Condo resale prices rise 0.4% in Dec, 6.2% for 2017

Condo resale prices rise 0.4% in Dec, 6.2% for 2017

Jan 10, 2018

Ann Williams

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Resale prices of private homes stayed on an upward trend last month to underscore the market's gradual turnaround.

Values rose 0.4 per cent from November to December, the same pace as November's revised rate, according to flash estimates from SRX Property yesterday.

The data showed that prices continued to rise across the island.

Values in the core central region and the outside central region were up 0.3 per cent month on month while those for the rest of the central region advanced 0.6 per cent.

Resale prices of condos and private apartments over the past 12 months have increased 6.2 per cent, said SRX.

All locations saw price appreciation last year: core central region was up 6.2 per cent, the rest of the central region added 8.9 per cent while values in the outside central region advanced 4.4 per cent.

But resale prices for private non-landed homes were still down 2.1 per cent from their last peak in January 2014, said SRX.

Not surprisingly, given the festive season, resale volume fell 38.3 per cent to 895 units in December from 1,450 in November.

The resale volume last month was 79.7 per cent higher that the 498 units moved in December 2016, but off 56.3 per cent compared with the peak of 2,050 units resold in April 2010.

Government flash estimates last week showed that private home prices - for both new and resale properties, landed and non-landed - rose by 1 per cent last year, their first rebound since 2013.

Analysts said the recent collective sale fever has likely pushed up private residential prices and transactions as cash-rich sellers look for replacement homes.

The recovering economy and job market, and the Government's tweak of its seller's stamp duty in March last year, also contributed to the steady upturn in the private property market.

SRX resale condo price index up for 5th consecutive month

Island-wide index rose 0.4% in Dec; gains led by 0.6% increase for city-fringe or Rest of Central Region apartments

Wed, Jan 10, 2018

Kalpana Rashiwala


RESALE prices for condominium units and private apartments posted their fifth consecutive month-on-month gain in December, based on the latest flash estimates from property portal SRX Property.

Its overall resale price index for non-landed private homes went up 0.4 per cent in December over November, the same pace as November's revised rate, said SRX Property. It had earlier estimated a month-on-month price increase of 0.5 per cent for November.

December's price gain was led by a 0.6 per cent month-on-month appreciation in the price index for the city-fringe or Rest of Central Region (RCR). The respective price indices for the prime area or Core Central Region (CCR), and the suburbs or Outside Central Region (OCR) each rose 0.3 per cent.

"CCR and RCR continue to reach new highs," SRX said.

The overall resale price index for non-landed private homes is up 6.2 per cent year-on-year from December 2016, though still 2.1 per cent shy of the peak in January 2014.

On a year-on-year basis, the price index for RCR outshone the other two regions, with an 8.9 per cent hike. This was followed by a 6.2 per cent increase for the CCR and a 4.4 per cent rise for the OCR.

SRX Property estimated that overall, 895 non-landed private homes were resold in December, down 38.3 per cent from the 1,450 units in November.

Year-on-year, the resale volume for December was up 79.7 per cent from the 498 units resold in December 2016, but 56.3 per cent below the peak of 2,050 units resold in April 2010.

Savills Singapore research head Alan Cheong highlighted a few factors that have been powering resale prices of private apartments and condo units.

For one, towards the second half of 2017, developers launched fewer projects and this diverted demand to the resale market amid the improved overall market sentiment.

Mr Cheong also said that during the decline in private home prices that began in 2013, prices fell more in the resale market than for new launches by developers. "This presented an opportunity for upgraders to take the plunge into the market."

"Another attraction of picking up a condo unit or private apartment in the resale market is that typically, these units are larger than those offered at the new launches; this suits upgraders more than investors."

Edmund Tie & Co research head Lee Nai Jia said that demand for private apartments and condo units in the resale market has received a fillip from those who have successfully sold their homes through collective sales and are looking for a replacement property.

"Strong land bids at both state tenders and private-sector collective sales have also pushed up prices of completed apartments and condos in the resale market. If people are looking for a resale condo, they will probably benchmark prices against the collective sales in the vicinity," said Dr Lee.