The delicate balance between population growth, economy growth and housing provision is not an easy one to strike. And Singapore as a young nation, will have to learn quickly as land is limited but the number of completed units to enter the market in the next couple of years is set to reach 23,000.
Photo credit: Cairnhill Nine by CapitaLand
Private property prices have been dipping for 10 consecutive quarters now, and the market will be under even greater pressure in the months ahead as supply continues to increase while demand remains stagnant. Rental prices are expected to fall even faster than sale prices and the global economic situation does not seem to be helping. Prices have fallen 9.1 per cent since Q3 of 2013 and non-landed suburban properties in the OCR (outside of central region) fell the hardest.
Part of the reason for the falling figures could be the cutback on land sales by the government and the consequent lack of new launches. Only 953 units were launched in Q1, but property players are expecting the momentum to pick up as the year moves on.
It the first quarter’s numbers were anything to go by, with sales rising 7.2 per cent to 2,847 units, volume may have increased across both the new and resale private home markets.
