HDB resale prices up 2.3% in Q2

A record 236 units were resold for a million dollars or more. 

Resale prices of public housing flats increased 2.3% in Q2, according to data from the Housing Development Board (HDB).

This marks the 17th consecutive quarter of increase in resale prices, with prices growing faster than in Q1 (1.8%).

For the first six months of 2024, prices of HDB flats being resold grew by 4.2%.

All flat types saw their resale prices grow: 5-room flats (2.8%), 4-room flats (2.5%), 3-room flats (2.8%), and 2-room flats (2.8%).

Larger flats in demand
By volume, there were 7,352 units moved in Q2, 4% higher than the previous quarter. For the first six months of 2024, a total of 14,420 resale flats traded hands, higher than the 13,493 units moved in H1 2023.

Notably, demand for larger resale flats remained strong, said Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist for OrangeTee Group. In H1, there were 4,214 transactions for 5-room and executive flats, 9.3% higher than in H1 2023.

Analysts said that the stronger demand could be thanks to ex-private property owners having fulfilled the 15-month wait out period.

“The strong demand for larger flats could be attributed to more private homeowners having fulfilled the 15-month wait-out period when they purchase a resale flat,” Sun said.

Buyers may also have feared that they may eventually not be able to afford an HDB flat, said Sze Teck Lee, senior director of analytics for Huttons Asia.

“There was a sense of Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) amongst resale flat buyers in Q2 2024. After seeing a record number of million-dollar flats and a faster pace of price growth in Q1, buyers feared being priced out of the market and hastened their purchase,” Lee said.

Record million-dollar transactions
A total of 236 units inked during the quarter were resold at at least a million dollars, a new record, according to Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist for OrangeTee Group.

At least 28 of these units were sold for at least $1.3m or higher. There are now 112 units that were sold for over this price since Q4 2021, which was the first time that HDB resale flats breached this price.

A total of 419 million-dollar transactions were recorded in H1– which puts Singapore on track to double the total number of million-dollar HDB resales compared to the entire year of 2023, according to Sun.

Resale prices to rise 8%-10%
Looking ahead, Sun said that the outlook is positive for the HDB resale market, in part thanks to increased grants from the government.

“Moreover, the increased housing grants for eligible homebuyers rendered resale flats to be more accessible and affordable for many homebuyers, particularly young couples,” Sun noted.

Lee noted that the faster pace of price growth in earlier quarters is likely to increase anxiety and spur quicker buying decisions.

“While million-dollar flats and record prices are not the norm, it gives an impression of fast rising prices in the HDB resale market,” Lee said.

“It may spur more buyers to quickly buy before prices increase further. From now to 2025, some BTO projects in Bidadari and Punggol will be eligible for sale and it is likely sellers will seek to sell at a million or more” he added.

OrangeTee Group expects resale prices to increase by up to 8% in 2024, up from earlier estimates.

Huttons estimates volumes in the HDB resale market to fall between 26,000 to 28,000 transactions for 2024, with prices rising by as much as 10% for the whole year.