As home supply inches towards a new high this year, the public’s attention may now be shifted to the competition between completed new homes and new developer launches.
Property investment was almost a sure thing not long ago, but now 3 to 5 years down the road from the peak of the market, when property prices were high but so were buying sentiment and potential investment yields, units which were launched then are now made available in the physical, adding pressure to the already-gluggy property market.
Private apartment prices in the core central region (CCR) have taken a turn for the better with a 0.4 per cent rise in the first quarter of 2016, following a 0.3 per cent fall in the last quarter of 2015. Luxury properties in the prime districts may once again be welcoming affluent buyers and investors as average unit prices have risen from $2,215 psf to $2,243 psf by the end of last year.
In the city fringes however, private property prices have continued to ebb, falling 0.4 per cent for 2 consecutive quarters now. Out of the central regions (OCR) and in the suburbs, prices fell 0.9 per cent. For the rest of the year, property experts are expecting private apartment prices to stabilise in the central regions while landed and suburban non-landed homes continue to struggle.
