Private Housing Demand Up At Slower Pace

Source : TODAY, Friday, November 16, 2007

The number of new private homes sold in Singapore last month rose marginally as sentiment remained cautious amid volatile market conditions.

There were 590 new units sold last month, up from the 529 units in September, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said yesterday. Developers launched 629 units last month, slightly higher than 590 units in September.

Despite the lacklustre interest, prices have not dropped for the units sold last month. Knight Frank director Nicholas Mak said that the median transacted price for the new private residential units increased by about 3.3 per cent to $992 per sq ft from $960 in September.

“There is still a lot of interest in the $1,000 per sq ft category,” said Savills Singapore director of marketing and business development Ku Swee Yong.

In a separate announcement yesterday, the URA said it released a 106,300-sq-ft, 99-year leasehold residential site near Tanah Merah MRT station for tender. The site can be built up to about 297,500 sq ft.