Share of new condo units above $1.5m rose to 35% in Q2

Findings suggest that buyers may be opting for costlier and larger condos.

The prices of new condo units in Singapore rose in Q2 as the proportion of new units priced below $1m fell to 24% in Q2 2019 from 37% in the previous quarter and the share of units above $1.5m grew to 35% from 25%, Edmund Tie reported.

“These higher prices mirrored the larger average unit size released for sale as well as buyers’ preferences for such units,” Edmund Tie said in a report.

The share of new units priced above $2.5m in the RCR jumped in Q2, with units priced greater than $5m growing 27% from none in the previous quarter. This was attributed to the launch of Amber Park, which accounted for about 25.0% of total units sold in that range.

On the other hand, price ranges for most resale units saw very small changes in Q2 compared to Q1, but the proportion of resale and larger units priced above $3m climbed to 11% from 8%.

Still, there is also a higher proportion of resale units sold above $2m at 24%, compared to new units in that range at 13%.

"This suggests that buyers who purchased units priced over $2m tend to prefer older units, as they are typically larger in size and have freehold tenure," Edmund Tie added.

In addition, the percentage of Singaporeans who bought units priced from $3m to $4m in Q1 rose to 68% from 55% in the previous quarter, whilst Singapore permanent residents buying units priced above $5m fell to 18% from 25%.

Meanwhile, the share of condo purchases between $4m to $5m by foreign buyers in Q2 rose from 12% to 25%.

Homebuyers may also be shunning smaller units as the proportion of new condos smaller than 500 sq ft shrank to 13% in Q2 from 17% in the previous quarter.