Tag Archives: ABSD

Taxman collects $1.03 billion in ABSD

Posted on 6 May 2013 | Comments Off on Taxman collects $1.03 billion in ABSD

Singapore recorded a significant hike in tax revenue due to the additional buyer’s stamp duty (ABSD) introduced in January, reported The Straits Times.

The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) stated that the government collected around S$158 million in ABSD from February to March. A total of S$1.03 billion has so far been collected since December 2011 when the measure was first implemented until March this year.

Foreigners accounted for most at S$580 million for 3,041 homes, while Singaporeans and permanent residents (PRs) paid S$386 million for 7,269 units. On the other hand, non-individuals contributed S$66 million for 285 units, reported IRAS.

Meanwhile, S$66.6 million has been collected in seller’s stamp duties (SSD) since it was introduced in 2010.

Experts noted that despite the property taxes, buying activity remains healthy as developers continue to offer discounts and incentives.

In fact, about 30 to 40 percent of buyers at new launches are purchasing their second, third or subsequent homes, said Alan Cheong, Research Head at Savills Singapore.

“They are creating reasons to buy. It could be for rental income when the population grows to over six million, capital gains or to hedge against the possibility of their children not being able to afford homes in the future,” he said.

Source : PropGuru 6 May 2013

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Posted in Cooling Measures, Government, Property Market / Real Estate, Tax Matters / Property Tax

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Tighter mortgage rules better for current property market

Posted on 2 May 2013 | Comments Off on Tighter mortgage rules better for current property market

The current low mortgage rate is one of the main contributors to the stubbornly high property prices here.

In the United States, the average mortgage rate is about 3.65 per cent despite the Federal Reserve maintaining its interest rate at near zero. Meanwhile, Hong Kong recently raised the risk weighting for new mortgages, and there has already been an impact on interest rates.

It would be good if the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) could also administrate a gradual increase in mortgage rates here, to increase the holding cost of buying investment properties.

At current property prices and with rental yields expected to soften, a gradual increase in mortgage rates would have an immediate impact on property prices. By tightening mortgage rules now, the MAS would have better control over the stability of our financial institutions and our economy should there be sudden increases in interest rates in the near future.

Also, foreigners are more willing to pay the Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty and park their money in Singapore’s real estate than buying risky investment assets elsewhere.

Just having a 10 per cent share of foreign buyers of properties here could provide a false sense of positive market sentiment towards our real estate. Developers would be quick to exploit more foreign buying to support property prices.

From PATRICK TAN CHOON HONG

Source : Today – 2 May 2013

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Posted in Loan / Mortgage / Finance

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