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Straits Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
New private home sales in Singapore drop for 4th straight month in June
Find out what's new on ST website and app. SINGAPORE – New private home sales fell for a fourth straight month in June amid cautious market sentiment and the mid-year school holiday lull. Excluding executive condominiums (ECs), 272 new private homes were sold in June, down from 312 units in May, even as more newly launched units were put on the market, according to Urban Redevelopment Authority data. Developers launched 187 units across two projects in June, a significant increase from just 20 units in May. June's sales were 19.3 per cent higher than the 228 units sold in the same month in 2024. Including ECs, new private home sales fell to 305 units in June from 336 in the previous month. No new EC units were launched in June. Mr Marcus Chu, chief executive of real estate agency ERA Singapore, said the tepid performance was due to the smaller scale of the two launches in June. 'Both Arina East Residences and Amber House are freehold developments that appeal to buyers seeking properties for legacy planning,' he noted. Arina East Residences, a 107-unit development in Tanjong Rhu, and the 105-unit Amber House in the East Coast were launched at median prices of around $2,900 per sq ft. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. 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'The seasonal off-peak period during the June school holidays also contributed to the lacklustre activity,' he added. In the EC segment, 33 units were sold in June across Aurelle of Tampines, Lumina Grand in Bukit Batok, North Gaia in Yishun and Novo Place in Tengah. Only 18 units remained unsold. Despite the slower sales, demand for city-fringe projects – Bloomsbury Residences in Media Circle and One Marina Gardens – remained healthy in June, particularly among investors, and continued to lead new home sales, said Mr Lee Sze Teck, senior director of data analytics at real estate firm Huttons Asia. One Marina Gardens sold 49 units at a median price of $2,962 psf in June, while Bloomsbury Residences sold 30 units at a median of $2,516 psf. Buyer interest in the luxury and ultra-luxury condominium market also remained steady in June, said Ms Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist at Realion Group. Four condo units were sold for more than $10 million each, compared with the three transactions in May, and 11 units were sold between $5 million and $10 million, an increase from the eight units moved in May, she noted. The most expensive non-landed home was a 5,285 sq ft unit at Skywaters Residences in Shenton Way, which transacted at $30.9 million. 'While some buyers remain cautious amid macroeconomic uncertainties driven by US tariff policies, others are undeterred, encouraged by falling interest rates that have improved mortgage affordability and boosted confidence in entering the housing market,' Ms Sun said. Property analysts expect private home sales to see an uptick in July amid a robust pipeline of launches. During its launch weekend on July 12 and 13, LyndenWoods, a 99-year leasehold development in Science Park, sold over 94 per cent of its 343 units. The upcoming launches are The Robertson Opus in Unity Street, Upperhouse in Orchard Boulevard, and Otto Place, an EC in Tengah. All are slated for launch over the July 19 weekend. Ms Wong Siew Ying, head of research and content at property agency PropNex Realty, said that the four developments in July can yield 600 new EC units and nearly 1,000 new private homes. 'Following the strong performance at the launch of LyndenWoods, we expect that it could help to generate some buzz in the new home sales market over the next few weeks as more launches come up,' she said. Ms Wong added that the slower growth in private home prices, lower interest rates and the improvement in Singapore's economy may also lift buying sentiment in July. Mr Tay noted that some of the new launches in the third quarter of 2025 are located in prime areas such as Orchard Boulevard, River Valley, Robertson Walk and Zion Road, where there were limited new launches in the past few years. Even though the additional buyer's stamp duty rate of 60 per cent for foreigners continue to deter non-residents, local homebuyers are expected to support sales in the prime home market segment – largely for their own stay or leasing to foreign professionals, he said. 'New citizens and permanent residents that favour high-rise living will also be scouting for new home opportunities, after choosing to put down roots in a stable Singapore against the backdrop of a destabilising global environment,' he added.
Straits Times
16-06-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
No new condo launches, cautious buyers send May new private home sales skidding
SINGAPORE - New private home sales tanked for a second straight month in May as developers held back new launches and buyers remained cautious amid an uncertain economic outlook pummelled by global trade frictions and geopolitical tensions. Excluding executive condominiums (ECs), new private home sales dropped to a mere 312 units from 663 units in April as new launched units plummeted to a mere 20 units from 1,344 units in April. But May's sales were still 39 per cent above the 223 units sold in May 2024. Including ECs, new home sales fell to 336 in May from 759 in April. No new EC units were launched in May. But May's sales still outperformed that of other months in the past three years when no new projects were launched, primarily because of lower interest rates, Mr Justin Quek, chief executive officer of OrangeTee & Tie, said. In fact, 4,350 private new home sales (excluding ECs ) were recorded in the first 5 months of 2025, anchored by robust sales at a few large suburban and city-fringe new launches in the first quarter. This is up from 1,688 units in the same period in 2024, prompting some analysts to anticipate a gradual rebound in the second half of 2025 as several major new projects are launched. 'May saw 39.3 per cent of new home sales transacted below $2 million,' ERA Singapore chief executive Marcus Chu noted. But investor interest in city-fringe projects – One Marina Gardens, Bloomsbury Residences in Media Circle, and The Hill @ One North – remained healthy, with 69 per cent of units sold at below $2 million in these three projects, he said. Excluding ECs, the biggest proportion of new private homes sold were in the $1 million to $1.5 million range, which is the sweet spot for one-bedroom buyers at One Marina Gardens and Bloomsbury Residences, real estate services firm CBRE noted. Developers' sales in the prime district remained tepid, with just 15 new units transacted in May, down from 17 in April. UOL and Singapore Land's 180-unit Watten House was the best performer in this submarket, moving four units at a median price of $3,255 per sq ft (psf) , PropNex said. In the EC segment, developers sold just 24 new units in May, down 75 per cent from 96 units moved in April. Top performers Novo Place EC and Lumina Grand EC shifted eight units each at median prices of $1,601 psf and $1,513 psf, respectively, PropNex's head of research and content, Wong Siew Ying said. As at end-May, there were just 38 units of unsold new ECs from launched projects on the market, according to Urban Redevelopment Authority data. Tight unsold stock bodes well for the upcoming 600-unit Otto Place EC in Plantation Close in Tengah, which is expected to be launched in July, she added. Tepid sales could persist in June as there are no major launches lined up during the June school holidays, apart from a private placement at the 107-unit Arina East Residences in Tanjong Rhu Road, Ms Wong said. This means limited units are released and those invited can indicate the unit they want during sales booking. 'The Singapore primary housing market is going to face further headwinds. The recent flare up in the Israel-Iran conflict and the end of the 90-day US tariffs pause on July 9 would heighten market risks,' Mr Nicholas Mak, chief research officer at property search portal noted. While developers may push back launches in the near term, there are a fair number of new projects ready to be launched in the second half of 2025, Ms Tricia Song, CBRE's head of research for Singapore and South-east Asia, said. 'With most of these located in the prime district and the city-fringe area, which tend to have higher price points, we are unlikely to see monthly new home sales of over 1,000 units seen in first quarter 2025,' she said. The upcoming pipeline features a diverse mix, from high-end branded residences and city-fringe freehold developments to well-situated EC projects in emerging townships. These include Arina Residences, the 348-unit The Robertson Opus in Unity Street, the 347-unit The Sen in Upper Bukit Timah, the 941-unit Springleaf Residence in Yishun and the 524-unit River Green in River Valley. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Straits Times
15-05-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
New private home sales fall in April as trade tensions hit Singapore's economic outlook
SINGAPORE - April's new private home sales fell short of expectations despite a surge in the number of new launched units, as home buyers turned cautious amid ongoing global trade frictions and geopolitical tensions that have dampened Singapore's economic outlook. New private home sales slipped to 663 units in April from 729 in March, also on a dearth of major mass-market new launches, but more than double the 301 units sold in April 2024. Excluding executive condominiums (ECs), 1,344 new units were launched in April, compared with just 555 units in March, and up from a mere 278 units launched in April 2024. Including ECs, new home sales plunged to 759 in April from 1,510 in March, while the number of new units launched rose to 1,344 units from 1,315 over the same period. April's three new projects – One Marina Gardens, Bloomsbury Residences in Media Circle and the ultra-luxe 21 Anderson in Tanglin – are situated in city fringe and prime locations where launch prices tend to be higher, according to OrangeTee's chief researcher and strategist Christine Sun. The median price of the 937 unit-One Marina Gardens was at $2,948 psf, while that of the 358 unit-Bloomsbury Residences was at $2,454, and 21 Anderson, which has 19 units, was at $4,811. This is well above the median price of a major suburban new launch – Lentor Central Residences at $2213 psf in March, Ms Sun noted. Ms Tricia Song, CBRE's head of research for Singapore and South-east Asia, noted that 'most new launches for the rest of 2025 will be from the prime and city fringe submarkets, which have higher price points and may not generate the same kind of volumes as that from the attractively priced and voluminous suburban projects in first quarter 2025'. The momentum in private home price growth could 'plateau in the next few quarters on a weaker economic outlook' as Singapore's 2025 GDP growth forecast was slashed to between zero and 2 per cent growth from an initial 1 per cent to 3 per cent growth as at April 14, she added. As such, going forward, developers may choose to wait out the heightened economic uncertainty and delay their launches until there is more clarity on global trade and the economic outlook, Ms Song said. 'Despite One Marina Gardens' relatively attractive price point compared to existing launches in the Downtown Core and high-floor units offering views of Gardens by the Bay, the project was met with a lukewarm response,' she said. About 41 per cent or 384 units were moved in April, compared with earlier major launches in the first quarter in 2025 , which recorded an average sell-through rate of 68 per cent over their launch weekends, she added. Although the take-up rates for April's new launches paled in comparison with some projects in the first quarter, Ms Wong Siew Ying, PropNex head of research and content, said One Marina Gardens' sales have been commendable, in light of trade war tensions and as the project is not near schools or HDB estates, where there are a ready pool of HDB upgraders. ERA Singapore chief executive Marcus Chu noted that One Marina Gardens and Bloomsbury Residences are situated in precincts that attract more investor interest rather than owner-occupiers, while 21 Anderson catered to high-net-worth individuals seeking freehold, large-format units. In April, the priciest new homes sold were all at 21 Anderson, PropNex noted. 'Three units were transacted at around $21 million to $23 million each, making them one of the highest-valued new condo deals in 2025 – just after a unit at Park Nova that fetched nearly $38.9 million ($6,593 psf) in January. Of the three units sold, two were purchased by Singapore PRs and one by a Singaporean buyer,' Ms Wong noted. Mr Lee Sze Teck, senior director of data analytics at Huttons Asia, pointed out that one unit at 21 Anderson 'achieved a selling price of $5,127 psf, reflecting the confidence that ultra high-net-worth individuals have in Singapore's status as a safe haven in times of instability.' Also supporting the private housing market are strong household balance sheets and still-low unsold inventory, which stood at 18,125 units, excluding ECs, in the first quarter. This compared with 29,149 unsold, uncompleted units in first quarter 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic struck, and at around 43,000 units in 2008 amid the global financial crisis. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Business Times
15-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
April new home sales dip 9% month on month to 663 units, but are double year-ago levels
[SINGAPORE] Developers in Singapore sold 663 private homes in April, down 9 per cent from the month before, but up 120 per cent from the 301 units moved a year earlier, data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority showed on Thursday (May 15). Analysts attributed the month-on-month decline to the macroeconomic uncertainties brought on by US President Donald Trump's tariffs, which dampened consumers' sentiment. However, ERA Singapore's chief executive Marcus Chu noted that the housing market remains stable even amid ongoing global uncertainty. 'Singapore's property market has continued to show resilience, supported by the mid-to-long-term outlook held by most domestic buyers. This remains a significant factor in keeping local buying activity grounded in actual housing needs, as opposed to speculative demand,' he said. Sales were driven by two major launches in city-fringe locations in the Rest of Central Region last month – Bloomsbury Residences at Media Circle and One Marina Gardens in Marina South. The two projects made up almost three-quarters of total sales in April. Huttons Asia's senior director of data analytics Lee Sze Teck noted that 21 Anderson, an ultra-luxury residential non-landed project, sold three units last month for more than S$60 million in total, with one unit going for S$5,127 per square foot. 'Being able to achieve these prices is a reflection of the confidence the ultra-high-net-worth individuals have in Singapore's ultra-luxury homes and Singapore's status as a safe haven in times of instability,' he said. Including executive condominiums, 759 units were sold in April with 1,344 units launched, versus 363 units sold and 278 units launched in the same month in 2024. In comparison, 1,510 units were sold and 1,315 units were launched in March 2025. Singaporeans made up 85.5 per cent of buyers in April 2025, while permanent residents accounted for 12 per cent, said Lee.
