Regulators roll out more land for new homes as condo sales tick up

There are fewer unsold units islandwide.

A total of 2,170 private residential units will be made available in the Confirmed List of the Government Land Sales (GLS) Programme for the second half of the year, significantly higher than the 1,560 units made available in the first half.

This seems like an odd move in a cooling property market, but Minister for National Development Lawrence Wong said that the supply of new homes was increased on back of strengthening demand from buyers and the lower number of unsold units.

He added that a total of 2,130 new private homes were actually committed in the first half of the year, due to the successful sale of a Reserve List site in February.

"We are mindful that excessive supply in a weak market can exacerbate a decline in prices. At the same time, insufficient supply can result in a future shortage and an unwarranted spike in housing prices when demand picks up," Wong wrote in a blog post.

Wong added that two sites in the Outside Central Region (OCR) were included in the the current Confirmed List in order to meet growing demand from first-timers and upgraders.

“The new private homes from these sites should be completed around 2020. They will provide more choices for families looking for suburban private homes,” Wong noted.