Collective sales fever goes down: Khaw
Singapore’s property market has showed signs of stabilising and the collective sales fever is now receding, according to National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan in his latest blog post.“En-bloc activities reached feverish heights in 2006 and 2007, when some 10,200 housing units...
Continue Reading • 25 Jan 2012
High-end and mid-tier markets face tough year: Colliers
After new home sales dropped 63 percent in December, property firm Colliers International predicts a challenging year for the market across the price spectrum.It noted that mid-tier to high-end segments will see a decline in foreign buyers, as many of them have been driven out by the additional...
Continue Reading • 25 Jan 2012
Mixed-use projects more popular now than before
Singapore’s housing market may be experiencing a slowdown, but mixed-use developments are gaining in popularity here.Over the past year or so, there have been several high-profile mixed developments launched, including Fusionopolis at one-north, Changi City within Changi Business Park and...
Continue Reading • 25 Jan 2012
Ascott Reit DPU slides 15%
Costs incurred for one-off events in the fourth quarter pulled down Ascott Residence Trust’s distribution per unit (DPU) by 15 percent over a year ago, down eight percent from the trust manager's forecast.This year, “we expect operating performance of our properties to improve over...
Continue Reading • 25 Jan 2012
Inflation in Asia to fall, then rise
Although inflation in Asia will rapidly decline within the next six months, prices will pick up speed again by year-end, according to Michael Spencer, Chief Economist for Asia at Deutsche Bank.With crude oil prices moving sideways and food prices tumbling, worries may switch to global deflation...
Continue Reading • 20 Jan 2012
Henderson Land revises down 2012 targets
Hong Kong developer Henderson Land Development Co Ltd. announced that it is targeting HK$16 billion (S$2.64 billion) in property sales for 2012, as it focuses on selling affordable apartments amid the cooling housing market.That target represents a seven percent drop from the previous year, when...
Continue Reading • 20 Jan 2012
US mortgage rates at new low
The average rate of the 30-year fixed mortgage in the US hit a new low this week, dropping to 3.88 percent from 3.89 percent a week ago, according to data released by Freddie Mac.This is the seventh consecutive week in which the rate has stayed below four percent.Meanwhile, the average 15-year...
Continue Reading • 20 Jan 2012
Little interest seen at Knight Frank auction
Knight Frank’s monthly property auctions got off to a quiet start to the year yesterday, with six properties on offer but without a single bid.However, Sharon Lee, Head of Residential Auctions at Knight Frank, remains optimistic about the auction market. She does not believe this will be a...
Continue Reading • 20 Jan 2012
Limit certain buyers from resale HDB market: analyst
One way cash-over-valuation (COVs) can be lowered is if the government limits private homeowners and second-time buyers from acquiring resale HDB flats, according to Tejaswi Chunduri, PropertyGuru's real estate analyst.Her comments come after Minister for National Development, Khaw Boon Wan,...
Continue Reading • 19 Jan 2012
Govt releases two residential sites for sale
The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) and Housing Development Board (HDB) have released two residential sites at Hillview Avenue and Upper Serangoon View/Upper Serangoon Road for sale. The two sites were made available for sale under the Confirmed List of the H12012 Government Land Sales (GLS)...
Continue Reading • 19 Jan 2012
Cooling measures may need tweaking, says Far East
The 10 percent additional buyer’s stamp duty (ABSD) for foreigners is ‘a very big number’, according to Philip Ng, CEO at Far East Organization (pictured), noting that the recent property cooling measures may need to be calibrated, based on how persistently sales volumes drop.Ng...
Continue Reading • 19 Jan 2012
Annual yields in property stamp duty hit S$2b
Some S$2 billion in stamp duty from property transactions is collected by the government annually.According to Josephine Teo, Minister of State for Finance, a total of S$10.87 billion in stamp duty has been collected from the sale and purchase of properties within the last five financial years,...
Continue Reading • 19 Jan 2012
China's home prices fall in December
China’s efforts to curb skyrocketing home prices are now taking effect, as nearly three-quarters of its major cities saw price declines in December from the previous month, according to the central government.Some 52 of 70 Chinese cities tracked by the government, including Beijing and...
Continue Reading • 19 Jan 2012
US mortgage applications surge 23.1%
Mortgage applications in the US rose by more than 20 percent last week, driven by a surge of refinancing demand as interest rates decreased, according to a Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) survey.The seasonally adjusted mortgage application index that includes both home purchase demand and...
Continue Reading • 19 Jan 2012
HDB studio apartments not suitable for young singles
The Housing and Development Board’s (HDB) studio apartments are not suitable for younger singles, according to National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan.He explained that the apartments are sold with a short lease period of 30 years, making it ideal for retirees and not for younger...
Continue Reading • 19 Jan 2012
Khaw proves point by releasing median Q4 COV figures
Minister for National Development, Khaw Boon Wan, has taken to his blog to share data on the amount of cash-over-valuation (COVs) paid by different groups of buyers, following his parliamentary response on Monday which caused a lot of controversy. The figures show that private property owners and...
Continue Reading • 19 Jan 2012
Over 160 units at Watertown snapped up in preview
Within just five hours yesterday, over 160 of the 250 units released were sold at the preview of Watertown, the first integrated waterfront residential and retail development in Singapore. Almost 90 percent of the buyers were Singaporeans, with the SOHO Apartments and Suites receiving the most...
Continue Reading • 19 Jan 2012
Kovan residential site draws 11 bids
Suburban residential sites continue to receive strong interest despite the latest round of cooling measures as well as wider economic uncertainty.The public tender for a residential site at the corner of Kovan Road and Simon Road has attracted 11 bids, with a consortium comprising Hoi Hup Realty...
Continue Reading • 19 Jan 2012
Changes in BTO balloting rules to be announced
Minister of National Development, Khaw Boon Wan, hopes to announce changes in the balloting rules for the sales of HDB's built-to-order (BTO) flats to be launched in March. The first batch of HDB’s BTO projects for 2012 will offer 4,000 new homes. The project closed on Tuesday and posted an...
Continue Reading • 18 Jan 2012
UK mortgage payments more affordable now, study says
Mortgage payments in the UK have reached their most affordable levels in 14 years, according to research from Halifax.The average mortgage payments for new borrowers, which include first-time home movers and buyers, stood at 27 percent of disposable income in Q4 last year.This is the lowest level...
Continue Reading • 18 Jan 2012