Tag Archives: new private residential property

BREAKING NEWS: 80% monthly rise in April home sales

Sales of new private homes climbed more than 80 percent during April 2015 from last month’s figure to reach 1,124 units, excluding Executive Condominiums (ECs), according to data released by Singapore’s Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) at lunchtime today.

Comparing month-on-month data, there was a 83 percent increase in sales of new private homes in Singapore from April’s tally of 613 units (692 units including ECs). Year-on-year there was a healthy 47 percent rise compared with the same month in 2014 when 762 units were sold.

A total of 1,124 new private homes were sold during April 2015 by Singapore property developers. Including ECs the figure was 1,218 units.

The most expensive unit sold last month, at S$2,636 per sq ft, was one unit at V On Shenton, while the highest number of sales took place at North Park Residences which saw 486 transactions at a median price of S$1.374 per sq ft.

In a statement published last month, URA revealed that developers launched 1,189 uncompleted private residential units (excluding ECs) for sale during the first quarter of 2015, lower than the 1,592 units that were launched during the fourth quarter of 2014.

The statement also noted that developers sold 1,311 private residential units (excluding ECs) during the first quarter of 2015, a decline from the 1,376 units sold during the fourth quarter of 2014.

Excluding ECs, Singapore was home to 6,530 launched but unsold new private home units at the end of March 2015.

In April 2015 developers launched a total of 1,344 new private homes for sale, according to the URA data.

According to URA, prices, as well as the number of units sold during the month, are based on Options to Purchase (OTPs) issued by developers and reported to URA. Not all OTPs result in confirmed sales.

An OTP is a right or option given by the vendor to an intending purchaser to buy the property at a specified price within a specified period – the validity period of the option. The intending purchaser must pay a booking fee of between 5 percent and 10 percent of the agreed price for this right or option. The purchaser has to exercise the OTP within its validity period to buy the property.

Because OTPs change daily, the number of units sold by developers also changes on a daily basis.

https://www.ura.gov.sg/realEstateIIWeb/price/search.action

Pressure mounts as developers compete with home sellers

Singapore’s sluggish property market has resulted in developers competing with home sellers, with resale transactions accounting for 45.5 percent of total private home sales, media reports said.

In fact, resale transactions increased further to 47.1 percent in Q1 2015 under the new data collection method, as home builders put off launching new projects amid slowing demand.

Moreover, as the stock of completed private homes is expected to rise seven percent this year alone, developers are being forced to cut prices to move units.

Data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) shows that Hock Lian Seng still has 189 unsold units at its jointly developed 420-unit The Skywoods condominium, with discounts offered for some units.

“Three or four years ago, everything could just sell by itself, but right now it’s very different,” said property agent Jayson Yap.

“We need to create something more appealing,” added Yap, who advises some of his resale clients to rent furniture and décor in order to make their homes more appealing to buyers.

Private home prices slipped one percent in Q1 2015, or its sixth consecutive quarter of decline, with the luxury market hardest hit.

Property watchers warn that the mid- to low-end market may be the next segment to feel the pinch.

In its update, Maybank Kim Eng said smaller companies like Roxy-Pacific Holdings and Hock Lian Seng Holdings have the biggest exposure to the mass market segment, wherein a mounting inventory of unsold units will place pressure on prices.

“Mass market prices have not come down much yet. It has to come down,” said Maybank analyst Derrick Heng.