With six new projects on the market, Singapore's new home sales more than tripled in November

With 2,557 private homes sold, this is the highest sales number in more than ten years.

December 16, 2024

CONDOsingapore.com

November saw a resurgence of Singapore's private home market due to a string of project launches, robust pent-up demand, and improved consumer sentiment.

In November, developers sold 2,557 private homes, more than tripling the 784 units sold a year earlier, according to data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority on Monday, December 16.

Executive condominiums (ECs) are not included in the most recent sales figures, which show a 246.5 percent increase over the 738 units sold in October of this year.

Additionally, OrangeTee Group chief researcher and strategist Christine Sun stated that it was the highest sales number since March 2013, when 2,793 units were sold.

In comparison to the 800 units sold and 970 units launched in the same month in 2023, 2,891 units, including ECs, were sold and 3,375 units were launched in November. In contrast, 534 units were introduced in October 2024 and 766 units were sold.

Together, developers sold 3,295 condominiums and private apartments in October and November, surpassing sales in the previous nine months, when only 3,049 units were sold, according to Wong Siew Ying, research head at PropNex.

Between January and November, 6,344 new homes were sold overall. According to Wong, this will surpass the 6,421 private home sales for the entire year of 2023, which were the lowest in 15 years.

According to Leonard Tay, head of research at Knight Frank, Singaporean homebuyers had been "watching and waiting in a market that was tepid without much activity" for the majority of the year before emerging in October and November.

Huttons Asia's senior director of data analytics, Lee Sze Teck, ascribed this to an unprecedented six projects that were started in November, many of which took place on the same weekend.

One of the six was an EC, and the other five were condominium developments.

Chuan Park, which has sold nearly 80% of its 916 units, and Emerald of Katong, which is located along Jalan Tembusu, have sold almost all of their 846 units, according to Lee.

With median prices of S$2,627 per square foot (psf) for Emerald of Katong and S$2,586 psf for Chuan Park, the two projects were also the best-selling ones in November.

The six new projects were introduced at a good moment, according to Mohan Sandrasegeran, head of research and data analytics at SRI, because they matched rising buyer interest and advantageous borrowing conditions as interest rates were lowering. Since September, the US Federal Reserve has lowered interest rates twice, and analysts anticipate another cut this month.

Due to the simultaneous launch of multiple well-known projects, "many buyers were eager to take advantage of attractive deals," stated Sun of OrangeTee.

According to Marcus Chu, the CEO of ERA, developers were rushing to start their projects as soon as they got their sales licences and before the holiday season in December and January.

According to Sandrasegeran, the combination of these elements—including a strong pipeline of "well-positioned developments"—led to extraordinary market activity.

With ECs excluded, analysts estimate that new home sales for the entire year 2024 could reach 6,500 to 7,000 units, which would probably be more than the 2023 total. Additionally, they predict price increases of up to 5%, which would moderate the 6.8% growth from the prior year.

One-time

PropNex's Wong issued a warning, though, that such a remarkable performance might not happen again anytime soon.

"The strong sales in November must be viewed in their proper context and do not necessarily indicate that the private housing market is experiencing an unchecked rebound," she stated. "The majority of buyers still exercise discernment and maintain a long-term perspective when making purchases."

The take-up rate of private housing and ECs, which gauges primary residential demand, was 85.7% in November, the second-worst performance of the year, according to Nicholas Mak, chief research officer at Mogul.sg. January saw the lowest percentage, 65.8%.

Mak said that November's "housing demand could arguably be described as subpar" because the take-up rate from January to October was 105.7%.

As a result, market observers are cautiously optimistic about the upcoming year and anticipate a modest increase in the number of new homes sold, with 7,000 to 8,000 units possibly sold.

According to Lee of Huttons, some of the 2024 demand might be carried over to the launches in the first quarter of the following year.

Given the government's steady supply of land for residential development, Sun also anticipates more private home launches in 2025.

For example, approximately 5,030 new private homes, including 980 EC units, are anticipated to be produced by the government land sales programme in the first half of next year.

"By giving potential buyers the chance to weigh their options before committing to a private property investment, the supply increase can help mitigate abrupt fluctuations in demand," Sun said. "In the long run, this can help improve market stability."

According to Knight Frank's Tay, the current standoff in Ukraine and the escalating geopolitical tensions in areas like the Middle East could lead to increased volatility in the upcoming year.

"Businesses worldwide may be impacted by a second (Donald) Trump administration with warnings of additional tariffs and protectionist policies, which could impact trade and the global economy," he continued.

"Homebuying demand may (return) to the sidelines, as it did for a large portion of 2024, if these factors come together to impact Singapore's improving economy and job market."