New home sales plunge 73.2% in June, but rebound imminent in July

Nine property launches in July and August will keep the new home sales market lively.

The lack of new project launches has pushed new private home sales to drop 73.2% in June, with just 278 units sold compared to the 1,039 units moved in May, according to the latest data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).
 
Developers held back on putting projects on the market in June, where sales activity tends to be slower owing to the school holidays where many families may be traveling, noted Siew Ying Wong, head of research & content, PropNex Realty. 

In May, the launch of The Continuum and The Reserve Residences boosted sales, leading to 488 units being sold during the month. 

The Rest of Central Region (RCR) recorded the most new home sales sold in June, with 147 new homes. However, this is 82.6% lower than the 847 units transacted in May. 

RCR home sales would likely lead transactions again in July following the launch of Grand Dunman and Pinetree Hill over the weekend, Wong noted.

A total of 112 new private home sales were sold in the Core Central Region (CCR) in June, a 26.8% decline compared to May. Developers notedly continued to pare down on their unsold CCR inventory, with 14 new units sold from Leedon Garden with a median price of $2,812 psf.

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The Van Holland also sold 13 units at a median price of $2,692 psf; and The Atelier moved 12 units at a median price of $2,663 psf during the month.
 
New home sales in the Outside Central Region (OCR) continued to be tepid in June as the low unsold inventory in this sub-market limited buying opportunities and crimped demand. OCR new home sales fell by 51.3% in June, its third straight monthly decline, moving only 19 units. 

Wong noted that the significant decline in new home sales from May to June is no cause of concern given the lack of new launches, with most developers pushing back launches to July.

“Developers’ sales are supply-led, typically driven by new launches that come on and may fluctuate substantially from month to month, depending on the availability of new projects in the given month,” he said.

Wong anticipates that new home sales number will shoot up in July with the launch of four projects: The Myst, Lentor Hills Residences, Grand Dunman, and Pinetree Hill. The four projects have already collectively sold over 1,100 units in their respective launches in 8 July and 15 July weekends.

ALSO READ: Grand Dunman sells 520 units in weekend launch

“We expect OCR sales to pick up markedly in July on the sales at The Myst and Lentor Hills Residences, leaping from three months of double-digit transaction numbers as low unsold supply stymied sales,” Wong said.

The strong uptake from the July launches suggests that there is still keen interest in new private homes amongst buyers, Wong added.
 
Other development launches in August and the coming months are expected to keep the new home sales market lively in the second half of 2023.

Some of the upcoming launches in August include Lake Garden Residences, Altura EC, TMW Maxwell, Orchard Sophia, and The Arden.