FOMO from limited supply drive HDB resales to 13-year high

Pent-up demand from June and ghost month fears may have also driven sales.

Prices of HDB resale flats will likely rise up around 8% to 10%, according to analysts, as demand for resale flats rise to 13-year high.

HDB data revealed there were 3,047 flats resold in July, the first time that sales tipped over 3,000 units in nearly 14 years where 3,002 units were resold in September 2010. This is also the highest number of resale flats on a monthly basis since August 2010 with 3,298 transactions.

Mark Yip, CEO of Huttons Asia, said that the fear of missing out may have kicked in on buyers due to the fewer listings. The continued climb in resale prices then created a sense of being priced out, hastening purchase for buyers.

“The pick-up in sales in July could be partly due to a slight pent-up demand from June where market activity slowed during the school holidays as many families may have travelled overseas,” said Wong Siew Ying, research and content head at PropNex

OrangeTee’s chief researcher and strategist Christine Sun echoed this sentiment, noting that buyers may have preferred to purchase before the onset of the “ghost month” in August, as the lunar seventh month is traditionally considered an inauspicious period for property purchases.

Sun pointed out that many flats were sold for $1m each, indicating that more HDB upgraders may be financially capable of moving up to private housing. 

This may lead to an increased demand for private homes especially resale condos, she said.