Reduced interest rates, together with a record-breaking six new private residential launches launched in November, pushed developers’ sales surging to 2,557 units. It was the highest monthly total since the time 2,793 units were sold in March 2013.
According to the Urban Redevelopment Authority, data published on December 16, this represented an increase of 246.5% increase from October’s sale and 226 percent higher than one year earlier.
Sales of new homes which include executive condos (ECs) have increased by 277.4 percent to reach 2,891 from 766 in the month of October.
After a lackluster month of new launch activity 2,871 units, not including ECs, were launched in November. It was 437 percent more than the month before and an increase of 196 percent from the previous year.
In addition, 504 new EC units were offered for sale.
Home buyers returned in force after the drop in interest rates in September and November.
Over 82 percent total number of homes sold in November was caused by six new residential launches – Chuan Park Emerald of Katong Nava Grove The Collective At One Sophia Union Square Residences Novo Place EC.
In October and November the number of private houses sold totalled 3,295 units. This is more than the 3,049 sales reported in the first nine-month period of 2024.
With the 6,344 new homes that developers sold in the first 11 months of the year, 2024’s sales are on track to beat 2023’s which were among the lowest in 15 years with 6,421 units, which excludes ECs.
In the EC segment, sales jumped to 334 units in November from a mere 28 units in October. This was due to the launch of Novo Place, which sold 289 units for a median cost of $1,654 per sq ft (psf).
Six new launches and the closing of Emerald of Katong changed the mood.
City-fringe condominium Emerald located in Katong was the best-selling condominium in November, selling 846 units at a median price of $2,627 psf and another project in the city-fringe, Nava Grove, sold 382 units for a median price of $2,445 psf.
In the suburbs, Chuan Park was the most sought-after property for a period of time, with 721 units transacted at a median price of $2,586 psf due to the accumulated demand from HDB upgraders and private home downgraders, as well as the absence of new launch supply in the region for more than a decade.
The expected increase in the number of new homes sold in the fourth quarter could cause a rise of 3 to 4 percent in the index of private residential prices in 2024.
Despite November’s robust sales performance one swallow doesn’t make a summer and a feat of this magnitude could not be repeated in the in the near future.
Centrally located new launches with a higher entry price were more measurable in terms of take-up in November, and December is likely to not see any new launches, given the holiday season’s slowdown.
If demand is sustainable in the coming year following the Christmas period has passed.
Geopolitical tensions arising from greater uncertainties in the Middle East and the current impasse in Ukraine, coupled with possibly more tariffs and protectionist policies from the US during the second Trump presidency, can impact companies across the globe and, in turn, can affect trade flows as well as the global economy.
If this is a negative impact on Singapore’s employment market and economy, then home buyers could be forced to put off purchasing a home until 2024.
The pace of rate cuts may be slower in 2025, as policy shifts that are being proposed by the incoming Trump administration, which emphasize tax reductions and broad-based tariffs, may increase the risk of inflation, possibly undermining rate-cut initiatives.
Collectively, these forces of market should diminish the risk of the local market for property overheating and reduce the need for further cooling measures.
In January 2025, new house sales will increase, because of new launches like the 777-unit Orie in Toapayoh. This is the first Toapayoh launch since Gem Residences was launched in 2016.
The outstanding performance of Chuan Park and the Emerald of Katong also underscores the appeal of large-scale projects which offer a wide range of facilities. This is a good sign for the future of the development of large scales.