SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) - Developers launched 397 units for sale and sold 653 units in April this year. Compared to the same month in 2021, last month’s sales volume was 48.6% lower due to the absence of any new private residential launches.

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This brings the total developer sales (excluding executive condos) over the first four months of this year to 2,478 units, a 48% decrease compared to the same period a year ago.

The best-selling project by sales transactions in April 2022 was Normanton Park, which sold 52 units. Overall, the project has achieved a median price of about $1,860 psf. The 1,862-unit development was launched in January 2021 and is about 96% sold to date.

Overall, the latest sales figures seem to indicate that the residential market has stabilised after the latest cooling measures were implemented in December 2021, says Christine Sun, senior vice-president of research & analytics at OrangeTee & Tie.

Last month, the only launch that occurred was the 616-unit North Gaia, an executive condo. Located at Yishun Close, the project sold 166 units, or 26.9% of the total number of available units. The Core Central Region (CCR) recorded sales of 206 units, while the Rest of Central Region (RCR) moved 289 units and the Outside Central Region (OCR) saw the sale of 158 units.

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According to Lee Sze Teck, senior director (research) at Huttons Asia, the latest sales figures mark the first time in 12 months that new home sales in the CCR were higher than that in the OCR. “The low level of unsold stock in the OCR meant that buyers have increased their budget and traded up to the next tier of private housing in the RCR or CCR. This pushed up the proportion of sales $2 million and above to 54.8% in April,” he says.

The other best-selling projects during the month were Riviere which sold 35 units; One Pearl Bank, 29 units; and The Florence Residences, 24 units.

The relatively healthy new home sales over the past two months could be attributed to a motivation among buyers to lock in mortgage rates ahead of expected further rate hikes, as well as pent-up demand on the back of property cooling measures implemented five months ago, says Catherine He, head of research at Colliers Singapore.

According to Wong Siew Ying, head of research & content at PropNex Realty, the anticipated increase in mortgage rates has led some prudent buyers to opt for smaller units with a more manageable price quantum. She also believes that some buyers may enter the market sooner rather than later, to lock in more favourable mortgage rates.

Since the reopening of Singapore’s borders, there has been an uptick in foreign buying activity, says Sun. In April, 52 new non-landed private homes were purchased by foreigners, which translates to a 136% increase compared to the month before, which recorded 25 transactions involving foreigners.

Riviere was the most popular project among foreign buyers last month with 11 transactions, followed by The Avenir which sold six units to foreigners, and then Midtown Modern which sold four units.

PropNex’s Wong says investors will continue to be concerned about the prospects of a prolonged increase in interest rates, which could erode their future rental gains.

The coming months will likely see stronger new home sales numbers with the launch of major projects such as the 407-unit Piccadilly Grand and the 298-unit LIV @ MB. These projects will boost sales and prices in the RCR, says Colliers’ He.

“Nevertheless, the backdrop of macroeconomic uncertainties, higher additional buyer stamp duties and rising mortgage rates will still weigh on the sentiment of prospective buyers,” she says, adding that new home sales could moderate 20%-30% from 13,027 units sold in 2021 to about 10,000 units for the whole of this year.

Check out the latest listings near Normanton Park, North Gaia, Riviere, One Pearl Bank, The Florence Residences, The Avenir, Midtown Modern, Piccadilly Grand, LIV @ MB

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