Singaporeans opt for pricey homes, says report

Foreigners no longer accounted for most buyers who purchased homes at more than $5 million, according to a recent study conducted by Savills Research and Consultancy, revealing that Singaporeans are now buying up pricey homes.

The report showed a stunning turnaround in a trend which has prevailed for nearly three years when foreigners had led the top end of the home market in the country.

The percentage of Singaporeans purchasing these homes imploded 12.8 percentage points to 42.3 percent for units sold in the four months that ended in April 30, dramatically higher compared with figures in the last quarter of 2009.

Singaporeans have easily overtaken the 39.7 percent combined figure for foreigners and permanent residents. Their share is 21.4 percentage points lower than in the three months ended last December 2009.

“This decrease could be partly due to more cautiousness as a result of the financial woes and uncertainties facing the European countries,” said Christine Sun, senior manager at Savills Research and Consultancy.

“Another reason could be... that the Singapore currency is generally stronger against other currencies, making these houses more expensive for foreigners,” she added.