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This week, URA released news that developers sold 1,724 private homes in July, 2.6 times the 654 units in the previous month, and up 55 per cent from the 1,112 units in July 2017. While developers sold 1,000 units on 5 July, the fact that 700 units were transacted in the following weeks speaks volume of the strong fundamental demand in the market. Analysts believed that real estate investment sales in Singapore is expected to match last year's record of S$40 billion, thanks to bumper sales already clocked in for the first half this year even as Singapore economic growth eases to 3.9% in 2nd quarter.
New Zealand's Parliament passed a law to ban many non-resident foreigners from buying existing homes but Singaporeans are not affected.
New Zealand's Parliament passed a law to ban many non-resident foreigners from buying existing homes but Singaporeans are not affected.
Parc Botannia - top selling new condo in Sengkang & one of the most attractively priced new condos today
Sengkang hospitals will provide north-east residents with quality healthcare closer to home with the opening of the Sengkang General Hospital (SKH) and Sengkang Community Hospital (SKCH). People living in the north-east will be able to receive quality and affordable healthcare closer to home through partnerships with the National Heart Centre, Singapore National Eye Centre (SNEC) and the National Cancer Centre, among others, the SKH campus will also offer residents easy access to specialist services. These specialist centres are part of the SingHealth group to which the two hospitals belong.
Sengkang Central site goes for top bid of $777.8m A CapitaLand and City Developments Ltd (CDL) tie-up has clinched a commercial and residential site in Sengkang Central. Their winning bid of $777.78 million works out to $923.59 psf ppr for the 99-year leasehold site next to Buangkok MRT Station. In a joint statement, CapitaLand and CDL said their joint venture will transform the 3.7ha site - the largest commercial and residential site awarded since 2015 - into an integrated community hub with 700 residential apartments, meeting the needs of residents in Buangkok with amenities such as a hawker centre, community club, childcare centre, retail shops, as well as public rail and bus transport facilities sited in a one-stop location. The integrated development is targeted for completion in the first half of 2022. The winning bid was the highest of the four shortlisted tenderers for the dual-envelope (concept and price) tender.
Riverfront Residences condo, formerly known as Rio Casa, at Hougang/Serangoon
Residential - Borrowers feel rate hike pinch as banks step up mortgage repricing As interest rates hit a 10-year high, banks are increasingly firing off missives to home loan borrowers informing them that their loans have been repriced. For some, it will be the second repricing letter this year as interest rates continue their relentless climb. The key 3-month Sibor or Singapore interbank offered rate - a common benchmark used to price home loans - rose to 1.64 per cent over a week ago, back to levels last seen in September 2008. At 1.64 per cent, it has gained some 50 basis points from late last year. For many borrowers the applicable interest rate hike is between 20 and 40 basis points since the beginning of 2018, which can translate into several hundred dollars more in monthly instalments.
The Tre Ver is an upcoming quality project by UOL formerly known as Raintree Gardens in Potong Pasir
Rush to beat cooling measures sends developers' sales to 16-month high The knee-jerk reaction by some buyers who raced to snap up private residential properties on the night of July 5 to beat the cooling measures that kicked in the next day sent developers' sales for July to its highest level in 16 months. The 1,724 private homes developers sold in July was 2.6 times the 654 units in the previous month, and up 55 per cent from the 1,112 units in July 2017. However, no one is expecting a repeat performance this month, given the double whammy from the cooling measures - higher additional buyer's stamp duties and lower loan-to-value limits - as well as the ongoing Hungry Ghost festival, when some buyers avoid buying property.
Among the projects launched so far this month, The Tre Ver in Potong Pasir has done relatively well; it has sold 148 units at an average price of around S$1,550 psf, which is deemed "reasonable" for the area. As expected, the top three selling projects in July were Riverfront Residences in Hougang, Park Colonial next to Woodleigh MRT station and Stirling Residences near Queenstown MRT station. Their respective developers began sales on the evening of July 5. Together, the three projects accounted for 1,396 units, or just over 80 per cent of developers' sales of private homes last month, according to data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, based on its survey of licensed housing developers. At Riverfront Residences, 628 units were sold last month at a median price of S$1,307 psf. At Park Colonial, 429 units were moved at S$1,756 psf median price, while at Stirling Residences, 339 units were transacted at S$1,746 psf median price.
Among the projects launched so far this month, The Tre Ver in Potong Pasir has done relatively well; it has sold 148 units at an average price of around S$1,550 psf, which is deemed "reasonable" for the area. As expected, the top three selling projects in July were Riverfront Residences in Hougang, Park Colonial next to Woodleigh MRT station and Stirling Residences near Queenstown MRT station. Their respective developers began sales on the evening of July 5. Together, the three projects accounted for 1,396 units, or just over 80 per cent of developers' sales of private homes last month, according to data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, based on its survey of licensed housing developers. At Riverfront Residences, 628 units were sold last month at a median price of S$1,307 psf. At Park Colonial, 429 units were moved at S$1,756 psf median price, while at Stirling Residences, 339 units were transacted at S$1,746 psf median price.
A beautiful integrated condo next to Woodleigh MRT Station developed by joint collaboration of Chip Eng Seng
Developers cut prices after latest property curbs In a bid to attract more buyers, some property developers are lowering the prices of their residential projects by about 5 to 10 per cent after the latest round of cooling measures took effect on July 6. Daintree Residence, a 99-year leasehold condominium which opened for sale on July 28, was selling at an average price of S$1,710 psf, which is 5 per cent lower than the earlier announced price of S$1,800 psf.
At Potong Pasir, The Tre Ver — another new development launched on Aug 4 by UOL and United Industrial Corporation — sold at an average transacted price of S$1,550 psf. Park Colonial, which is located in the same district and put up for sale just before the cooling measures kicked in, was selling at an average of S$1,750 psf — indicating that The Tre Ver's launch prices are about 10 per cent less than its neighbouring project. Affinity @ Serangoon's developer Oxley Holdings was offering a 5 per cent discount for its one-bedroom units, and a 7 per cent discount for its two-bedroom ones. The discounts were limited to just the next 20 units sold from July 12 at the project in Yio Chu Kang. Guocoland was similarly offering a 5 per cent discount on July 12 for selected units at Martin Modern condominium in River Valley, which was launched slightly more than a year ago.
However, not all developers would see the need to bring down their prices yet, as pointed out by Mr Lee Sze Teck, head of research at property firm Huttons Asia. Some of them have managed to sell units without discounts due to the project's location, architectural design and layout. Mr Lee believes that prices will not fall further in the coming months. Mr Lee said that there is little room for developers to move prices since projects overheads are locked in, such as land and construction costs. Last month, the Urban Redevelopment Authority reported that prices of private homes went up by 3.4 per cent quarter-on-quarter from April to June.
This effectively presents an ideal opportunity for buyers to enter the market right now to enjoy the discounts that would not have been available for them before the ABSD increase.
At Potong Pasir, The Tre Ver — another new development launched on Aug 4 by UOL and United Industrial Corporation — sold at an average transacted price of S$1,550 psf. Park Colonial, which is located in the same district and put up for sale just before the cooling measures kicked in, was selling at an average of S$1,750 psf — indicating that The Tre Ver's launch prices are about 10 per cent less than its neighbouring project. Affinity @ Serangoon's developer Oxley Holdings was offering a 5 per cent discount for its one-bedroom units, and a 7 per cent discount for its two-bedroom ones. The discounts were limited to just the next 20 units sold from July 12 at the project in Yio Chu Kang. Guocoland was similarly offering a 5 per cent discount on July 12 for selected units at Martin Modern condominium in River Valley, which was launched slightly more than a year ago.
However, not all developers would see the need to bring down their prices yet, as pointed out by Mr Lee Sze Teck, head of research at property firm Huttons Asia. Some of them have managed to sell units without discounts due to the project's location, architectural design and layout. Mr Lee believes that prices will not fall further in the coming months. Mr Lee said that there is little room for developers to move prices since projects overheads are locked in, such as land and construction costs. Last month, the Urban Redevelopment Authority reported that prices of private homes went up by 3.4 per cent quarter-on-quarter from April to June.
This effectively presents an ideal opportunity for buyers to enter the market right now to enjoy the discounts that would not have been available for them before the ABSD increase.
