Two reasons behind rebound in HDB resale flat market in March

Property experts attributed the rebound to holidays and government grants.

The HDB resale flat market reported an increase in March, with a 23.7% month-on-month increase in resale volume to 2,287 units from 1,849 units in February.

The first reason behind this, property experts, PropNex and OrangeTee said, was from the government's CPF housing grant that was declared during the budget.

"Some of our agents have earlier indicated that they have seen an increase in inquiries following the Budget announcement," Wong Siew Ying, Head of Research and Content at PropNex, said.

"The increased demand pushed prices higher last month, climbing slightly by 0.5% month-on-month. Prices have also rebounded across most flat types except three-room flats," Christine Sun, head of research for OrangeTee, said.  

The second reason, Mark Yip, CEO of Huttons Asia, said, was the increase in viewings and transaction activities after the seasonal lull.

"Whilst the increase in housing grants on Feb 14 may have diverted some demand from the BTO market to the resale market, more buyers are resisting paying a COV as they find HDB resale prices to be high. That may have tempered the increase in HDB resale prices," Yip also noted.