According to data from URA, there were 834 new private homes sold in September 2021, excluding executive condominium units, a 31.4% month-on-month decrease.
New private home sales in Singapore fell 31.4% month-on-month in September – the second month where sales dropped by double digits.
Excluding executive condominiums (ECs), developers sold 834 units in September compared to the 1,216 units shifted in August, showed Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) data.
On an annual basis, sales declined 37.2% from the 1,329 units sold in September 2020.
Developers launched 210 units in September, down 74.9% from August and 84.3% lower than the previous year.
Including ECs, new home sales marginally declined 2% month-on-month and 6.4% year-on-year in September.
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“Developer sales (including ECs) were bolstered by the launch of Parc Greenwich which sold 68% or 335 of its 496 units at a median price of $1,229 per sq ft (psf), reflecting HDB upgraders’ robust appetite for attractively priced EC units,” said Tricia Song, Head of Research for Southeast Asia at CBRE.
Notably, Parc Greenwich emerged as the best-selling project for September. It is followed by Normanton Park, Ola, Parc Clematis and Dairy Farm Residences.
Also on the top ten list are Leedon Green, Affinity At Serangoon, Treasure At Tampines, Avenue South Residence and Fourth Avenue Residences.
“Market activity continued to remain strong at the median price range of $1,500 to $1,999 psf, which contributed to 57.3% of total sales (excluding ECs) transacted in September 2021,” said Shirley Wong, Director for Research at Colliers.
The Outside Central Region (OCR) accounted for 42.7% of total sales in September, while the Rest of Central Region (RCR) made up 37.2%. The Core Central Region (CCR), on the other hand, accounted for 21.1%.
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Huttons Asia attributed the higher proportion of sales in the CCR to the change in the calculation of school distance in 2022.
“Several projects such as Fourth Avenue Residences and Leedon Green benefited from the change in school-home distance calculation for 2022 P1 registration. These two projects are the top two selling projects in CCR in September,” it said.
“Another possible reason for the higher sales in the CCR could be buyers seeking attractively priced CCR projects ahead of repricing in 2022. Savvy investors realised that by paying a bit more, they get a better deal in the CCR,” added Huttons.
With this, the proportion of acquisitions “priced at $2 million and above rose to a high of 35.5% in September on the back of more transactions in the CCR”.
Homes priced between $1.5 million and $2 million made up 35% of the total transactions in September, while those priced below $1.5 million accounted for 29.5%, said Huttons.
Singaporeans made up 82% of transactions, while permanent residents and foreigners accounted for 12.9% and 5.1%, respectively.
Looking ahead, Song expects the momentum in the housing market to remain positive.
She believes that the addition of nine more countries to Singapore’s Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) programme, including the UK, the US, Canada and South Korea, will be conducive to the return of foreign demand.
For the whole of 2021, she expects developer sales to hover between 11,000 and 12,000 units, while prices are forecasted to increase by 6% to 8% for the full year.
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Cheryl Chiew, Digital Content Specialist at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact her about this story, email: cheryl@propertyguru.com.sg.
