MAJORITY OF S'POREANS STILL FEEL HOMES TOO EXPENSIVE

MAJORITY OF S'POREANS STILL FEEL HOMES TOO EXPENSIVE

Dec 23, 2011

If the results of a recent PropertyGuru real estate affordability sentiment survey are anything to go by, the majority of home buyers in Singapore should be satisfied with the latest government cooling measures.

Carried out in cooperation with market research firm, Blackbox Research, the survey polled over 1,737 respondents and revealed that home buyers and investors are generally not satisfied with property prices. Around 49 percent of the respondents believe that properties across all categories in Singapore are expensive, while only 29 percent perceive otherwise.

Some 60 percent disagree that the government is doing enough to keep prices affordable, a three percent increase from the last survey done in June 2011.

The survey was conducted before the additional stamp duty was introduced, indicating that it could not have come at a better time to ease consumer concerns.

“The Singapore government should be lauded for its efforts to make property prices affordable, especially for first-time home buyers. Given the gloomy economic condition and the fact that Singapore’s property price index has been climbing over the last five years, the new measures are a welcome respite for Singapore’s red-hot property market,” said Romesh Navaratnarajah, Singapore editor at PropertyGuru.

“The measures should mitigate some of the negative effects of hot money flowing into Singapore. Due to the Eurozone crisis, many investors have been shifting their attention to Singapore, especially the high-end market which has contributed to skyrocketing prices,” he added.

Meanwhile, more local property investors, accounting for 19 percent of respondents, would consider investing overseas compared to 14 percent in the previous survey.

Malaysia was the top choice with 32 percent, followed by Australia at 24 percent, while New Zealand and the Philippines both recorded nine percent.

Info courtesy - PropertyGuru.com.sg