Unique and rare projects drive November developer sales up 286.2% m-o-m

By Nur Hikmah Md Ali

/ EdgeProp Singapore |

December 15, 2023 6:41 PM SGT

The November new home sales were a welcome relief after three months of tepid sales: Leonard Tay, Knight Frank Singapore's head of research (Photo: Samuel Isaac Chua/EdgeProp Singapore).

SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) - Developers launched three major non-landed projects for sale in November this year. The three projects introduced 1,022 units (excluding Executive Condominiums (ECs)) to the private residential property market in November.

The three projects launched in November are the 474-unit Hillock Green in Lentor Hills estate, the 368-unit J’den in Jurong Lake District (JLD), and the 180-unit Watten House on Shelford Road in the prime Bukit Timah area. Hillock Green sold 132 units (27.8%), J’den sold 329 units (89.4%), and Watten House sold 109 units (60.6%) last month.

The number of units launched for sale in November was 1,696.3% higher m-o-m and 204.1% higher y-o-y.

In terms of sales, there was a 286.2% m-o-m boost to 784 units in November from just 203 units in October. This is the highest number of transactions in a single month since July when 1,413 units (excluding ECs) were sold, according to Thomas Tan, CEO of SRI. On a y-o-y basis, developer sales saw a 201.5% increase from 260 units in November 2022.

The November new home sales were a welcome relief after three months of tepid sales, says Leonard Tay, Knight Frank Singapore's head of research. In August, 394 units were sold, followed by 217 in September and 203 in October.

Nearby amenities and unique locality draw interest

The bulk of the sales (72.7%) came from the three newly launched condos. Hillock Green displayed a strong performance in November due to its location within the upcoming Lentor Hills private residential enclave and its proximity to the shopping mall at Lentor Modern and Lentor MRT station just across the road, says Lee Sze Teck, senior director of data analytics at Huttons Asia.

Hillock Green’s preview drew more than 1,600 visitors over the weekend of Oct 28-29, according to the developer, a joint venture made up of Forsea Holdings, Soilbuild Group Holdings and United Engineers Ltd.

Of 474 units in total, 131 (27.6%) were sold on launch day at an average price of $2,108 psf. The development has three 23-storey towers, a mix of one- to four-bedroom units, and sizes ranging from 517 to 1,527 sq ft.

Hillock Green is the third project to be launched in the Lentor Hills estate. Lee observes that projects in the Lentor precinct, like Lentor Modern and Lentor Hills Residences, have sold well since launch.

Over at J’den, the first condo launched in Jurong East in 10 years, saw brisk sales, likely due to the pent-up demand for a private residential property in the heart of JLD, Lee notes. “Many buyers prefer mixed-use developments such as J’den, which is directly linked to the MRT station,” he adds.

Christine Sun, senior vice president of research and analytics, agrees, adding that the pent-up demand was strong due to a lack of new project launches in September and October. “As a result, the demand was high for J'den and Watten House, with both selling more than half of their total units within the launch month,” Sun says.

J’den is a redevelopment of the former JCube mall within the JLD. It has sold 89% of its 368 units since its launch on Nov 11, at a median price of $2,475 psf. Knight Frank’s Tay says that this marks a new price benchmark on a psf basis for private residential properties in Jurong East.

The district is currently served by Jurong East MRT station. It is expected to have four MRT lines by 2030 when the first phase of the Cross Island Line opens. OrangeTee’s Sun adds that the district is popular among both investors and owner-occupiers due to its close proximity to popular shopping malls like Westgate, Jem and IMM.

Sales momentum in the OCR and CCR

Watten House is the best-selling project in the Core Central Region (CCR) this year and since Jervois Mansion in 2021, according to Huttons’ Lee. What makes Watten House attractive, Lee says, is the limited supply of new homes in the prime Shelford Road area and its mostly large format units, which are in short supply in Singapore.

It is also located near Tan Kah Kee and Botanic Gardens MRT stations, as well as prestigious schools, making it popular among buyers, Sun notes.

Overall, the Outside Central Region (OCR) saw total sales of 512 units (73%). The CCR recorded sales of 109 units (15.5%), and the Rest of Central Region (RCR) saw 80 units (11.4%) sold.

The top three best-selling projects in November were J’den, Hillock Green and Watten House. J’den and Hillock Green are in the OCR, which saw 461 units sold last month. Watten House is in the CCR.

According to Lee, the most expensive unit sold last month was a detached house in Mount Rosie Signature Collection to a Singaporean for $33.888 million. Over 50% of the transactions last month were $2 million and above.

Besides the three new launches, other best-selling projects included Pinetree Hill, Grand Dunman, The Continuum, Lentor Hills Residences, The LakeGarden Residences, The Reserve Residences, The Myst, and Lentor Modern, says Sun.

Potential price growth in 4Q2023 may boost developer confidence next year

The strong performance and price points achieved in the three launches last month may result in price growth exceeding 1% in 4Q2023, Huttons’ Lee remarks. He estimates that prices may grow more than 5% for the whole year.

He adds: “This will give developers confidence to launch projects in 2024. Barring unforeseen circumstances, prices are estimated to grow between 3% and 5% in 2024.”

Lee predicts that in 1Q2024, there may be up to 12 projects with 3,225 units slated for launch. 21% of the units are in the CCR, 13% are in the RCR, and 66% are in the OCR.

SRI’s Tan says several new projects are slated for launch, including The Hillshore, Hillhaven, Sora, Marina View Residences, Lentor Mansion and Newport Residences. The diverse range of locations and features among these projects are expected to cater to the varying needs of home buyers and investors,” Tan adds.

Sun estimates that the H12024 Government Land Sales (GLS) programme will alleviate the existing supply-demand imbalance and help stabilise price growth next year. This will provide homebuyers with greater flexibility and choices, which could lead to increased market competition and slower price growth.

“In the first half of 2024, nine private residential sites will be put up for tender under the confirmed list, yielding an estimated 5,450 units, including 710 EC units and 515 long-stay serviced apartments,” she adds.

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Developer Sales