The rise in private home prices in Singapore has accelerated, reports released yesterday showed, as the Government again reminded buyers of the large supply in the pipeline in a bid to calm the market.
The NUS Singapore Residential Price Index (SRPI) gained 2.5 per cent last month from April, following a revised 1.1-per-cent rise in the previous month. The SRPI is a transaction-based index that tracks the month-on-month price movements of private, non-landed residential properties.
Compiled by the NUS Institute of Real Estate Studies, the index covers completed non-landed homes in the central and non-central regions. The index for properties in the central area jumped 3.5 per cent last month, from a revised 1 per cent in April, while that for properties in non-central areas rose 1.7 per cent, from 1.2 per cent previously.
Separately, a report by property consultant DTZ Research showed that the resale prices of private homes increased at a faster rate across all segments in the second quarter compared to the first quarter.
According to its analysis, the average resale price of leasehold condominiums in Singapore’s suburban areas rose the fastest – by 3.9 per cent quarter-on-quarter compared to only 0.8 per cent in the first quarter.
Meanwhile, the average resale price of freehold condominiums in the prime districts of 9, 10 and 11 grew by 3.3 per cent quarter-on-quarter, compared to 0.4 per cent in the first quarter.
The average resale price of luxury condominiums rose the least, by 1.7 per cent, but still reflected an increase over the flat performance in the first quarter. This is the only segment with prices still below the 2007 peak, DTZ said.
Ms Chua Chor Hoon, head of DTZ South-East Asia Research, said the asking prices of resale homes continued to trend upwards as sellers benchmarked prices against those of new launches.
Primary and secondary home sales rebounded after February as the market took the January cooling measures in its stride.
With many new launches creating a constant buzz, banks offering low mortgage rates and prices continuing to rise, there are signs of panic buying from buyers who fear prices will climb even further.
Yesterday, as it announced a tender for a condominium site in Punggol Field Walk, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) cautioned potential home buyers to bear in mind the strong supply in the pipeline when making their purchasing decisions.
As of the first quarter, 68,890 private residential units are in the pipeline, comprising supply from projects that were already under construction and those that had been granted planning approval but not under construction yet. And 34,270 of these were still unsold as at the end of the first quarter.
In addition to the supply of private residential units, there were also 4,220 executive condominium units in the pipeline as of the first quarter.
The 99-year Punggol site, released under the Confirmed List of the 1st Half 2011 Government Land Sales Programme, can potentially yield 550 dwelling units. The land parcel has a site area of over 14,000 sq m, with a maximum gross floor area of over 48,000 sq m.
Source : Today – 29 Jun 2011