Enhanced CPF Housing Grant offers more Affordable Housing Options to First-Time Homebuyers - MND

Minister for Finance, Mr Heng Swee Keat, announced in the Budget Statement in Parliament today that the Government will increase the CPF Housing Grant for first-timer families buying resale HDB flats. This enhancement builds on the Government’s existing efforts to provide more affordable housing options to homebuyers.

Enhancement of the CPF Housing Grant for First-Timer Families

Currently, first-timer families buying resale HDB flats can enjoy up to $90,000 of housing grants, comprising the CPF Housing Grant ($30,000), Additional CPF Housing Grant (up to $40,000) and Proximity Housing Grant ($20,000).

From today, MND will enhance the CPF Housing Grant to help young couples buy a resale flat, with more help given to those buying smaller flats to encourage prudent housing choices. The grant quantum will be increased:

(a) From $30,000 to $50,000, for first-timer families buying a 4-room or smaller resale flat; and

(b) From $30,000 to $40,000, for first-timer families buying a 5-room or larger resale flat.

Together with the Additional CPF Housing Grant and Proximity Housing Grant, eligible first-timer families buying resale flats can now enjoy up to $110,000 in housing grants. Please see Annex A for details.

The enhanced CPF Housing Grant will provide first-time homebuyers with more affordable housing options. Besides buying a new Build-to-Order (BTO) flat from HDB, young couples can also choose from a wide range of resale flats in the open market. In particular, the enhanced CPF Housing Grant will help young couples who have a strong preference for a specific location (e.g. to live near their parents or their workplace), or who wish to move into their own home sooner to start a family (instead of waiting for a BTO flat).

The enhancement of the CPF Housing Grant will complement our other efforts to help young families get their first home sooner. More details will be announced by MND at the Committee of Supply 2017 debate.

Enhancements Extended to Singles

Similarly, first-timer singles buying resale flats will also benefit from enhancements to the CPF Housing Grant. The grant quantum, which is half that for families, will be increased:

(a) From $15,000 to $25,000, for those buying a 4-room or smaller resale flat; and
(b) From $15,000 to $20,000, for those buying a 5-room resale flat.

Together with the existing Additional CPF Housing Grant (up to $20,000) and Proximity Housing Grant ($10,000), eligible first-timer singles buying resale flats can enjoy up to $55,000 in housing grants. Please see Annex A for details.

Implementation 

The enhancements to the CPF Housing Grant for families and singles are summarised in Table 1:

The enhanced CPF Housing Grant will apply to eligible resale flat applications received on or after 3.30 pm, 20 February 2017. For enquiries, the public can contact HDB :

• Sales/Resale Customer Service Line : 1800-866-3066
• Branch Service Line : 1800-225-5432

Source: MND (20 Feb 2017 06:40 PM)

SRX: Condo resale prices up 1.1% in January, rising for third straight month - SRX

Resale prices of non-landed private homes in Singapore rose 1.1 per cent in January from the previous month, according to SRX Property's flash estimates released on Tuesday (Feb 14).

This is bigger than the 0.5 per cent gains seen in December and November 2016.

Resale properties in prime locations led the gains, rising 1.9 per cent month on month. Units in the rest of central region and those in outlying areas recorded price increases of 1.5 per cent and 0.4 per cent respectively.

Year on year, resale prices last month were 0.3 per cent higher than in January 2016, though still down 6.8 per cent from their recent peak in January 2014.

The gradual recovery in the resale market as buyers moderated their asking prices was also reflected in the rise in transactions.

An estimated 526 units were resold in January, 9.1 per cent more than the 482 units for December 2016, and 29.9 per cent higher than the 405 units for January 2016.

Compared to the peak of 2,050 units resold in April 2010, volume was down by 74.3 per cent.

SRX figures also showed that condo units in the resale market are still changing hands at below perceived market prices.

Its overall median Transaction Over X-Value (TOX) - which measures how far or below a computer-generated market value units are actually going for - was negative S$4,000 in January from negative S$5,000 in December.

For districts with more than 10 resale transactions in January, district 23 (Bukit Panjang, Choa Chu Kang) posted the highest median TOX of positive S$2,000.

Among relatively active districts, districts 15 and 16 (Katong, Joo Chiat, Amber Road, Bedok, Upper East Coast) posted the most negative median TOX of negative S$25,000.


The Straits Times

Source: SRX (14 Feb 2017)

More solitude for Sentosa Cove's residents - SRX

If solitude and silence are part of high living, then some Sentosa Cove residents are getting more than they bargained for.

At The Residences at W, a 228-unit development completed about five years ago, an online search shows 209 units are up for rent. 

At The Coast - a 249-unit development - 45 units are listed for rent. At 200-unit The Berth by the Cove, online listings show 25 units are up for rent.

A resident of The Residences at W, who wanted to be known only as Robert, says: "There are usually more people around in the day. At night, the place does feel quite empty when the non-residents return home.

"If I just look at my block alone, I'd say it is probably around 70 per cent occupied."

The 41-year-old American expatriate moved into his rental four-bedroom unit early last year and pays around $8,000 a month.

In the Core Central Region (CCR), which includes Sentosa, the private home vacancy rate at the fourth quarter last year was 9.6 per cent, according to data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).

This number is derived from the utility consumption levels of all completed private residential units in the CCR.

Mr Wong Xian Yang, head of research and consultancy at OrangeTee, says this is the closest indication of the vacancy rate in Sentosa.

Many Sentosa Cove residences would be left empty for most of the year as they are holiday homes for the owners, so Sentosa would likely have a higher vacancy rate than the rest of the CCR.

MR WONG XIAN YANG, head of research and consultancy at OrangeTee, on the number of unoccupied units in Sentosa as compared with the Core Central Region.

But he offers another reason why so many units are unoccupied.

"Many Sentosa Cove residences would be left empty for most of the year as they are holiday homes for the owners, so Sentosa would likely have a higher vacancy rate than the rest of the CCR," he says.

Based on his observations, International Property Advisor chief executive Ku Swee Yong estimates about 30 per cent of units in the Cove are vacant.

Says Mr Ku: "Assuming a 70 per cent occupancy, that would mean around 650 units of the 2,200 homes and apartments there are empty."

Sentosa Cove had a poor 2016 - 15 out of the 21 resale transactions last year ended up in the red, with the 15 transactions making an average loss of $1.35 million, according to data from property portal SRX.

A unit at Sentosa Cove condo Turquoise went for $3.8 million last year. The seller had bought it at $7.16 million in 2007.

Another apartment at Seascape was resold at $6.35 million last October. That owner had paid $11 million in 2011.

But the area remains popular with visitors. Restaurant staff at Quayside Isle, a marina-front dining enclave in the middle of the luxury homes, say business is brisk despite the small residential population.

Says Ms Rachel Guerra, manager of Miska Cafe: "There are still residents and non-residents, as well as guests at the nearby hotel coming to eat here. Right now, we're still doing well."

The Straits Times

Source: SRX (06 Feb 2017)

High Rent Vacancies - SRX

The high vacancy rate is not just an affliction of Sentosa Cove.

Mr Jose Trinidad, who lives at The Shore Residences in East Coast, said many of the 408 units in the six 20-storey towers are left empty for long periods of time. The development was completed in 2013.

The 38-year-old Filipino expatriate who works as an auditor added: "Most of the people living here are renting and the competition for tenants is very high nowadays. Many units are empty because the landlord just cannot find tenants."

A check online showed that 90 units were for sale and 55 for rent. It is unclear how many of these units are vacant.

According to the latest Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) data, there were 29,197 vacant private homes out of 348,080 available units around Singapore in Q4 2016 - a vacancy rate of 8.4 per cent.

While not as high as the 8.9 per cent in Q2 2016 - a 16-year record at the time - R'ST Research director Ong Kah Seng said it is still cause for concern.

He said the drop in vacancies may be due to landlords cutting rentals to attract tenants. "This is not backed by solid leasing and economic fundamentals," he added.

The Q4 2015 and Q4 2014 vacancy rate was 8.1 and 7.8 per cent respectively.

It did not help that last year, there was a large supply of private homes - an estimated 20,000 units were completed last year, compared with the 18,971 units in 2015 and 13,150 units in 2014.

Said Mr Ong: "High vacancy rates in 2016 are overall propelled by a combination of factors - substantial new private residential completions, and continued muted leasing interest amid crimped or no housing allowances by many foreign professionals."

International Property Advisor chief executive Ku Swee Yong said the rapid increase in dwelling units is not matched by population growth. "The reason is simply oversupply," he added.

Experts said there could also be more owners who do not live in Singapore on a permanent basis, and prefer not to rent out their units. It could be because the owners cannot find tenants or do not want to lower rents, said Mr Colin Tan, director of research and consultancy at Suntec Real Estate Consultants.

Mr Tan added: "The fact that there are many unoccupied units means that the majority of owners of units that have been completed over the past few years were speculators or investors, and not owner-occupiers."

Agreeing, Mr Ong said some owners may also be wary of a mismatch between the maintenance costs in renting out their units, and lower rents. "These could be locals who do not want to rent out their units because of the weak rents now and are afraid of tenants damaging their unit."

Looking for a place to rent? View v360 Virtual Touc of these rent listings

The Straits Times

Source: SRX (06 Feb 2017)

Replace ABSD with a new property tax: JLL - PropertyGuru

More calls to tweak the property cooling measures.

With house prices under considerable pressure, given the subdued economic outlook 

both locally and globally as well as the expectations of rising interest rates, now could be the right time 

to consider property cooling measures, said JLL in a report.

This is to enable the residential market to resume a course for moderate growth, and eventually 

“avoid a sharper correction down the line”, it said.

Singapore saw private home prices ease further in Q4 2016, its 13th consecutive quarter of decline, 

and its lowest level in six years, revealed flash estimates from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).

JLL estimates that prices for luxury prime properties corrected by 18 percent on average, while those 

in the mass market moderated by around 10 percent. Some residential projects, particularly those in 

the prime districts, witnessed a price correction of between 25 and 30 percent since the market’s peak 

in 2011.

With this, JLL’s Head of Southeast Asia Research, Chua Yang Liang, called for a reduction or removal 

of the Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty (ABSD) for Singaporeans, replacing it with a tax based on the 

investment period.

He believes that this would be a “sustainable way to revive demand, bring some activity back into the 

market and prevent prices falling further”.

“With (the) TDSR in place, it is unlikely that removing (the) ABSD will cause prices to run away,” he said.

“Taking a long-term view, this approach will align property prices with real income growth instead 

of keeping prices artificially low. If prices become too low relative to affordability, it becomes increasingly 

difficult to remove cooling measures as prices will rapidly rebound to open market levels,” he added.

Continuing with the measures will force Singaporeans to turn overseas for property investments. 

In fact, data from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) showed that the value of overseas property

acquisitions by Singaporeans hit over $2 billion in 2013, albeit the value eased to $0.4 billion in H1 2015.

“Maintaining Singapore’s status as a global city through an open and investment-friendly environment, 

which includes encouraging investment in residential real estate while at the same time preventing 

foreign capital from pushing up prices to unaffordable levels, is a delicate balance,” noted Chua.

“But a thaw to certain elements of the cooling measures could be particularly beneficial for the property 

market.”

Romesh Navaratnarajah • February 1, 2017


Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg

Source: PropertyGuru (01 Feb 2017)

Bishan DBSS flat sold for record S$1.18m - SRX

A new record high in HDB resale prices was achieved at Natura Loft, an HDB Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS) project in Bishan where a five-room flat was transacted at S$1.18 million last month.

This already marks the third HDB resale transaction in the first month of 2017 that crossed a million dollars, according to SRI Pte Ltd, whose property agent represented the seller.

This translated to S$914 per square foot (psf) for the 120 sqm penthouse on a high floor above 35 stories. The DBSS project built by Qingjian Realty just crossed the five-year minimum occupation period.

SRI Pte Ltd's property agent Joey Chan attributed the record price at Natura Loft to its location, spacious layout, and proximity to amenities and Catholic High school.

"A very key point about the unit - a three-room plus one study - is the high floor and panoramic view," said Ms Chan.

The other two HDB resale transactions that crossed a million dollars this year were in Pinnacle@Duxton and a DBSS project City View @ Boon Keng, according to SRI.

This record price-setting streak in the public housing segment is seen as being at odds with calls among industry players to relax residential cooling measures, said International Property Advisor's key executive officer Ku Swee Yong.

According to official data last week, resale volume for HDB flats rose for the second year in a row - by 7.8 per cent in 2016 to 20,813 transactions - the highest in four years.

This pick-up in volumes could be attributed to the gradually stabilising prices. Resale prices last year stayed flat, falling slightly by 0.1 per cent from the year before.

The Business Times

Source: SRX (01 Feb 2017)

Private home prices remain flat in Dec - SRX

Overall prices of completed private homes were unchanged in December from the previous month, after dipping 0.8 per cent in November.

This was according to the Singapore Residential Price Index (SRPI) flash estimates, released yesterday.

The SRPI is compiled by the National University of Singapore's Institute of Real Estate Studies.

Resale prices of homes in the central region, excluding small units, declined 0.6 per cent month on month, while those outside the prime districts edged up 0.4 per cent.

Resale prices of small units, which have a floor area of 506 sq ft or less, inched down 0.1 per cent, according to SRPI.

Mr Ong Kah Seng, director of property market research company R'ST Research, said the overall stagnant resale prices for December reflected the generally weak property sentiment, due both to the festive period and buyers expecting further price drops by developers for new projects for launch this year.

He said the marginal price fall or limited price changes seen for properties completed last year have - to a notable extent - been due to the trend in the last couple of years of more completed private homes being shrunken family-sized units or shoebox apartments. These, though smaller, have higher per sq ft prices.

The Straits Times

Source: SRX (01 Feb 2017)