Investment sales slow slightly: report
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:Investment sales across all property segments in the last quarter of 2012 reached S$7.6 billion, bringing the entire year’s figure to S$29.4 billion or slightly below last year’s S$30.1 billion and S$32 billion in 2010, according to a report by Savills...
Continue Reading • 24 Dec 2012
Two redevelopment sites sold
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:Two redevelopment sites – Leong On Building, a commercial-residential property at 520 Balestier Road and a residential site at 241 Pasir Panjang Road (pictured) — have been sold. The Balestier Road site was sold for S$92.3 million to Techkon Development...
Continue Reading • 24 Dec 2012
Top 10 Stories of 2012
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:2012 has been a bright year for Singapore’s property market, and as the year draws to a close, we take another look at the 10 most read stories on PropertyGuru this year.1. First to make the list was a story published on 12 April about the...
Continue Reading • 24 Dec 2012
PropertyGuru: The undisputed leader
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:PropertyGuru is undisputedly the number one property portal and market leader for online property research in Singapore, based on data from top website monitoring agencies Google, Alexa, Comscore, Hitwise and Effective Measure.According to Google, PropertyGuru has...
Continue Reading • 24 Dec 2012
Boom year for super-prime US properties
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: While the US property market is slowly moving back to a healthy level following the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, the super luxury segment has been surging due to hot demand from billionaires. In 2012, this group snapped up multi-million dollar mansions and...
Continue Reading • 21 Dec 2012
London tower sees strong interest
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:London is ripe for investments, especially as the government recently announced a £50 million (S$99.2 million) infusion into a new visionary development for media and technology firms.The initiative aims to revive the well-known Old Street roundabout to become...
Continue Reading • 21 Dec 2012
Far East caps successful year
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Singapore developer Far East Organization is offering a festive promotion for units in some of its most popular developments. “This year we have brought several new lifestyle concepts to the residential market including a range of SOHO-lifestyle offerings, and...
Continue Reading • 21 Dec 2012
S'pore home prices soar, but not invincible
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Singapore home prices have remained among the highest in the world amid challenges faced by the economy this year. Since the global financial crisis, prices have soared 56 percent and this is expected to continue in 2013, even as sales volumes decline due to the...
Continue Reading • 20 Dec 2012
HK's hot market could impact home loans
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:Hong Kong’s sizzling property market may prevent home buyers from servicing their mortgages, according to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA).If home buyers are forced to borrow too much compared to their income, the city’s overheating market –...
Continue Reading • 20 Dec 2012
Forestville EC launching this month
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:Banking on strong demand for executive condominiums (ECs), developer Hua Yuan Investment is set to unveil its latest EC development in Woodlands Avenue 5 this month. Called Forestville (pictured), the 99-year leasehold project is located on a 277,711 sq ft site and will...
Continue Reading • 20 Dec 2012
BBR Holdings wins HDB contracts
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:BBR Holdings has secured two contracts to build 1,282 HDB units at Kallang Whampoa and Sengkang, reported The Business Times.Valued at S$182.9 million, the contracts were obtained through subsidiaries Singapore Piling & Civil Engineering and Singa Development. The...
Continue Reading • 20 Dec 2012
Experts expect EC demand to strengthen
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: With higher incomes, buyers will likely create more demand for executive condominiums (ECs), according to a report by DTZ. As of Q3 2012, there were 6,500 EC units for sale. This is in addition to the 3,100 units expected to be delivered under the confirmed list of the...
Continue Reading • 20 Dec 2012
Buzz surrounds new CDL condo
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: City Developments Limited (CDL) has unveiled a luxurious new residential project in Singapore offering exclusive housing options with a myriad of facilities to make residents feel at home. Called Echelon at Alexandra View (Artist's Impression pictured), the condominium...
Continue Reading • 19 Dec 2012
Australia to act if house prices spiral
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: To prevent a property bubble, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will take action once home prices start increasing by 10 to 20 percent per year, said Reserve Bank Governor Glenn Stevens.He urged Australians to be comfortable with modest price increases, although...
Continue Reading • 19 Dec 2012
US housing activity to heat up
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Although economic activity in Q3 2012 slowed down, mortgage and home buying activity in the US is predicted to climb in 2013, according to a report by Fannie Mae.“With data pointing to soft economic conditions and the fiscal policy debate hanging in the balance, we...
Continue Reading • 19 Dec 2012
'End of the World' shelters can withstand 1000m high waves
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Speculation about the world coming to an end has intensified in recent days, with some people believing it could happen this Friday, 21 December – the last day on the ancient Mayan calendar. The rumours have inspired Liu Qiyuan, a furniture maker to design a home...
Continue Reading • 19 Dec 2012
Top property havens 2013
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: With the global residential market expecting a brighter outlook in 2013, some international property hotspots are beginning to emerge. In a recent report in My Paper, property analysts recommended several destinations that could provide lucrative investments to...
Continue Reading • 19 Dec 2012
Cautious bidding expected for latest GLS sites
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: Two 99-year leasehold residential sites released under the Government Land Sales (GLS) Programme this month are expected to receive healthy interest from developers, with seven to nine bids due to their strategic locations, said Knight Frank Singapore. Located at...
Continue Reading • 19 Dec 2012
Govt releases two more housing sites
By Romesh Navaratnarajah: In a bid to provide developers and home buyers with more housing options, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and the Housing and Development Board (HDB) released two residential sites for sale this month. Both plots are expected to yield about 1,300 housing...
Continue Reading • 18 Dec 2012
China home prices to rise in 2013: survey
By Romesh Navaratnarajah:Home prices in China will likely move up slowly next year as the country’s economy recovers and residential demand grows, said a Reuters survey. The study found that home prices could climb 7.0 percent next year and 5.0 percent in 2014. As a result, the government...
Continue Reading • 18 Dec 2012