September sees a rebound in new private house sales after a seasonal slowdown
September sees a rebound in new private house sales after a seasonal slowdown
With the exception of elite condos, 401 new private residences are sold, a 90% increase over the previous month.
October 15, 2024
CONDOsingapore.com
After recording their lowest-ever August sales number since the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) made official figures accessible in 2007, developers' sales started to pick up steam again in September.
401 new private residences, excluding executive condos (ECs), were sold in September, according to statistics made public on Tuesday, October 15.
This was an 84.8 percent rise from the same time last year and a 90 percent increase over the 211 units registered in the previous month.
Following the end of August's historically slow Hungry Ghost Month period, Mohan Sandrasegeran, head of research and data analytics at Singapore Realtors Inc. (SRI), credited September's increase to resurgent market activity and rising buyer confidence.
"Developers can take advantage of the renewed interest and start new projects to meet demand during the post-festival period, which frequently sees a revival in sentiment," he added.
Sales of new homes, including ECs, increased by 75.3% to 433 from 247 units sold in August and by 29.3% from the 335 units sold the previous year.
Developers in the EC category sold 32 new units in September, compared to 36 the previous month.
As the number of unsold EC units fell to a record low of 171, Lee Sze Teck, senior director of data analytics at Huttons Asia, explained that this was because purchasers were "hampered by the limited choices in the market."
In September, 437 new private house units from several current developments were made available for purchase. Compared to the 272 units introduced the previous month, this was 60.7% more.
A "reasonable budget"
According to URA and Huttons data analytics as of October 15, Bukit Sembawang's 8@BT was the best-selling and only residential property launched in September. More than half, or 83 units, were sold at a median price of S$2,727 per square foot (psf). Subsequently, 72 apartments at Pinetree Hill were sold for a median price of S$2,501 per square foot.
According to Lee of Huttons, 8@BT's design was "well thought out," with practical one- and two-bedroom layouts that eliminate balconies and reduce hallways.
Customers are prepared to spend more for a unique product when it is well-made and has nice finishing, according to Lee. He considered the pricing of more than 60% of the project's apartments, which was S$2 million and less, to be a "comfortable budget for many buyers."
Marcus Chu, the CEO of ERA Singapore, also credited 8@BT's success to its standing as a high-end building and its ideal location with "few new home options" nearby.
The majority of private residential purchasers' preferences, according to Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist at OrangeTee Group, stayed below the S$2.5 million level, as 64.4% of all new house sales in September fell inside this range.
More than 40%, or 165 units, of the 401 units sold in September that did not include EC sales were from the Outside Central Region. Over half, or 221 units, were sold in the Rest of Central Region, with the remaining 15 units, or around 3.7%, coming from the Core Central Region.
In September 2024, 90.3% of purchasers were Singaporeans.
According to Lee of Huttons, more purchasers are thinking about obtaining citizenship before purchasing properties, therefore he predicts that the percentage of Singaporean buyers will remain well over 85% in the next months.
The sale of two flats at 32 Gilstead for more over S$14 million apiece was the month's biggest transaction by value. These flats were purchased by two permanent occupants.
Contradictory predictions
According to OrangeTee and Huttons, the cost of new homes might rise by as much as 2% this year. Over 2024, OrangeTee expects between 5,000 and 5,500 additional residences to be sold, while Huttons predicts up to 5,000.
"With noteworthy developments like Norwood Grand and Meyer Blue, which are expected to boost new home sales in October, we anticipate that the positive momentum seen in September will carry over into the coming months," Sandrasegeran of SRI said.
"In addition, the market is expected to be further stimulated by the November launch of Union Square Residences, which will signal a change in momentum following earlier slower months."
Similarly, Chu of ERA said that because the majority of planned launches are anticipated to occur in October and November, he anticipates a "strong boost" in new house sales during these months.
After the Federal Reserve announced a 50 basis point interest rate cut, the head of ERA saw an increase in buyer confidence and activity.
"We are getting more enquiries from buyers, and the showflats for upcoming launches are getting busier," Chu added.
By the end of 2024, he predicts that 5,500 to 6,500 new residences would be sold.
Sales momentum would "gradually gather pace in October," according to Nicholas Mak, chief research officer at Mogul.sg, before stalling in December because of the year-end holidays.
According to him, this year's residential primary sales may "drop to a record low" of 4,000 to 5,000 units.
This is in light of the fact that, in the first nine months of 2024, only 3,077 private housing units were sold, which is the lowest number of primary market sales for the January–September period since 1996.
"If developers don't overprice their new launches, the sales momentum will probably pick up again in February 2025 after the Lunar New Year," Mak said.
