Private residential property price index jumped 17.6% in 2010

The price index increased to 2.7%, compared with the 2.9% in the previous quarter.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority said that based on the estimated price index of private residential property, prices rose from 189.6 points in the 3rd Quarter 2010 to 194.8 points in the 4th Quarter 2010.

URA also released today the flash estimates of the price changes in the 3 geographical regions for 4th Quarter 2010. Prices of non-landed private residential properties increased by 2.3% in Core Central Region, 1.7% in Rest of Central Region and 1.6% in Outside Central Region in the quarter. In comparison, for 3rd Quarter 2010, prices of non-landed private residential properties increased by 1.6% in Core Central Region, 2.3% in Rest of Central Region and 2.2% in Outside Central Region. For the year 2010 as a whole, prices increased by 14.3%, 17.5% and 14.5% in Core Central Region, Rest of Central Region and Outside Central Region respectively.

The flash estimates are compiled based on transaction prices given in caveats lodged during the first ten weeks of the quarter supplemented by information on the number of new units sold. The statistics will be updated 4 weeks later when URA releases the full 4th Quarter 2010 real estate statistics, when more data on the caveats lodged and the take-up of new projects are captured. Past data have shown that the difference between the quarterly price changes indicated by the flash estimate and the actual price changes could be significant when the change is small. The public is advised to interpret the flash estimates with caution.

URA will continue to release relevant property market information in a timely manner to allow the public to make informed decisions. On the supply side, the statistics on private residential units in the pipeline, which were last released in October 2010, will be updated in the 4th Quarter 2010 Real Estate Statistics to be released on 28 January 2011.