According to Huttons, an estimated 55 luxury non-landed homes were sold for $407.7 million in 3Q2024 (Picture: Samuel Isaac Chua/The Edge Singapore)
The luxury condo market saw a decline in sales in 3Q2024, according to data compiled by Huttons Asia. In its latest Prestige Report that monitors the high-end residential market, the consultancy says an estimated 55 luxury non-landed homes — which it defines as condo units located in the Core Central Region that are sized from 2,000 sq ft and priced at $5 million and above — were sold in 3Q2024 for $407.7 million. This represents a 3.5% decline in sales volume and a 15.5% decline in sales value compared to the 57 luxury condo units sold for $482.5 million in 2Q2024.
Nonetheless, the figures show a significant improvement compared to the 37 luxury condo units sold for $295.8 million that Huttons reported in 3Q2023. At the time, the market was reeling from the April 2023 roll-out of cooling measures, including a hike in additional buyer's stamp duty (ABSD) for foreigners to 60%, along with an anti-money laundering crackdown in August 2023.
On a y-o-y basis, luxury condo sales volume is up 48.6% in 3Q2024, while sales value is up 37.8%. "Activities in the luxury non-landed homes market are back to the pre-cooling measures days," says Mark Yip, CEO of Huttons Asia.
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Yip observes that enquiries in the luxury condo market have increased, with many coming from newly-minted Permanent Residents (PRs) and citizens who had applied for their PR or citizenship last year following the hike in ABSD. “Many of them bought a luxury non-landed home upon approval of their PR or citizenship,” he says.
The biggest luxury condo deal in 3Q2024 was the developer sale of a 4,198 sq ft unit at 32 Gilstead for $14.71 million ($3,505 psf). The freehold development on Gilstead Road by Kheng Leong Co also saw the second and third-largest deals during the quarter. The units sold are both 4,209 sq ft apartments that fetched $14.65 million ($3,480 psf) and $14.44 million ($3,432 psf) respectively in September.
Yip notes that there were eight luxury non-landed homes transacted at $10 million and above in 3Q2024, which is two less than the 10 deals logged in the previous quarter. “However, there were some non-caveated deals like a five-bedroom unit in Hilltops (a freehold luxury condo on Cairnhill Circle) which was said to be sold at around $13 million,” he continues.
In the rental market, the overall average monthly rent of luxury non-landed homes grew 2.7% q-o-q to $14,932. The report adds that there was more interest in four-bedroom luxury condo units, with the average rent for this category growing at a faster pace of 3.6% to hit $18,389 per month during the quarter.
The Good Class Bungalow (GCB) market also saw a pick-up in activity in 3Q2024. An estimated 12 GCBs were sold last quarter, up from eight GCBs in 2024. The bungalows sold in 3Q2024 fetched a total of $541.2 million, 80.9% higher q-o-q.
The biggest GCB deal in 3Q2024 was a property in Tanglin Hill that was reportedly sold for $93.9 million, or $6,198 psf on its land area of 15,150 sq ft.
Read also: Luxury condo market activity nearly back to pre-cooling measures level: Huttons Asia
This brings the number of GCB deals to 25 for the first nine months of the year, exceeding the 20 that were estimated to have transacted for the whole of 2023. The total value of GCBs sold to date this year clocks in at $958.7 million.
In the GCB rental market, the top rental deal in 3Q2024 was for a GCB in Chatsworth Park that fetched a monthly rent of $120,000.
Looking ahead, Yip believes sale and rental transactions for the luxury condo market could be higher in 4Q2024, driven by demand from ultra-wealthy foreign residents in the UK seeking to relocate ahead of proposed tax reforms, including the abolishment of a tax regime that offers concessions for residents with offshore wealth.
“Because of the possible change to the tax status of some 74,000 non-domiciled residents in the UK, some of these ultra-wealthy foreign residents may move abroad to protect their assets. The countries under consideration include Dubai, Italy, Singapore and Switzerland,” Yip explains.
Check out the latest listings for 32 Gilstead properties