Apr 15, 2013
New private home sales for the month of March reached 2,793 units - an almost 300 percent increase month-on-month and 17 percent more than in March last year, according to data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).
Including executive condominiums (ECs), 3,072 homes
were sold last month - a 235 percent rise from February.
Mohd Ismail, CEO of PropNex Realty, said: “Despite
the resale market not performing as well, the new sale market has remained
robust. With the recent cooling measures, the rebound in March is indicative of
robust demand from genuine first-time home buyers. Other than developers’
sensitive pricing, many of them could have been attracted by the discounts and
rebates offered by developers. Developers probably took a respite to adjust
their pricing and allowed more time for marketing efforts before launching
their projects in March 2013.”
In fact, developers released 3,489 new units in
March compared to just 262 previously. Most projects were launched in the
Outside Central Region (2,350), followed by the Rest of Central Region (1,053)
and the Core Central Region (86). No ECs were launched in March.
Seven projects sold more than 100 units last month.
The three best-selling launches were D'Nest in Pasir Ris which sold 699 units
of the 800 launched in the month at a median price of S$963 psf, Bartley Ridge
which saw 367 units taken up at a median price of S$1,296 psf, and Urban Vista
in Tanah Merah where 348 units were sold at a median price of S$1,503 psf.
Meanwhile, Ismail believes the strong sales figures
may not be a true reflection of the impact of the cooling measures.
“March’s transaction numbers are a combination of
new launches, attractive pricings and discounts/rebates which would lead to
short-term robust buying behavior. Therefore, strong sales are not likely in
the coming months. Buyers will still remain cautious but those projects that
are ‘value for money’, well-located and attractively conceptualised should
continue to sell well.”
Moving forward, Ismail expects the private property
market to remain subdued as the full impact of the measures are yet to be seen.
Sales volumes are likely to stabilise at around 1,400 to 1,600 units per month
on average for the first half of 2013 as incentives and discounts are still
being offered by developers.