HDB upgraders shunned by property curbs and Hungry Ghost Festival in Q3

HDB dwellers were more cautious as their condo purchases dropped 36.3% to 1,486 units, with almost half of transactions below $1m.

Property buyers hoping to leave their Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats were struck with the double whammy that is the cooling measure paired with the Hungry Ghost Month as condo purchases from buyers with HDB addresses plummeted 36.3% QoQ to 1,486 units. On a YoY basis, HDB dwellers’ home buys crashed 34.6% in the quarter, Edmund Tie & Company (ETCo) revealed.

“With the new cooling measures in place, HDB dwellers became more price-sensitive, as cash outlay/acquisition costs increased,” the firm commented.

This price consciousness was evident as 44.7% of the home purchases by HDB dwellers in Q3 were below $1m.

Also read: Million dollar HDB resale flats on the rise

“This proportion has not exceeded 40% since Q1 2017, when purchases below $1m constituted 46.9% of the total purchases,” ETCo noted.

The firm’s compiled data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) also showed that less than 40% of HDB dwellers’ home purchases in Q3 were priced from more than $1m to $1.5m. Only around 15% of these HDB addressees brought units with price tags of more than $1.5m to $4m.

“Over 90% of the units sold to HDB dwellers for projects such as Riverfront Residences and The Tre Ver were less than $1.5m,” the firm commented.

Based on the data, HDB upgraders preferred some launches, of which Riverfront Residences was the most popular as 231 units in the development were bought by HDB addressees. These HDB dwellers were also keen to transfer on other new launches in the city-state such as the Park Colonial, Stirling Residences, The Tre Ver, and Kingsford Waterbay.

Also read: Are buyers eyeing new homes over resale properties?

Meanwhile, ETCo noted that in the secondary market, suburban areas still looked attractive to HDB addressees as properties are relatively cheaper and closer to the buyers’ original residences.

“Nevertheless, buyers still preferred areas that were convenient and nearer to the city centre,” they commented.

Also read: Resale market bears brunt of property curbs as resold condo units crashed 35.3% in August

The research firm noted that District 18 or the Tampines and Pasir Ris area had the most transactions as 115 units were resold to HDB addresses. Other dominant markets that lured HDB dwellers were District 19 (Serangoon Gardens, Punggol, Hougang), and 23 (Bishan, Ang Mo Kio).