Private home prices down 5.7% in Q4, HDB resale flat prices still up
January 3, 2009
SINGAPORE: Prices of private, non-landed residential properties in Singapore fell 5.7 per cent in the last quarter of 2008.
The quarter-on-quarter drop in private home prices is more than double the 2.4 per cent decrease in the July-September quarter.
Experts said the steep fall is fuelled by deteriorating sentiment. Market players are also matching prices to falling valuations.
Nicholas Mak, consultancy and research, Knight Frank, said: “The individual sellers are being more realistic in their offer price, though there are some segments of sellers who are still resisting, or still hoping to sell at break-even (prices) or at a profit.”
In contrast to the decline in private home prices, new HDB data on Friday showed HDB resale flats continued to buck the trend, climbing 1.5 per cent in the fourth quarter - following a 4.2 per cent increase in the third quarter.
Experts said this resistance to downward pressure in the HDB resale market is expected to continue despite the economic downturn.
Eugene Lim, associate director, ERA Asia Pacific, said: “Buyers are coming from people who are upgrading (and) people who are downgrading… also, from the increase in the population of PRs (permanent residents). So the (demand for) HDB resale flats is very strong.”
Observers said they expect flat or slow declines for public housing prices compared to steeper devaluations in the private home sector. They added this is the trend during times of uncertainty when home buyers opt for the safer option of HDB flats.
Knight Frank estimated that by the end of 2009, private home prices could come down as much as 20 per cent, while HDB flat prices could decline by 5 to 10 per cent.
In a statement released on Friday, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) also reported price changes in three geographical regions for the fourth quarter.
Non-landed private residential property came down by 6.3 per cent in the Core Central Region, while it dipped 5.5 per cent in the rest of the Central area. In areas outside the Central Region, prices slid by about 4.7 per cent.
Source: Channelnewsasia.com
Singapore’s Q3 private home prices down 2.4% on-quarter
October 25, 2008
SINGAPORE: Private home prices in Singapore came in weaker than expected for the third quarter, dropping by 2.4 per cent - worse than an earlier estimate of 1.8 per cent. The quarter-on-quarter drop was the first decline in more than four years.
Data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) showed prices fell across the board, with prices for high-end homes in prime areas seeing the biggest drop of 2.7 per cent.
Analysts said there has not been panic selling yet, but they expect prices to drop by about 3 to 5 per cent in the quarters to come.
Donald Han, managing director of Cushman & Wakefield, said: “We don’t know what’s going to happen in the next 2 to 3 months. There will be people who’ve been affected by the stock market (declines), who might be late in their payment, and that might eventually translate to more pressurised selling.”
The mass-market and mid-tier segments, which have shown some resilience in previous quarters, have also not been spared.
Prices for mass-market homes fell by 1.5 per cent, while those for the mid-tier segment declined by 2.4 per cent.
URA said there are over 66,000 units of private homes in the pipeline - of these more than 37,000 units will be completed by 2011.
Some property consultants said developers may choose to launch their projects before the market gets worse.
Tan Huey Ying, Colliers International’s director for research & advisory, said: “Now that the market is firmly on a downward path, I think there are some developers who may take this opportunity to launch their projects instead of waiting for prices to drop even further.
“On the other hand, there might be some developers with strong financial standing who may want to continue to develop their properties, but launch at a later date when the market recovers.”
Sub-sales accounted for about 11.6 per cent of all sales transactions in the third quarter.
Ms Tan expects this segment to hold steady for the next six to nine months. And it is likely to be dominated by purchasers for properties that are nearing completion or speculators who opt to take profit now.
Rentals of private residential properties also fell in the third quarter, dropping by about one per cent.
Meanwhile, Housing and Development Board (HDB) data showed prices of resale flats rose by 4.2 per cent in the third quarter compared to the previous quarter.
Source: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporebusinessnews/view/385086/1/.html
Sim Lim Square Shop and Retail Space for Sale or Rent
October 19, 2008
Sim Lim Square shop and retail space for sale or rent in Singapore
Location Price Area Tenancy Valuation
Level 1 $5 mil 538sf existing $4.85mil
Level 3 $3.8 mil 689sf existing $3.45mil
Level 3 $4.5 mil 807sf existing $4.05mil
Good frontage and potential investment opportunity. Heavy human traffic consisting of locals and tourists alike 7 days a week.
Superb locality and convenient,near to Bugis MRT Station,public transport.
Most popular IT and electronic shopping centre in Singapore for over 20 years
Now is the best time to invest with potentially good returns before the property market boom again. Such affordable prices are unlikely to remain for long.
More information on Sim Lim Square
Sim Lim Square (Chinese: 森林广场), commonly referred to as SLS, is an established 390,000 square feet (36,000 m2) commercial shopping centre specialising in electronics and IT Products in Singapore, and is generally regarded in modern day Singaporean culture as perhaps the most established “IT mall” compared to its closest competitors. Popular with both tourists and locals, CNET Asia has called it the “electronics hub of Singapore”.
Located at 1 Rochor Canal Road, Singapore, SLS is opposite to historic features such as the Little India district and is footsteps away from one of the earliest HDB developments. SLS is accessible via MRT at Bugis or Little India MRT Stations.
Sim Lim Square stands out by offering greater range and variety of a single product, compared to the more streamlined arrangement found in electronic malls such as Funan DigitaLife Mall.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sim_Lim_Square
Private home buyers cautiously optimistic about Singapore’s property sector
October 5, 2008
SINGAPORE: Early estimates show prices of private residential properties fell for the first time in four years in the third quarter. Concerns are that times ahead may be rough.
Still, about one-third of MCL Land’s latest mid-range condominium project - The Peak@Balmeg - was snapped up over the last two days during its private launch.
Among the visitors at the launch were Panneer Selvi and her family, who have been shopping for their ideal home.
Over the last four months, they have visited 12 condominium projects, comparing prices, features and home loan packages.
Panneer Selvi said: “We have not made up our mind to buy one, we are checking with the bankers, at the same time looking around for a suitable unit.”
Some visitors said they are not overly concerned with negative market sentiments. And with prices of private apartments expected to fall over the next six months, they hope to cash in on a good deal.
Michael Tan, a potential home buyer, said: “I am not plunging into it. Sometimes buying a home, if it’s for a home, then there are other considerations other than just pricing alone.”
Ronald Wee, a property investor, said: “I do not foresee a slump like in 2003 or 2004. It’s just that if you have a good piece of property with a good location and nice view, I guess mid- to long-term is still very promising, especially the IR (integrated resort) is coming up next one to two years.”
Wee Hian Woon, a potential home buyer, said: “The market condition is so bad, the financial market is in the news all the time, the general sentiments I think are quite weak, so the feeling is that prices are likely to drop, then go up.”
MCL Land said it has yet to decide whether the project will be launched for public sales. The 180-unit project, going for S$1,000 per-square-foot, will be completed in 2011.
Overall, many home hunters are still confident that Singapore will be able to weather the financial crisis and economic slowdown in the US because the country has strong fundamentals in place.
Source: Channelnewsasia.com
Singapore Property Watch - July 2008
July 20, 2008
A Singapore Real Estate Digest by Justin Ng Properties
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SINGAPORE: Office rents in Singapore are starting to show signs of peaking, said property analysts.
They noted that prime rental costs have generally increased at a far slower pace in the first half of this year, compared to 2007.
Looking ahead, they expect office rents to soften even more towards the end of 2009 and early 2010 as demand for prime space eases……………..
Singapore home sales in June up 80% from May
SINGAPORE: June was the best performing month in terms of home sales since the property market tumbled last September, according to numbers released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) on Tuesday.
Altogether, 801 private homes were sold, a jump of 80 per cent from May.
But there were also more units launched. The number of units launched in June leapt 125 per cent from May to 1,069 units, meaning that there were more unsold properties in the market……..
June’s Property Transactions
| Flat Type | Units Sold |
| 4 Room | 854 units |
| 3 Room | 628 units |
| 5 Room | 584 units |
| Condominium | 428 units |
| Apartment | 307 units |
| Executive | 192 units |
| Terrace House | 80 units |
| Semi-Detached House | 40 units |
| Executive Condominium | 39 units |
| 2 Room | 25 units |
| Detached House | 12 units |
| HUDC | 9 units |
| 1 Room | 5 units |
| Multi-generation | 2 units |
Property Trend (Based on Past 6 months Transactions)
Latest Featured Properties
| HDB 5 Rooms @ Toh Guan Road | HDB 5 Rooms @ Marine Drive |
| D11 - Novena Ville for Sale | D19 - Chuan Park for Sale |
| D12 - The Elysia for Sale/Rent | D09 - Mackenzie 88 For Sale |
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Office rents in Singapore showing signs of peaking
July 20, 2008
SINGAPORE: Office rents in Singapore are starting to show signs of peaking, said property analysts.
They noted that prime rental costs have generally increased at a far slower pace in the first half of this year, compared to 2007.
Looking ahead, they expect office rents to soften even more towards the end of 2009 and early 2010 as demand for prime space eases.
Donald Han, managing director of Cushman & Wakefield, said: “The market is quite close to the peak, by virtue that we have seen the bulk of the expansion process by users, multinationals.”
Chua Chor Hoon, senior director of research, DTZ, said: “Rentals went up quite a lot last year – almost doubled. So there is a lot of resistance to that high level of rental, plus there is more cautiousness in the market now because of what’s happening in US and its impact on Singapore.”
Last year, Grade A office rents rose 96.5 per cent, compared to just 9.6 per cent in the first half this year.
Consultants said they expect to see more softness as some one million square feet of space may be released once major occupants complete their plans to move out.
“For banks like Standard Chartered, DBS and Citibank, you’ll probably see completion of these three portfolios in Changi Business Park in end 2009 and early 2010,” said Mr Han.
In addition, about 6.7 million square feet of space will come on-stream by 2011 and more than 60 per cent of it will be Grade A space.
While rentals for prime office space may be peaking, those for fringe locations have been increasing at a faster pace.
Ms Chua said: “The interesting thing we noticed is that for office outside the CBD, like the Harbourfront, Novena, Alexandra or Tampines, we see strong demand over there. Rental growth is slightly higher than in CBD.”
In the second quarter, rental growth for these decentralised areas was about 3 to 5 per cent.
Source: Channelnewsasia
Singapore home sales in June up 80% from May
July 20, 2008
SINGAPORE: June was the best performing month in terms of home sales since the property market tumbled last September, according to numbers released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) on Tuesday.
Altogether, 801 private homes were sold, a jump of 80 per cent from May.
But there were also more units launched. The number of units launched in June leapt 125 per cent from May to 1,069 units, meaning that there were more unsold properties in the market.
However, analysts said this would not deter developers from launching even more units in July to capitalize on the momentum, before the arrival of the Hungry Ghost month.
Colliers International expects around 1,300 units to be launched in July, as developers pre-empt the traditionally slow-moving 7th lunar month in August.
In June, most transactions occurred in the suburban regions, while prime locations saw some weakness in sales. No units valued at S$4,000 per square foot or more changed hands last month.
Nicholas Mak, director of Knight Frank, said: “The pick-up is predominantly in mid-tier mass market, because the buyers are owner occupiers. Residents in HDB estates around private condos for sale are forming the backbone of the demand.”
Tay Huey Ying, director for research and advisory at Colliers International, said: “In the current uncertain economic climate, developers are going to continue to delay launches of higher-end projects and likely to focus on mass-market tiers.”
With the suburban market being a price-sensitive one, analysts see developers continuing to employ pricing strategies.
Knight Frank’s Nicholas Mak said: “Developers must price their products quite attractively to generate sales. Any increase in prices, especially a sharp increase, will chase away buyers.”
Prices may be seen softening, but analysts say there will not be a free-fall as underlying demand will put a cap on how far prices may dip.
Source: Channelnewsasia