Singapore Reports Lowest January Home Sales Since 2009 as Buyers Await Clarity

New private home sales in Singapore fell 29 percent year-on-year last month to 281 units, the lowest January reading in 15 years, according to data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority on Thursday.

The latest figure, which excludes executive condominium sales, is up 108 percent from 135 homes sold in December but still sets a low-water mark for a January since 108 units traded during that month in 2009.

January’s sales included two project launches — the 341-unit Hillhaven in Hillview Rise and the 172-unit Arcady at Boon Keng — which together accounted for nearly 40 percent of the month’s transactions. The sluggish showing was not unexpected given the seasonal lull that is typical of the year-end period and the start of the new year, said Wong Siew Ying, head of research and content at local brokerage PropNex Realty.

“It is possible that many prospective buyers are waiting for more clarity on the market, following a relatively uncertain year in 2023,” Wong said in a release. “Meanwhile, with overall private home prices peaking, high interest rates, new home sales slowing to a 15-year low in 2023, cautious sentiment, and cooling measures still in place, it is little wonder that buyers are proceeding with great care.”

Hillhaven Launch Tops Table

The city-state’s Outside Central Region led sales in January with developers shifting 144 units. The top-selling project in the OCR and throughout the city-state during the month was Hillhaven, a joint development of Sekisui House and Far East Organization, with 64 units sold at a median price of S$2,065 ($1,532) per square foot.

The city-fringe Rest of Central Region saw developers move 112 units, led by the 47 sold at The Arcady at Boon Keng. Homes at the joint project of KSH Holdings, SLB Development and H10 Holdings transacted at a median price of S$2,574 per square foot during their launch month.

Sales in the Core Central Region, a proxy for luxury homebuyers, reached just 25 units last month as no projects were launched. Six of the homes sold were at UOL-SingLand’s Watten House, with buyers paying a median S$3,239 per square foot at the freehold development in the Novena neighbourhood.

The proportion of non-landed new private home sales to foreigners was 1.9 percent in January, down from 3.2 percent the previous month, while Singaporean buyers accounted for 87.7 percent of transactions and permanent residents made up 10.4 percent, PropNex said.

Post-CNY Indicator

As January is typically a slow month for property sales, a better gauge of sales performance would be the months following Chinese New Year, said Chia Siew Chuin, head of residential research at JLL Singapore.

“Hence, despite a slow start to the year, a guarded optimism prevails for 2024, with expectations of a relatively resilient private home sales market,” Chia said.

JLL forecasts new home sales volume of 7,000-8,000 units for the full year, up from 6,421 in 2023, driven by a robust launch pipeline of about 12,000 units. Overall private home prices are projected to rise by 3 to 5 percent in 2024 after last year’s 6.8 percent increase, according to the agency.