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Prices of HDB resale flats should stabilize within a year or so, as the housing board has released a number of new flats into the market, said National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.
Prices of resale flats have been escalating during the last few quarters and increased 4.1 percent in the second quarter from the first quarter.
As the Singapore economy continues to improve, demand for resale flats from both upgraders and first-time buyers has been strong and a so-called “imbalance” in the resale market has now emerged, said Mr. Mah.
“I hope that with HDB pushing out a record number of flats, this imbalance will be addressed over the medium term,” he said. There should be stability “maybe in another year or so”.
HDB will be releasing 16,000 additional BTO flats this year, 80 percent more compared to the previous year. Another 4,700 flats are coming up, mainly from executive condominium (EC) projects and the Design, Build and Sell scheme.
Mr. Mah said it would be difficult to predict how the price for resale flats will move in the short term. “The economy for the first half was very strong, but all indications are that it may not be so smooth going in the second half.”
If the Singapore economy cools down, “the demand for housing will also slow down,” he added.
Accompanying the increase in resale flat prices was a growth in cash premiums which homebuyers pay. The median cash over valuation (COV) in all resale deals increased to 30,000 in Q2 from $25,000 in Q1.
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Reader Comments: (2 comments)
i agreed with the above comments 100%
now the valuation n cov are way toooooo.. high,people like me in the middle income group suffers. Cant afford to buy and not able to rent. Where then do we xpect to live? Can the govt look into this and do something?