Singapore private home sales up 14.9% to 4,121 units in Q1

The Core Central Region led new home sales during the quarter.

According to JLL, Singapore’s overall sales volume of private homes (excluding Executive Condominiums or ECs in the primary and secondary markets) in Q1 rose 14.9% q-o-q with 4,121 units transacted, mainly attributable to a jump in new home sales.

“Driven by major fresh project launches in the quarter and underpinned by sustained buying interest for ongoing projects in the primary market, transactions of new private homes rebounded by 82% q-o-q from 690 units in 4Q22 to 1,256 units in 1Q23,” JLL said.

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However, the 1,256 new units sold were 31.2% lower compared to 1Q22, as buying sentiment has since turned cautious amid a dimmer economic outlook, persistently high interest rates, inflation and more stringent property market curbs. Some potential buyers have also remained on the side-lines for more options from new project launches in the next few quarters.

The Core Central Region (CCR) – a proxy for high-end and luxury homes – led new home sales in 1Q23 despite the lack of fresh project launches. Properties in the submarket remained on the radar of homebuyers who booked 541 new units (43.1% of total new sales) during the quarter and represented an increase of 42% q-o-q and 49.9% y-o-y.

The narrowed price gap between private homes in the CCR and the Rest of Central Region (RCR) has rendered CCR properties as attractive buying opportunities. Ongoing CCR projects that helped boost transactions in the submarket included Leedon Green, Pullman Residences Newton, Perfect Ten, Hyll on Holland and Klimt Cairnhill.

Lifted by the new project launches of Sceneca Residence and The Botany at Dairy Farm in 1Q23, the Outside Central Region (OCR) was the second best-selling region in the quarter, accounting for 458 units or 36.5% of total new sales. This was 3.7 times the tally in 4Q22 but 24.7% lower y-o-y.

The continued dearth of fresh launches except for the debut of Terra Hill in 1Q23 saw primary market home sales in the RCR increase by 38.2% q-o-q in 1Q23 but fall 70% y-o-y to 257 units. The submarket constituted 20.5% of all new sales in 1Q23.

On the other hand, resale market transactions dipped by 2.7% q-o-q to 2,622 units in 1Q23 and by 22.4% y-o-y when compared against the 3,377 resale transactions in 1Q22.

The price divergence between buyers and sellers had generally continued to cap resale volume, as sellers maintained higher asking prices in view of increased home replacement costs in the form of higher property prices, interest rates and stamp duties, while buyers had been less willing to commit to high offer prices amid market uncertainties. The CCR was the only submarket that saw an uptick in resale volume in 1Q23, up by 9.9% q-o-q and 1.9% y-o-y to 543 units and validates the growing value proposition and interest in properties in the CCR.