2 in 3 Singaporeans struggling to buy property amid skyrocketing prices

Identified budgets are declining.

Affordability remains a key concern among Singaporeans looking to buy property, and a lot are still in a wait-and-see position, hoping that prices will drop in the short term.

According to the recently released iProperty Asia Property Market Sentiment Report H1 2015, an increased number of respondents intend to purchase property within the next nine months (from 23 per cent in H2 2014 to 38 per cent in H1 2015); a larger number plan to buy in one to two years’ time (from 28 per cent in H2 2014 to 40 per cent in H1 2015).

Affordability remains an issue, with two thirds (66 per cent) saying prices are too high. While purchase intent is high, identified budgets are declining. More respondents (from 18 per cent in H2 2014 to 28 per cent in H1 2015) are looking to spend below S$500,000 and fewer respondents (from 66 per cent in H2 2014 to 55 per cent in H1 2015) have budgets between S$500,000 to S$1 million.

“Singaporeans continue to see property as a key investment, with most citing rental income (29 per cent) and long-term investment (26 per cent) as reasons to buy. For now, at least 50 per cent of respondents believe that property prices will drop in the next six months, pushing their buying plans out to the future. 25 per cent of respondents expect high-end luxury properties to see a price drop in H1 2015, followed declines in new and resale condominiums,” commented Mr. Sean Tan, iProperty.com Singapore General Manager.

In 2014, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) reported that property prices dropped year-on-year by four per cent for private residential property and the Housing and Development Board (HDB) reported a 6.1 per cent drop for HDB resale. Transactions for new private residential properties saw a fall of 35 per cent year-on-year in January 2015.