New home sales volume feared to crash to crisis levels

Less than 1,400 homes were sold in Q1.

New home sales volume are feared to crash to crisis levels this year if new home sales inked during the first quarter are anything to go by.

According to CBRE, the total tally for the first three months of the year stands at 1,379 new home sales.

“Should the quarterly average be annualised, sales will number about 5,000 – 6,000 units a year. These levels are similar to the recession years of 1997/1998 (Asian Financial Crisis), 2003/2004 (SARS and the market recession) and 2008 following the Lehman collapse,” said Desmond Sim, Head, CBRE Research, Singapore and South East Asia.

Sim further noted that for the market volume to return to the 10,000 to 12,000 yearly average, there is a strong need for the government to review the sluice gate of measures.

“The current new level is however, a result of government policy intervention and not external factors. It is projected to take up to three years to manage the current 21,000 unsold units,” Sim stated.