http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real...ume-surges-srx

March condo resale prices flat, volume surges: SRX

31% mth-on-mth increase in transactions could be due to post-CNY effect, stabilising prices & some index volatility

By Lee Meixian

[email protected]@LeeMeixianBT

15 Apr


NON-LANDED private residential property resale prices dipped 0.2 per cent in March compared to February, but resale volume rose 31 per cent - from a low base and due to some seasonal fluctuations, analysts say.

These flash figures from the SRX non-landed private residential price index were released on Tuesday.

City centre and suburban condominiums saw price falls of 0.3 per cent and 0.4 per cent respectively, while prices in the city fringe bucked the trend to increase 0.4 per cent.

"This (anomaly in the city fringe) could be due to thin volumes and the types of properties transacted," said Wong Xian Yang, manager of research and consultancy at OrangeTee.

R'ST Research director Ong Kah Seng agreed, saying: "We cannot read into a monthly price increase for a specific region (for example, city fringe) due to the small transactional volume . . . It very much depends on the type of properties sold in that month. There is a high degree of random occurrence, too."

Year-on-year, prices have fallen 3.9 per cent from March 2014. (Meanwhile, the price change in February 2015 has been revised from no change to a 0.4 per cent decrease.)

Resale volume rose in March. About 440 non-landed private residences were resold in March, a 31 per cent increase, but that was from a low base of just 336 units resold in February.

Still, year-on-year, resale volume was 18.6 per cent higher than the 371 units resold in March 2014.

Part of this was because of a natural pick-up after February's lull due to the Chinese New Year (CNY) festivities. "More properties were put up for sale after Chinese New Year. Naturally, more deals were concluded in March after some small pent-up interest and wait from buyers," said R'ST Research's Mr Ong.

"In March, we saw pre-marketing begin for some of April's mega launches (North Park Residences, Botanique). At some older projects like The Panorama, agents were also stepping up their marketing efforts. New launches do affect resale activity, for instance, when buyers are comparing two types of properties in a particular precinct," said SLP International executive director Nicholas Mak.

The other part is due to stabilising resale prices which have drawn more buyers back into the market. And the third contributing factor to the drastic increase in transaction volume - both month-on-month and year-on- year - could simply be volatility, said Mr Mak.

Asked if he sees more buyers deterred by the cooling measures or returning to the market, attracted by the lower prices, Mr Mak said "both".

JLL's national director, research Ong Teck Hui added that affordability remains of primary concern in buyers' minds. He also believes that property statistics should be looked at over a longer time horizon rather than monthly.

ERA Realty key executive officer Eugene Lim expects private home resale prices to fall 5-8 per cent for the whole of 2015, barring any lifting of cooling measures or external shocks to the economy and property market.

If the current momentum continues, a total of 5,000-6,000 resale units may also be transacted in 2015, compared to 4,860 resale units in 2014, he added.