Two-bedders in Singapore’s CBD cost about S$1.4 million on average.
Two-bedroom condo units in Singapore’s central business district (CBD) cost approximately £781,000 (S$1.4 million) on average, revealed a study by UK based personal finance website www.finder.com.
This makes the cost of owning such a home the second most expensive in the world, the portal said.
More: 88% Of Singaporeans Unhappy Over High Property Prices: PropertyGuru
Singapore beats 89 countries
Among the 91 countries studied, Singapore was only surpassed by Hong Kong, where two-bedders in the city centre are priced at £1,280,000 (S$2.3 million).
This is significantly higher than Singapore’s average price by a whopping 64 percent.
The city-state also beat out Australia (12th), where a two-bedroom condo in the CBD costs £246,000.
In comparison, the UK (£227,000) was ranked 16th, while the US clinched the 35th spot (£111,000).
Singapore’s neighbours were also ranked much lower. Thailand was ranked 27th (£165,000), while Malaysia (£98,000) was in 43rd place.
The Philippines landed in 65th spot (£66,000), while Indonesia (£54,000) took the 74th position.
Asia’s London
But if Singapore is compared with individual cities, it falls to the third spot and is overtaken by London, where two-bedders in the CBD come with a hefty price tag of £788,000 (approx. S$1.41 million).
Nevertheless, the average price of a two-bedroom condo in Singapore is roughly comparable to London.
More: Financial Guide On Affordability: TDSR
Comparing flat sizes: Singapore vs UK
Finder said the data was obtained from Numbeo, a cost of living comparison website.
The size of a two-bedroom flat was set at approximately 636 sq ft as this was the median size of such units in the UK. The average size is approximately 653 sq ft.
This is slightly smaller than 2-room HDB flats in Singapore, which are available in two sizes; about 387 sq ft or 484 sq ft.
But the figured used by Finder is roughly the same as a 3-bedroom HDB flat, which ranges from about 645 sq ft to 699 sq ft.
The size used by Finder was from a 2010 survey conducted by Scott Wilson Group, a global design and engineering consultancy, on behalf of the Chartered Association of Building Engineers (CABE).
Take data with a “pinch of salt”
However, there are a few questions about the data.
First, Numbeo doesn’t divulge the exact timeframe when the data was gathered.
The second issue is accuracy. While Numbeo’s figures have been quoted by leading news agencies around the world like The New York Times and BBC, there are doubts on its accuracy as its calculations depend in part on data inputted by ordinary users.
Nevertheless, the cost of living website manually gathered data from various sources such as surveys, news articles and government agencies.
Can you afford a condo in Singapore? Check your affordability now.
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
