Home sales in the Core Central Region are up 42.6 percent from 2015.
Despite the continued drop in private home prices, Singapore’s property market has showed signs of life, with a rejuvenated collective sales market and robust luxury residential sales, reported The New Paper.
Data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) showed that private home prices fell by 10.8 percent over 12 consecutive quarters, while rents dropped by 10.7 percent.
Nonetheless, the sales volume for the first nine months of 2016 increased by 9.8 percent year-on-year to 11,993 private units (excluding executive condominiums).
In fact, the falling prices have helped boost the luxury residential segment.
As at 15 December, the Core Central Region (CCR), which includes Orchard, Bukit Timah and Novena, registered 2,601 private home transactions, up 42.6 percent from last year, revealed Savills Singapore Research Head Alan Cheong.
“This shows there has been a strong revival of interest in the luxury segment of the private residential market,” he said.
Cheong attributed the revival to developers’ creative marketing schemes, like the deferred payment scheme offered at OUE Twin Peaks.
Another bright spot is the return of collective sales. Three deals worth over $1 billion were sealed this year, compared to one $380 million deal in 2015 and none in 2014.
The $638 million sale of Shunfu Ville to Chinese developer Qingjian Realty emerged as the biggest en bloc sale of the year.
Edmund Tie and Co. Research Head Dr Lee Nai Jia is confident more sales will be sealed in 2017.
“This is because sellers have dropped asking prices, while developers are keen on well-located smaller sites,” he said.
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
