Singapore’s housing market storms back

Singapore’s residential market rebounded in the second quarter, reversing a sharp downturn brought on by the pandemic.

The recovery accelerated in June as new sales hit 998 units, nearly doubling the total from the month before, according to World Property Journal, citing data from real estate consulting firm Edmund Tie.

The trend kept going into the third quarter, as July figures reached 1,080 home sales, the highest number since November 2019, according to the report. Pricing, however, was relatively flat. Sales prices rose 0.3 percent in the second quarter, compared to Q1. Singaporeans accounted for 80 percent of condominiums sales, up from 77 percent in the first quarter.

Lam Chern Woon of Edmund Tie said the turnaround “could be attributed to the pent-up demand,” and “swift fiscal and monetary interventions by the government to bolster the economy.”

Those include some property tax rebates implemented by the government, along with policies meant to reduce pressure on buyers from taxes and debt.

Buyers appeared to be conservative in their purchases in the second quarter — transactions for properties under $1 million increased five percentage points quarter-over-quarter. More buyers showed a preference for properties over 500 square feet. [WPJ] — Dennis Lynch