New private home sales fall to 217 units in September, lowest monthly figure year

ECs remain the bright spot in September’s new home sales, with 118 units sold last month. Despite the lack of major new launches, new home sales in September still reached 217 units, down 44.9% from the month prior. Of these units, the Outside Central Region (OCR) saw a plunge of 64% in sales, while the Rest of Central Region (RCR) and Core Central Region (CCR) dropped 33% and 20.8% respectively from August.

ECs continue to prove their worth in Singapore’s market, remaining a bright spot with 118 units sold in September. With the introduction of additional buyer’s stamp duty (ABSD) remission, demand for Executive Condos has increased significantly. Altura in particular, saw a record median price of $1,585 psf for a single unit sale.

In 3Q2023, developers sold 2,024 new homes, 4.8% lower q-o-q and 7.5% lower y-o-y. These figures deflated expectations but could be attributed to the lack of big project launches during the period, as well as the traditional slowdown of the housing market in the lunar seventh month.

Sentiment this year has also taken a hit, caused by factors such as higher interest rates, softer economic prospects and the implementation of two rounds of cooling measures. Buyers have become more discerning in their choice of housing and with so many options available on the market, this could have contributed to the decrease in sales.

In the Core Central Region (CCR), new home sales have fallen to the lowest monthly tally since February 2021 with 76 units sold in September. Median prices, however, rose 10.5% to $3,151 psf as advantages in projects such as Midtown Bay, Midtown Modern, Perfect Ten, Leedon Green, and Orchard Sophia became more apparent. The Rest of Central Region (RCR) saw 71 new homes sold, while Outside Central Region (OCR) made up 70 units.

Strategically located in the heart of Singapore at Zion Road, Zion Road Condo provides residents easy access to an array of amenities. The renowned Orchard Road shopping belt is within minutes’ reach. Shopping malls such as Great World City, Valley Point, and Tiong Bahru Plaza are minutes away from the condos. Moreover, the Orchard MRT station, a short distance away, connects it to the North-South Line, providing further accessibility to different parts of Singapore. The upcoming Havelock MRT station, part of the Thomson-East Coast Line, will also offer an additional transport link for Zion Road Condo residents, adding to the convenience.

Foreigners remained confident in Singapore’s market and purchased 13 of these new homes, resulting in a 5.9% yield of the total sales. The highest-priced single transaction was the $7 million sale of a 2,164 sq ft unit at Dalvey Haus for $3,235 psf.

Conducting research, it is estimated that developer sales will reach between 6,500 and 7,500 units in 2023. This is slightly lower than the 7,099 units in 2022 due to the prolonged effects of the cooling measures. New launches in 4Q2023 such as J’Den in Jurong East, Hillock Green in Lentor, and Watten House in Bukit Timah could boost the number of sales.

In conclusion, while developer sales in September dropped 44.9% from the month before, the Executive Condo segment remains the bright spot of the Singapore housing market. Factors such as the lack of major project launches, softer economic prospects and the implementation of cooling measures have caused the fall in sales, but new launches in 4Q2023 could potentially restore the figures.