Tag Archives: Landed homes

Mortgagee listings reach 7-year high

Mortgagee listings in Singapore hit a seven-year high in 2015, with the number of repossessed properties put up for auction soaring by almost 52 percent to 241 from 159 in 2014, reported Channel NewsAsia citing Colliers International.

Owner listings, on the other hand, stood at 555, taking the total number of auction listings to a six-year high of 796. Last year, there were 529 auction listings.

Colliers attributed the increase to the difficulty faced by borrowers in default to sell their properties.

It noted that residential properties accounted for 79.6 percent of the listings. Mortgagee listings for landed homes jumped to 50 units from 19 last year, while non-landed properties rose to 142 from 104 in 2014.

Despite the increase, the numbers are still lower compared to that recorded during the 1998 Asian Financial Crisis and the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, noted the property consultancy.

Looking ahead, Colliers expects the number of mortgagee sales to continue increasing next year as higher interest rates put more pressure on borrowers struggling to service their bank loans.

Advertisement

Only 6 PR applications allowed for landed homes in first half

The number of permanent residents (PRs) granted approval to buy landed homes in mainland Singapore has dropped significantly on the back of government efforts to set aside more of these types of properties for Singaporeans, media reports said.

The government further tightened the eligibility criteria for PRs in 2011 to ensure that Singapore citizens receive priority for such homes.

According to the Singapore Land Authority (SLA), the number of approvals granted to PRs looking to purchase landed homes fell from 145 in 2010 to 117 in 2011 and to just 31 last year.

In fact, only six applications were approved during the first half of 2013.

Back in October 2011, Law Minister K Shanmugam revealed that the number of approvals given to PRs buying landed homes would decline by over 50 percent to not more than 50 approvals each year.