Private home sales jumped 53.1% in May

Homes outside central region registered higher percentage of sales.

Home sales climbed 53.1% MoM in May. Developers sold 1,257 residential units including 1,121 private condos and 136 executive condos (EC), the Urban Registration Authority (URA) revealed.

Twin VEW sold 454 of 520 units (87% take up) and all its one and two bedroom units were sold indicating that buyers are still price sensitive, and that property investors still form a significant source of demand, ERA Realty noted.

Meanwhile, Amber 45 already sold 86 of its 100 launched units (86% take up).

But with the inclusion of ECs, developers’ new home sales dipped 5% MoM. OrangeTee & Tie believes that this is due to a lack of EC projects being launched in May when 512 EC units were launched in April.

“Developer sales numbers will likely dip in June, as it the school holidays and buying demand is seasonally weaker,” ERA Realty key executive officer Eugene Lim. “Post June, we are expecting buying demand to increase again as several major developments are set to be launched."

Meanwhile, CBRE Singapore and Southeast Asia research head Desmond Sim thinks that buyers may be more selective on the back of more launches expected in the near term.

"Total price quantum will remain the key affordability consideration while unit prices ($/psf) are expected to rise steadily," Sim said. 

Despite this, OrangeTee & Tie thinks that the strong buying interest seems to have returned to all market segments with a higher percentage of sales registered for the Outside of Central Region (OCR).

“We foresee that demand for homes in OCR and RCR will continue to surge as more mega projects are slated to the launched from these regions in the coming months,” OrangeTee & Tie head of research & consultancy Christine Sun said.

New set of launches will set forth in June and July including Marina One Residences, Riverfront Residences, Park Colonial, and Stirling Residences with 521 units, 1,472 units, 805 units, and 1,259 units, respectively.

“On the back of these launches, we are expecting developer sales to reach 11,500 to 13,000 private residential units and 1,000 to 1,100 ECs in 2018,” Lim said,

“With robust en bloc transactions, there will be record number of transactions this year as displaced owners look for replacement homes or purchase private properties as an investment property,” PropNex Realty CEO Ismail Gafoor noted.“The bullish land bids at GLS sites and high prices fetched at collective sales may lead to price hike for properties in the third quarter of 2018.”