers sold 727 new private homes in April, down 60 per cent from 1,814 in March. The number of new units moved in the city fringe region declined 43 per cent to 470 units.

But the number of new private homes sold in the city area bucked the trend, rising by 13.4 per cent to 178 units in April, compared to the month before.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 15 May 2013

Luxury home prices fall in Q1: JLL

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Singapore’s luxury home prices have fallen, according to property consultant Jones Lang LaSalle.

Prices in the first quarter fell 0.6 per cent quarter-on-quarter, and 4.3 per cent year-on-year.

Jones Lang LaSalle said the price decline was partly due to government measures to cool the property market.

Latest measures introduced in January this year are the seventh round of property cooling measures.

“Policy effect coupled with slower population and economic growth are likely to continue to add downside pressure to capital values, albeit moderately,” said Dr Chua Yang Liang, head of Research, Singapore and South East Asia at Jones Lang LaSalle.

“Growth in prices of mass market homes (is) significantly slower while new sales volume has also dropped, as recent data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority has shown,” he added.

Dr Chua said that as a result, the price gap between high and mass market homes is likely to narrow, lending price support to the high-end segment in the mid-term.

At the same time, a separate report by another property consultant, CBRE, showed that Singapore’s first-quarter luxury home prices had remained flat but sales had slowed on a quarterly basis.

The report added that “both prices and rents will come under pressure in the months ahead, especially for newly completed projects which have been selling slowly”.

Besides Singapore, luxury home sales also declined in Hong Kong and some Chinese cities, mainly due to property tightening measures.

But overall, luxury home prices across Asia rose in the first quarter of this year.

The CBRE Asia Luxury Residential Price Index rose by 1.5 per cent in the first quarter, driven by strong price growth in New Delhi, Mumbai, Manila and Kuala Lumpur.

The Jones Lang LaSalle Residential Index showed that average capital values across the nine Asian markets it tracked were up 2.2 per cent quarter-on-quarter and 6.1 per cent year-on-year.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 13 May 2013

More foreign developers taking on red-hot S’pore market

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Packed showflats and brisk sales — Japanese developer Sekisui House said the hot demand for property in Singapore has helped to boost its revenue.

It hopes to increase the revenue contribution from its overseas markets to 10 per cent in the short-term. It is currently developing projects in Singapore, China, the United States and Australia.

Kenta Konishi, managing director of Sekisui House Singapore, said: “Why we are focusing on overseas market is that Japan is facing population decline and the economy is stable, but not going up. So we need some opportunity to go overseas to cover the Japanese sales and revenue. We looked at the markets and Singapore was one with good market conditions.”

Sekisui House is jointly developing several projects in Singapore with its partners Frasers Centrepoint and Far East Organization. They include QBay Residences in Tampines, Watertown in Punggol and eCO at Bedok South.

Frasers Centrepoint and Far East Organization said the partnership enabled them to tap into the network and extensive building expertise of Sekisui House. It also provided fresh perspectives which allowed the three developers to introduce more innovative concepts and features to their developments, which will in turn benefit buyers.

Meanwhile, Singapore developer Keppel Land said it has been able to tap best practices from foreign partners in their joint venture projects, such as Bugis Junction and One Raffles Quay.

Recently, it has joined hands with China VANKE, the largest residential property developer in China, to develop a condominium project in Tanah Merah.

Tan Swee Yiow, president (Singapore) at Keppel Land, said: “The collaboration is really an opportunity for us to leverage on their strong local knowledge and extensive network in China and hopefully, that would help us to enhance our presence in high growth cities in China. We would like to learn the best practices in china and hopefully we can also tap on their large customer base, especially for those customers who want to have properties in Singapore.”

China VANKE told Channel NewsAsia that it is drawn to the mature property sector in Singapore and it is keen to learn about project development and management.

In recent years, analysts said there has also been more foreign developers, especially from China, in the mass market and executive condominium segments.

Some analysts said foreign developers have delivered some good quality residential projects over the years, and provided creative ideas in terms of space utilisation, for instance. However, there is also a concern that having too many foreign developers in the market will push up land cost.

Ku Swee Yong, CEO of International Property Advisor, said: “Land is a finite resource. We actually see the more players there are, the more land prices will be ‘bidded’ up. So the basic cost of any projects would go up the more players bid for the projects.”

For instance, China’s Qingjian Realty (South Pacific) Group put up the highest bid of S$216 million for an executive condominium site in Woodlands. That is about nine per cent above the second highest bid by Bellevue Properties, a unit linked to City Development.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 14 May 2013

Mixed development projects may not command premium over residential developments: analysts

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Several mixed development projects are expected to be launched for sale in the coming months.

Some analysts say home buyers and investors should assess their options carefully as mixed development projects may not necessarily command a premium over pure residential developments.

Hillion Residences at Bukit Panjang is one of the mixed development projects in the market.

Over three quarters of the 250 residential units launched have been snapped up last month. There are a total of 546 residential units at Hillion Residences.

Analysts expect demand for homes that are integrated with a retail mall to remain strong.

They say home prices at mixed development projects are usually comparable to condominiums in the vicinity.

Those located near or integrated with the train station or bus interchange could cost slightly more at around S$1,500 per square foot on average.

There are some factors to consider before booking those units.

Chia Siew Chuin, director of research and advisory at Colliers International, said: “If the retail component is sold on a strata-titled basis then therefore it would probably mean that there would be less control in terms of marketing strategy and selection of tenants and these may have a bearing on the tenant mix and the image of the entire development.

“If the retail component is actually owned and held by the developer for investment purposes, then I would say the tenant mix marketing strategy and overall management advertising of the mall will be better managed.”

Analysts say homes in mixed developments do not necessarily command a premium over other units in nearby residential projects.

Nicholas Mak, executive director at SLP International Property Consultants, said: “Typical range of rental yields for apartments in a mixed development would range from 2 to 3 per cent, in fact because of the rising prices, prices have been rising faster than the rental rates, so the rental yields are typically about 2.5, but the rental yield is facing compression down to 2 and some could go down to as low as 1.8%.”

Analysts say home buyers should also note mixed development projects typically do not come with the full facilities of pure residential projects. They may not have facilities like tennis courts, playgrounds or lush greenery. That could have potential impact on rentals and value of homes.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 26 Apr 2013

Private residential prices up 0.6% in Q1 2013

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Private residential property prices in Singapore rose by 0.6 per cent in the first quarter of 2013, compared to the 1.8 per cent price growth recorded in the fourth quarter of 2012.

This is according to data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) on Friday.

Private residential property rentals went up by 0.8 per cent in the first three months of this year, which was marginally higher than the 0.7 per cent in Q4 2012.

Developers launched 5,546 uncompleted private residential units (excluding Executive Condominiums, or ECs) for sale in Q1 2013, compared to 3,408 units in Q4 2012.

URA said developers sold 5,412 private residential units in Q1 2013, compared to 4,353 units in Q4 2012.

No new EC units were launched for sale in the first three months of this year.

Developers sold 725 EC units in Q1 2013, which is less than half the 1,682 units sold in Q4 2012.

The volume of resale transactions dropped sharply from 3,447 units in Q4 2012 to 1,871 units in Q1 2013.

Resale transactions fell to 24.5 per cent from 40.8 per cent in the previous quarter.

Some 100,560 private residential and EC units are in the pipeline as at end Q1 2013, said URA.

The figure comprises 88,623 uncompleted private residential units, of which 35,564 units remain unsold, as well as 11,938 EC units.

URA said another 9,920 units from Government Land Sales sites will soon be added to the pipeline supply.

This will bump up the overall pipeline supply to 110,481 private housing and EC units.

URA added that 18,400 units will be completed this year based on the expected completion dates indicated by developers.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 26 Apr 2013

Foreigners adjust budgets to buy Singapore properties

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Foreign buyers of Singapore properties have not totally fled the market, despite the higher taxes that they have to pay following tough cooling measures.

More are finding it worthwhile to adjust their budgets, just to get their hands on their dream homes.

A market flushed with cash and low borrowing rates has made investors all over the world to seek safe havens in Singapore properties in the last few years.

This has propped property prices faster than economic growth can catch up.

It has also led the government to come up with a series of cooling measures.

Among them is the introduction of Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD).

When an ABSD of 10 per cent was first imposed on foreigners buying Singapore property in December 2011, the number of foreign buyers dipped 73.3 per cent on-quarter in the first quarter of 2012.

But when the ABSD was raised to 15 per cent in the seventh round of cooling measures introduced in January, the number of foreign buyers decreased at a slower rate of 15.9 per cent.

DWG’s senior research manager, Lee Sze Teck, said: “For the previous cooling measures, when the government came out with that, foreigners were shocked they had to pay ABSD – Additional Buyers’ Stamp Duty – on their first property purchase.

“This time round, when the revised ABSD came out, it is only an increase in the tax rates. So in a way it is more acceptable to them. So the dip in foreigners is less pronounced than the dip in Singaporeans and permanent residents.”

From January 12, Singaporeans must pay ABSD of 10 per cent on their second property and permanent residents 5 per cent on their first property.

Still, foreigners who are exempted from paying ABSD – mainly those from countries which have Free Trade Agreements with Singapore – could be a potential market for developers.

DTZ’s associate research director, Lee Lay Keng, said: “For foreign buyers, I think they (the developers) can look at the groups of foreign buyers that are not affected by ABSD measures, the ones that have the same tax treatment…US citizens, nationals from Iceland, Switzerland, Norway and Lichtenstein.”

Most analysts Channel NewsAsia spoke to said it would take some months for a clearer direction of where the property market is heading after the seventh round of property measures was imposed in January.

Demand could still come from a large pool of first-time Singaporean buyers who are unaffected by any cooling measures, which are fast becoming a norm in Singapore and Hong Kong.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 13 Apr 2013

Prices of resale private homes in Singapore down 2.0% in March

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Prices in the resale private property market fell just two per cent in March compared to February, according to data from major property agencies compiled by the Singapore Real Estate Exchange (SRX).

But resale volumes in March jumped 87 per cent from February.

The drop in resale private home prices was led by those in the suburbs, where resale prices fetched S$1,071 per square foot, 3 per cent lower than in February. Non-landed private homes in the city area were resold at an average of S$1,788 per square foot or two per cent lower than the previous month. Prices of those in the city fringes remained unchanged at S$1,301 per square foot.

Analysts Channel NewsAsia spoke to said the marginal movements in property prices are the intentions of the latest cooling measures, where the additional buyers’ stamp duty was raised by between five and seven percentage points across the board from January 12.

ERA’s key executive officer, Eugene Lim, said: “What is holding back buying decision is perhaps a mismatch of expectations, especially in the resale market. There is not much compelling reason for sellers to drop prices. Why? Because we are still having economic growth, full employment; holding cost is cheap. But on the other hand we have buyers who are expecting a big cut in prices because of the cooling measures. It is a normal market response.”

In March, 609 resale private home transactions were recorded – some 87 per cent higher than in February. This was due to fewer resale transactions in February over the Lunar New Year holidays.

But the number of resale transactions in March is just half that of the same period last year. OrangeTee’s CEO, Steven Tan, said: “If this trend continues and coupled with the large supply of completed projects in the next few months, the resale prices will face more pressure. The performance of the resale market will depend on the primary market in the next few months. If prices continue to go up, it will make some buyers change their minds to switch over to resale market.”

On a quarterly basis, 1,982 resale units were transacted in the first quarter of 2013, compared to the 2,074 units moved in the first quarter of last year. But volumes in the first quarter were down 39% from the fourth quarter last year.

Meanwhile, overall rental prices for non-landed private homes in March remained largely unchanged from February.

Experts say they will be keeping a close watch on the market in the second quarter, when sales are typically more brisk as launches pick up.

Over in the market for new private home launches, incentives offered by developers to offset the impact of the cooling measures appeared to have met with some success.

DWG estimates that developers moved some 5,000 homes in the first quarter of this year. That’s some 12.5 percent more new homes compared with the fourth quarter of 2012.

On the public housing front, the market for HDB resale flats is feeling the effects of the government’s latest round of cooling measures.

Overall cash-over-valuation (COV) for HDB resale flats dropped S$1,000 to end at S$31,000 in March, the lowest monthly COV in the last six months.

But the median resale price of HDB flats rebounded to S$460,000 in March, up 1.2 per cent from S$454,500 in the previous month.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 10 Apr 2013

New home buyers push demand in local property market

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First-time home buyers have been propping up demand in the local property market.

They are not affected by the latest cooling measures implemented in January since they belong to the group without a mortgage loan.

24-year-old Travis Ye became a condo owner for the first time in September last year, when his parents put down a 30 per cent downpayment for his S$1.4 million condominium at eCo.

That’s when the sixth cooling measure had been in force for nine months, raising fears of more policy risks.

First-time property buyer Ye said: “Yes, there was a rush. A lot of people now are so afraid that my money today can buy this property. But with all these cooling measures and X amount of money, you cannot really buy a property because of the lower loan tenure, your bigger downpayments, your money shrinks in a way.”

Yet, Mr Ye remains confident that rental income from his three-bedroom unit at eCo in Bedok can generate positive cash flow even after paying off monthly mortgages.

But the fresh graduate will have to top up his loan repayments should interest rates rise above 3.5 per cent per annum.

Some market watchers observed mortgage rates have been rising in the last three months.

But some analysts said with Singapore’s economy and high employment rate, first timers should be able to meet their home loan obligations.

And, first timers like Mr Ye have kept primary home sales moving.

Developers that launched new projects after the seventh round of cooling measures on 12 January, said at least 1 in 2 buyers don’t have an existing loan to service.

Launched on 15 March, 60 per cent of units at D’Nest were bought by those who have not bought a home before.

At Q Bay Residences, that was launched about a week after the latest round of cooling measures, 53 per cent of buyers were first-time property owners.

Developers Channel NewsAsia spoke to said they do not have statistics on first-time owners prior to cooling measures. CapitaLand does not have such statistics.

Analysts also said that the decline in private home sales in February was mainly due to lower demand from investors.

Sale of new private homes in Singapore fell sharply in February – to 708 units, down by nearly 65 per cent from January.

CEO of DistriCT65, Colin Tan said: “I would say that when the developers say that first-time buyers make up more than half of buyers, it is probably not an increase in first-time buyers. It is a decrease in second time buyers or mature buyers – those who have an existing loans. That is why you see the percentage increasing for first-time buyers.”

For now, first-timers should prop up the property market.

Deputy MD of Colliers International, Grace Ng said: “For the rest of 2013, demand will be sustainable because first-timers are coming out in force. They are taking opportunity to buy well-located condominiums in view of the various discounts given by the developers.”

March has been tipped to be the top month for new home sales in 2013. From the four recent launches, analysts are expecting nearly 2,000 units to be sold last month – surpassing 708 units sold in February.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 4 Apr 2013