Resale prices of non-landed private homes hit 16-month low - CNA

Resale prices of non-landed private homes hit a 16-month low in April, even as resale volume reached its highest since October 2013, a report by the Singapore Real Estate Exchange showed.

SINGAPORE: Resale prices of non-landed private homes hit a 16-month low in April, while the resale volume last month reached its highest since October last year, according to the latest flash estimates from the Singapore Real Estate Exchange (SRX).

Advance data from SRX showed that overall resale prices of non-landed private residential properties slipped by 1.7 per cent in April from the previous month -- the lowest since December 2012.

The city fringe area led the fall with prices dropping 3.6 per cent.

This is followed by a 2.3 per cent drop in the city area, while prices in the suburbs rebounded by 0.4 per cent.

According to SRX, more than half of the non-landed private property buyers paid below recent transaction prices for their units last month.

Property watchers said the downward trend in prices is likely to continue in the short to medium term, largely due to loan rules, but the movement of resale prices may also mirror that of new private homes.

Alan Cheong, senior director of research and consultancy at Savills Singapore, said: "If there are ample numbers of so-called new launches, I think the resale market will also be correspondingly quite active and price wise, it also gives -- if the developers for the new launches maintain the prices -- it also gives confidence in the resale market not to give in too much to the buyers."

SRX estimated that 476 resale transactions were registered in April -- an increase of 24.6 per cent from the previous month. It is also the highest resale volume since October last year.

But the figure is still 26.7 per cent lower compared to the 649 units resold in April last year.

Property analysts said the transaction volume for private resale homes may be affected by the primary market, with some 13,000 units expected to be completed for the rest of the year.

The private resale market is also likely to face competition from another group of developments -- the executive condominiums (ECs).

Donald Han, Chesterton Singapore’s managing director, said: "It (the EC scheme) is still being supported by the government, by virtue of the grants that help to reduce the entry levels. Plus the fact the (EC) market is targeted at the actual owner-occupier market which is least affected by the tightening of loans -- the TDSR (Total Debt Servicing Ratio)."

Government grants to purchase an EC can go up to S$30,000.

Over 11,000 Singaporean families bought ECs from the last quarter of 2010 to the same period in 2013, National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said in a blog post on April 24.

Mr Khaw added that the income ceiling adjustments in 2011 saw shifts in the profile of EC buyers over a one-year period.

This includes seeing the proportion of second-time homebuyers rise from 43 to 57 per cent.

As many as five new EC projects may be launched later this year.

These sites are located at Woodlands Avenue 5, Anchorvale Crescent, Punggol Central, Punggol Drive and Yuan Ching Road.

Over at the rental market, an estimated 3,202 units were rented last month, almost flat from March's 3,206 rental transactions.

But on a year-on-year basis, rental volume improved by 9.8 per cent from the 2,917 rental contracts signed in April 2013.

Flash data from SRX also showed that rents edged up 0.2 per cent after reaching a 27-month low in March.

The uptick in rental prices was mainly driven by those in the city fringe which saw a 0.5 per cent increase.

However, rental prices in the city and suburbs continued to soften by 0.6 per cent and 0.2 per cent respectively. 

- CNA/ac/gn

Source: Channel Newsasia (12 May 2014)

Location, location, location - AsiaOne

What are the most important factors in determining the value of a home? Location, location and location.

This old real estate joke has survived the years because there is so much truth to it.

One piece of advice that has been passed down to many property buyers is that you should buy the worst house in the best neighbourhood you can afford.

Both of these ideas point to the fact that location is by far the most important of all the factors that determine the value of a home. While the quality of a building and interior impact its price, it is the location that ultimately drives the value of a home.

Savvy buyers and investors are combing through Geylang in search of bargains that will rise in value as the area upgrades. As the accompanying srx.com.sg graph illustrates, they see opportunities to buy at a dip in the price.

This is because Geylang is situated in a prime location, surrounded by expressways with quick access to downtown areas, East Coast Park and other points of interest. All Geylang needs is some rezoning and a facelift, to become one of the more fashionable neighbourhoods in Singapore.

Other areas like Novena and Balestier are also up and coming.



These neighbourhoods have several things in common. First, both neighbourhoods are located next to expressways and MRTs, as well as office buildings and shopping malls.

Second, they are neighbours to better-known and more affluent locations. Homes in such under-appreciated neighbourhoods are considerably less expensive than those in the higher-end estates nearby.

It is also possible that the more affluent area next door will start to merge with it's next-door estate to pull the value up for homes there. When that happens, you can joke about how your home has appreciated so much that you can no longer afford to buy it -  and that's a joke we can all hope for.

Sam Baker is co-Founder of Singapore Real Estate Exchange. He is also the director & CEO of CoSine Holdings Pte. Ltd. for the StreetSine Group .

Friday, May 02, 2014

Sam Baker

Source: AsiaOne

HDB resale prices remain flat in April - CNA

Resale prices of Housing and Development Board flats remained relatively flat last month, a flash report from the Singapore Real Estate Exchange showed.

SINGAPORE: Resale prices of Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats remained relatively flat last month, a flash report from the Singapore Real Estate Exchange (SRX) showed.

Overall, HDB resale prices dropped slightly by 0.2 per cent in April compared to March.

This decrease is driven by 3-, 4- and 5-room flats which softened by 0.2 per cent, 0.8 per cent and 0.4 per cent respectively.

However, prices of executive flats rose 1.2 per cent.

On a year-on-year basis, last month's prices are down 5 per cent from the same period last year.

Resale volume rose in April with 1,484 units sold -- the highest since July last year when 1,494 units exchanged hands.

Last month's sales volume was a 4.4 per cent increase from March, when 1,422 units were sold.

On a year-on-year basis, April's resale volume is still 14.4 per cent down compared with 1,733 units resold in the same period last year.

Meanwhile, rental volume also fell, with an estimated 1,653 units rented last month, a 3.8 per cent decrease from March's 1,718 units.

On a year-on-year basis, April's rental volume was 5.3 per cent lower than the same month of last year where 1,746 units were rented out.

Rental prices continued to soften, dropping by 1.1 per cent overall in April compared to March.

This decrease is driven by 3- and 4-room flats which softened by 2.9 per cent and 1.8 per cent respectively.

However, rental prices of 5-room and executive flats saw an increase of 0.4 per cent and 3.2 per cent respectively.

On a year-on-year basis, prices in April are down 2.3 per cent from the same period last year.

Overall median Transaction Over X-value (TOX), which measures how much people pay over recent transaction prices, has remained negative at -S$4,000 for the overall HDB market.

This means more than half of all HDB buyers paid below recent transaction prices for their units in April. This is a drop of S$1,000 from March.

Among HDB towns with more than 10 transactions, Queenstown and Jurong East had the highest median TOX at +S$2,500 and +S$2,400 respectively.

This means more than half of the buyers in these towns paid above recent transaction prices.

Out of 26 HDB towns, only five -- Ang Mo Kio, the Central Area, Jurong East, Queenstown and Sembawang -- saw a positive median TOX.

Punggol and Yishun had the lowest median TOX at -S$9,000 and -S$8,000 respectively. 

- CNA/gn

Source: Channel NewsAsia (08 May 2014)

CPF Minimum Sum to be raised from July - CNA

The CPF Minimum Sum will be raised to S$155,000, up from S$148,000, from 1 July. This will apply to CPF members who turn 55 between 1 July 2014 and 30 June 2015, the Central Provident Board (CPF) and the Manpower Ministry said in a joint statement.

SINGAPORE: Resale prices of Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats remained relatively flat last month, a flash report from the Singapore Real Estate Exchange (SRX) showed.

Overall, HDB resale prices dropped slightly by 0.2 per cent in April compared to March.

This decrease is driven by 3-, 4- and 5-room flats which softened by 0.2 per cent, 0.8 per cent and 0.4 per cent respectively.

However, prices of executive flats rose 1.2 per cent.

On a year-on-year basis, last month's prices are down 5 per cent from the same period last year.

Resale volume rose in April with 1,484 units sold -- the highest since July last year when 1,494 units exchanged hands.

Last month's sales volume was a 4.4 per cent increase from March, when 1,422 units were sold.

On a year-on-year basis, April's resale volume is still 14.4 per cent down compared with 1,733 units resold in the same period last year.

Meanwhile, rental volume also fell, with an estimated 1,653 units rented last month, a 3.8 per cent decrease from March's 1,718 units.

On a year-on-year basis, April's rental volume was 5.3 per cent lower than the same month of last year where 1,746 units were rented out.

Rental prices continued to soften, dropping by 1.1 per cent overall in April compared to March.

This decrease is driven by 3- and 4-room flats which softened by 2.9 per cent and 1.8 per cent respectively.

However, rental prices of 5-room and executive flats saw an increase of 0.4 per cent and 3.2 per cent respectively.

On a year-on-year basis, prices in April are down 2.3 per cent from the same period last year.

Overall median Transaction Over X-value (TOX), which measures how much people pay over recent transaction prices, has remained negative at -S$4,000 for the overall HDB market.

This means more than half of all HDB buyers paid below recent transaction prices for their units in April. This is a drop of S$1,000 from March.

Among HDB towns with more than 10 transactions, Queenstown and Jurong East had the highest median TOX at +S$2,500 and +S$2,400 respectively.

This means more than half of the buyers in these towns paid above recent transaction prices.

Out of 26 HDB towns, only five -- Ang Mo Kio, the Central Area, Jurong East, Queenstown and Sembawang -- saw a positive median TOX.

Punggol and Yishun had the lowest median TOX at -S$9,000 and -S$8,000 respectively. 

- CNA/gn

Source: Channel NewsAsia (08 May 2014)