Which property cooling measures will be eased in 2015?

Here’s a clue: The TDSR is here to stay.

The gridlocked property market may soon be approaching the light at the end of the tunnel. Analysts note that some cooling measures may be eased in 2015, in light of the expected significant decline in property prices.

According to Macquarie, Residential prices are set to register a -10% decline in 2015 as developers flush with inventory. “To forestall any potential crash, we could see some tweaks around stamp duties and loan to value limits. But with global interest rates also set to remain low, we do not see a lifting of the Total Debt Servicing Ratio (TDSR) on the cards,” Macquarie stated.

This sentiment is echoed in a report by OCBC, which states that stamp duties are likely to be rolled back once prices decline by 10%.

“While we believe that the TDSR framework, introduced in Jun 2013, is here to stay, other measures such as the sellers’ stamp duties and additional buyers’ stamp duties appear to be possible candidates for review if the authorities potentially look to reverse curbs ahead. However, this scenario comes into play only when residential price declines approach a meaningful threshold of ~10%, which could happen by 2H15 or after,” stated OCBC.