EC popularity remained strong amongst homebuyers in November

More than 100 units were sold in November.

The popularity of executive condominiums (ECs) were still strong for buyers in November despite a muted season for the market, One Global Group said in its commentary.

One Global Group said 186 units were sold last month due to the affordability it offers.

“ECs offer a condominium lifestyle at a lower price point and appeal to budget-conscious buyers who do not want to stretch their finances amid rising interest rates. ECs are introduced in Singapore as an affordable alternative for Singaporeans who desire private housing,” read the statement.

This stemmed from the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s report that 259 private homes excluding executive condos were sold in November, which went down by 17.3% from October sales.

Including ECs, sales declined 45.1% month-on-month from 811 units in October. On a year-on-year basis, new sales excluding ECs slipped by 83.3% from 1,547 transactions in November 2021.

According to property analysts, this is the lowest number of private homes sold since December 2014 (230 units excluding EC) and is below the previous low in April 2020, when 277 new homes were sold during the Circuit Breaker period.

Muted as expected

Property experts expected that the holiday sales will drag down the transaction activities, which also led developers to suspend major launches.

OrangeTee said there was a lack of new homes on the market whilst launched units were sold and the unsold balance stock is not high.

“Some buyers were also holding back their purchases in anticipation of newer project launches next year when there will be more housing options,” read the expert’s report.

Home projections

For Knight Frank, the year 2022 will end at a hush season, with total new home sales will be about 7,500, slightly lower than the expected 8,000 to 9,000 units.

The demand may bring buying activity back to the new home market in early 2023 provided that the already pessimistic economic situation will not worsen.