October non-landed home sales up 60 per cent from a month ago - AsiaOne

Singapore - DEVELOPERS in Singapore sold 546 private non-landed homes in October, which represented a 60 per cent rise from 341 in September, according to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).

The launch of two projects during the last weekend of the month - Principal Garden at Prince Charles Crescent and Thomson Impressions at Lorong Puntong - gave the October sales tally a shot in the arm as they made up 35.3 per cent of the month's new sales.

Developers UOL Group and Kheng Leong Company sold 113 units at Principal Garden out of the 200 units released at a median price of S$1,633 per square foot (psf), while Thomson Impressions, jointly developed by Nanshan Group and Vico Construction Pte Ltd, sold 80 units at a median price of S$1,399 psf.

But despite the improvement last month, the overall private residential market remains subdued as the effects of the cooling measures are now compounded by an economic slowdown and a looming interest rate hike in the US, JLL national director of research and consultancy Ong Teck Hui observed.

R'ST Research director Ong Kah Seng said he expects developer sales activity to be sluggish in November and December. Overall developer sales of non-landed residential units in each month could be at least 10 per cent lower than October's 546 units with a high chance of not crossing the 500-unit mark.

Owing to new project launches located in the city fringes, slightly more than half of all private non-landed homes (excluding executive condominiums) sold in October were located in the Rest of Central Region and 44 per cent in the Outside Central Region.

Among other top selling projects, GuocoLand's 1,024-unit Sims Urban Oasis moved another 46 units in October at a median price of S$1,285 psf, suggesting that prices are about 8 per cent below the median selling price of S$1,400 psf in the first three months of launch early this year.

Some agents told BT that the developer has raised the agent commission from 0.8 per cent to about 1.5 per cent with the release of new units at Sims Urban Oasis last month at "launch day prices", with more two bedders being snapped up.

Studying the sales-to-launch ratio in October, SLP International executive director Nicholas Mak noted that the ratio improved to 125.8 per cent in October from 87.2 per cent in September, which means there was paring down of unsold units that have been launched. The last time this parameter crossed 100 per cent was in July, when the popular 1,390-unit High Park Residences was launched.

Including executive condominiums (ECs), developers sold a total of 822 units in October, up 31 per cent from 629 units in September. CDL's EC project The Criterion in Yishun started selling from Oct 10, with 41 EC units sold in the month at a median price of S$805 psf.

But unsold inventory of launched EC units reached 3,709 units in October, up from 3,435 in September, developers' sales data shows.

Mr Ong noted that newly launched EC projects are not making much sales progress. Apart from The Criterion, six other new EC projects launched this year have take-up rates of between 21 per cent and 43 per cent. "At selling prices of around S$800 psf, buyers are less enthusiastic and less willing to commit than before when market conditions were more positive," he reckoned.

Mr Mak noted that the raising of the monthly household income ceiling for EC purchase from S$12,000 to S$14,000 has not significantly increased the demand for ECs in the primary market. Some potential EC buyers could be drawn to the HDB primary and resale markets while others may be waiting for other EC projects to be launched before they commit to purchasing their EC units, he said.

With the holiday season kicking in, market activity is expected to be muted in the remaining two months of the year, Mr Ong said. "Using developer sales of 653 units in November and December 2014 as a guide, new private home sales in the last two months of 2015 are likely to taper. With 6,383 units sold in the first 10 months of 2015, the full year figure is likely to be below last year's 7,316 units."

Some property consultants are still hopeful of an upside surprise from the upcoming launch of The Poiz Residences by MCC Land this month, which has a retail component The Poiz Centre. This project along Upper Serangoon Road and Meyappa Chettiar Road was renamed by developer after St Andrew's alumni protested against its original name "The Andrew Residences".

"Response towards new launches implied that there is still demand in the market," said OrangeTee senior manager for research and consultancy Wong Xian Yang. "Prudent investors are still looking for value propositions despite the dim market outlook and persistent headwinds such as increasing interest rates and looming supply in the pipeline."

lynkhoo@sph.com.sg

Tuesday, Nov 17, 2015

Lynette Khoo

The Business Times

Source: AsiaOne 

Bukit Panjang 5-room flat sells for record $634,000 - AsiaOne

SINGAPORE - The local resale flat market may have stabilised according to reports, but the upcoming Bukit Panjang MRT station to be opened in December this year has breathed new life into the area.

A 5-room flat on the 19th floor of Blk 185 Jelebu Road has recently transacted for a record $634,000, which is the highest this year.

ERA agent Mr Luo Guangyao told Shin Min Daily News that the buyer and his family of four had recently purchased an executive condominium and was in a hurry to sell off the unit.

The unit had attracted 20 interested buyers in August, and was recently sold for $634,000 to the highest bidder, which beat out the second-highest amount offered by $4,000.

According to Mr Luo, flats at Jelebu Road have attracted higher offers due to its proximity to the upcoming Bukit Panjang Downtown Line station, scheduled to open on Dec 27, 2015.

Of the 12 units that were sold, seven transacted above $600,0000, said Mr Luo.

Tuesday, Nov 24, 2015

Shin Min Daily News

Source: AsiaOne

New record: Pinnacle@Duxton flat sold for over $1.08m - AsiaOne

SINGAPORE - A flat in Pinnacle@Duxton sold this month has set a new record with its selling price - $1,088,000.

Lianhe Zaobao said that the price per square feet, $945, is believed to be the highest for a 5-room flat in Singapore.

According to information posted on the Housing Board's website, the "S2" unit is on 43rd to 45th floor and is 107 square meters.

The seller's agent told Zaobao: "The unit faces Keppel Terminal, has a sea view, is not bothered by noise from the main road, and does not face the west." He said that Pinnacle@Duxton's location remains its biggest selling point.

The unit was put up for sale half a year ago, and attracted many viewers. However, the earlier offers did not match the seller's expectation.

The agent said that the buyer is a new citizen who had seen many other Pinnacle@Duxton units previously.

Zaobao understands that the flat's selling price is about $1 million, and the buyer had to cough up over $80,000 cash-over-valuation.

Another property agent involved in this sale said that most potential buyers looking at Pinncacle@Duxton flats are high-income earners in their 30s to 50s; many are new citizens.

When Pinnacle@Duxton flats were launched in 2004, prices range from $288,400 to $451,500 for the more than 1,800 units available, Zaobao reported. Owners started putting their units up for sale from the end of last year, after they fulfilled the five-year minimum occupation period.

To date, 119 units - 33 5-room units and 86 4-room units - have changed hands.

sinsh@sph.com.sg

Friday, Nov 20, 2015

AsiaOne

MRT boon for 3 sleepy parts of Singapore - SRX

Redevelopment potential around Keppel, Cantonment and Prince Edward stations

The areas around three new MRT stations announced last week may be sleepy now, but expect this to change down the track.

Redevelopment potential is ripe near the sites of Keppel, Cantonment and Prince Edward stations, experts say. The trio will be part of the sixth stage of the Circle Line, to be completed in 2025.

Keppel Station is to be in Keppel Road, near Keppel Distripark and Keppel Terminal; while Cantonment will be integrated with the old Tanjong Pagar Railway Station. Prince Edward will be at one end of Shenton Way, near Palmer Road.

Other than Cantonment's site, zoned commercial, the other two are zoned as reserve sites under the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) Masterplan 2014.

This means the URA has much flexibility near the stations, said Ms Christine Li, director of Singapore research at Cushman & Wakefield.

As Cantonment will be an extension of the old railway station, ideas could include an integrated railway mall with a focus on food and beverage. It could also be a venue for cultural and lifestyle events to make use of the historic site, she said.

And, of course, it makes sense to have MRT users living nearby.

This is especially true for the thinly populated Keppel Station area. It is poised to be the gateway to the Southern Waterfront City and so it should see more residential and integrated residential and commercial developments, said Ms Li.

Few commercial projects are in the area, as it is in a comprehensive redevelopment zone - all to be under the Government Land Sales (GLS) programme when Keppel docklands move out, said Mr Alan Cheong, Savills Singapore research head.

So far, no GLS sites on the confirmed or reserve list are near the stations, but some mixed-development sites could be added in GLS programmes, he said.

But given the large supply of office space due from next year to 2018, it will be tough to get bidders excited about large office blocks.

Apart from undeveloped land in the three areas, the Government could slowly release the Marina Bay reclamation sites for development, Ms Li noted.

The new stations also bode well, longer term, for nearby properties.

On the residential side, these include Spottiswoode 18, Spottiswoode Residences, The Beacon and HDB estate Spottiswoode Park near Cantonment Station. 76 Shenton, completed last year, and Lumiere are near Prince Edward Station, noted R'ST Research director Ong Kah Seng.

The closest condos to Keppel Station are The Pearl@Mount Faber and Mount Faber Lodge.

"Sales activity has been quite sluggish in the three areas from last year due to the total debt servicing ratio... The areas are also not typical public housing estates... where there are many upgraders from nearby HDB estates," Mr Ong said.

Spottiswoode condo prices fell about 5 per cent last year and 3 per cent in the first nine months of this year. Lumiere prices fell 8 per cent last year and about 5 per cent in the first nine months, he estimated.

In the Mount Faber area, prices fell about 7 per cent last year and 5 per cent in the first nine months.

But prices should rise as completion of the stations nears, he noted.

In the Cantonment area, office buildings like Southpoint will be served by two MRT stations - Cantonment and Tanjong Pagar MRT stations. Klapsons The Boutique Hotel will also gain, said Mr Cheong.

The Straits Times
Rennie Whang

Source: SRX (09 Nov 2015)

HDB resale prices remained stagnant in October - AsiaOne

HOUSING Board (HDB) resale prices stayed flat last month as the market continued to stabilise, but the number of transactions shot up, according to SRX Property flash figures yesterday.

Last month saw the most monthly transactions so far this year, with 1,745 units changing hands.

This was up 16 per cent from September's 1,504 units, and 12.4 per cent higher than the year before.

The combination of stagnant prices and increased volume suggests that buyers are biting "based on opportunities of attractive pricing", said R'ST Research director Ong Kah Seng.

ERA Realty key executive officer Eugene Lim noted that recent housing policy changes could have boosted the number of deals, such as the new Proximity Housing Grant for buyers of flats near their parents or married children.

The upcoming launch of new flats this month will likely draw away some demand, he noted.

But overall, he expects a total of 18,000 to 19,000 resale transactions for the whole year, up from last year's record low.

Prices continue to stay flat.

From September to October, SRX's HDB resale price index moved from 134.7 to 134.6, a negligible shift that means prices were essentially unchanged.

Experts expect continued stability. Said Mr Lim: "As the market continues to be weighed down by the cooling measures and large supply, we should continue to see minor price variations every month, probably around 0.5 per cent in either direction."

In the past 12 months, only twice has the size of monthly price changes exceeded 0.5 per cent.

Last month, prices were flat in mature and non-mature estates alike.

But there were marginal differences across flat types. Resale prices rose for three-room and executive flats by 0.7 per cent and 0.9 per cent respectively, but fell for four and five-room flats by 0.8 per cent and 0.1 per cent respectively.

Mr Ong expects four and five-room prices to continue facing pressure. More of such flats are expected to hit the market next year, as upgraders sell their flats upon the completion of private and executive condominiums.

Still, K. L. Goh, 38, is optimistic about selling his five-room premium flat in Punggol. Similar units have sold for about $530,000, noted Mr Goh, who is willing to be flexible: "I think I'll be able to sell, it's just a question of how much."

janiceh@sph.com.sg

Friday, Nov 06, 2015

Janice Heng

My Paper

Source: AsiaOne (06 Nov 2015)

HDB resale volume for October highest in 2015 so far - AsiaOne

SINGAPORE - A total of 1,745 HDB resale flats were transacted in October, a 16 per cent increase from the 1,504 units resold in September. Year-on-year, resale volume increased by 12.4 per cent compared with 1,553 units resold in October 2014.

According to SRX property, October has the highest monthly volume in 2015 so far.

Meanwhile, HDB resale prices were unchanged in October as compared to September and year-on-year prices have decreased by 2.6 per cent from October 2014

Year-on-year, prices in mature estates have declined by 2.2 per cent from October 2014 while that of non-mature estates have declined 3.0 per cent.

SRX is an information exchange formed by the leading real estate agencies in Singapore. Its purpose is to disseminate market pricing information and facilitate property transactions. Find out more atwww.srx.com.sg.

The Straits Times
Janice Heng

Source: AsiaOne (05 Nov 2015)