Singapore Home Sales Hit Eight-Year Low as Stocks Dry Up

Singapore’s new private home sales dropped to an eight-year low in November as developers depleted their inventories and home prices continued to rise across the city-state.

Developers’ sales, excluding executive condominiums, fell for a second month, dropping by 17.3 percent to 259 private residential units last month from the 313 sales recorded in October, according to the latest data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).

“With no new significant launches for two months now in October and November, and none expected in December, the year 2022 is expected to end on a quiet note,” commented Knight Frank Singapore research head Leonard Tay.

As supply dries up home prices in the city’s suburban districts have now risen by nearly a quarter since the beginning of the year, with values jumping city-wide.

Inventory Shrinks

The November home sales tally, which was down 83 percent from a year ago, was the lowest monthly total since December 2014, when only 230 homes changed hands based on OrangeTee & Tie’s analysis.

PropNex Realty research head Siew Ying Wong traced the sluggish performance to the lack of new project launches and depleted developer inventories, with recent developments now 80 to 100 percent sold.

“We expect this imbalance in supply and demand to persist in December,” Wong said, noting that most areas of the city are now experiencing home shortages.

Sales volumes fell more slowly in November than they had a month earlier, when home transaction totals were down 68.4 percent from September. Through 30 November, developers have sold 6,981 new homes this year, which was down 44 percent from the same period in 2021.

While the number of new condo units launched went up by 217 units from October to 319 units last month, the year-to-date total stood at just 4,445 homes as of 30 November,or less than half the 10,000 new residential units launched in the same period last year.

New home sales fell across all three major regions of the city, with transactions in the suburban Outside Central Region (OCR) falling the most quickly at 37 percent from a month earlier, to total just 38 units sold in November.

PropNex’s Wong said homebuyer demand for more suburban housing should power sales at new projects slated to be launched in the first quarter, including the 595-unit Lentor Hills Residences being developed in the Ang Mo Kio area by by GuocoLand, Hong Leong Holdings and Mitsui Fudosan, as well as at Sim Lian Group’s 386-unit The Botany@Dairy Farm in District 23.

More than half of last month’s sales, or about 148 units, took place in the city centre or what officials refer to as the core central region (CCR). Even that figure was down by 14 percent compared to the CCR’s October total, while the city fringe or rest of central region (RCR), saw home sales drop by 10 percent as buyers picked up just 73 new homes last month.

Prices Rising

The scarcity of available new homes allowed developers to jack up prices across the city-state.

Based on URA data as of 13 December, Median home prices in the Rest of Central Region have risen 24.9 percent since the first quarter, JLL residential research head for Singapore Siew Chuin Chia said, citing URA data. In the Outside Central Region, rates are up by 19.9 percent while the core central region has seen a 4.6 percent climb.

Chia said price increases were mainly driven by low inventories and  rising construction costs coupled with resilient investor demand.

The increase in prices is evident in high end projects across the city.

Edmund Tie research and consulting head Lam Chern Woon noted that the 10 top selling projects last month – led by Frasers Property’s Riviere high-end condo near the Singapore River  – saw prices rise by an average 5 percent last month compared to October.