Median Non-Landed Subsale Price Rises 18%

Source : The Business Times, August 27, 2009

THE median subsale price of non-landed private residential properties increased 18.1 per cent from $813 psf in Q1 this year to $960 psf in Q2, an analysis of caveats by DTZ shows. It attributed the increase to more higher-end properties transacted in Q2 as well as price appreciation in the quarter.


















The most popular subsale project in the April to June 2009 period was Rivergate, with 105 units changing hands - or nearly a fifth of the total 545 units in the freehold project located in the Robertson Quay area. The project obtained Temporary Occupation Permit in Q1.

Rivergate's median subsale price increased from $1,200 psf in Q1 2009 to $1,400 psf in Q2. Caveats for subsales in July and August are starting to stream in and the deals have been done at prices ranging from $1,400 to $1,775 psf, or a median price of $1,600 psf.

The next most popular subsale project in Q2 was City Square Residences at Kitchener Road - with 57 deals done at a median price of $893 psf, up 13 per cent from the $791 psf median price on 43 units transacted in the first quarter. In July to August, three units at the freehold condominium were sold, at prices ranging from $1,000 psf to $1,104 psf.

Median subsale price at Casa Merah, a 99-year leasehold condo near Tanah Merah MRT Station, has gone up from $658 psf in Q1 to $691 psf in Q2 to $734 psf in July to August. The latest price is 11.6 per cent above the Q1 level. Twenty subsales were done in the project in July to August - probably helped by the sellout preview of Optima @ Tanah Merah nearby a few weeks ago.

Over in the Buangkok MRT vicinity, 11 units were sold at The Quartz in the subsale market in July to August at a median price of $699 psf, 15.7 per cent higher than the Q1 median subsale price of $604 psf.

In the Katong area, the median subsale price for One Amber rose from $830 psf in Q1 to $1,015 psf in July to August - or a 22.3 per cent price gain. In the same period, the median subsale price for Icon in the Tanjong Pagar area appreciated 26.2 per cent from $1,144 psf to $1,444 psf.

Subsales are secondary market deals in projects that have yet to obtain Certificate of Statutory Completion.

Homes Of Over $1.5m Cut Bigger Slice Of Q2 Deals

Source : The Business Times, August 27, 2009

They make up 22% of total transactions, compared with 10% a quarter earlier

Improved sentiment in the private residential sector has filtered from the mass market to the upper tiers in the second quarter of this year, an analysis of caveats shows.

The proportion of caveats in Q2 for private housing transactions above $1.5-million was bigger than in Q1.

A study by DTZ shows that 22 per cent of transactions in Q2 were for deals above $1.5 million, compared with just 10 per cent in Q1.

Also, the number of transactions in the $1,500-1,999 per square foot (psf) range jumped more than 10 times, from 34 units in Q1 to 369 in Q2. And the number of deals for units costing $2,000 psf or more rose from just 10 in Q1 to 67 in Q2.

Another indicator of activity spreading to the higher end of the market is that a quarter of caveats lodged in Q2 were for properties in the prime districts 9,10 and 11, up from 14 per cent in Q1.

Buyers with private addresses accounted for 56 per cent of private home purchases in Q2, up from 44 per cent in Q1. This reflects a spillover of buying from the mass market to the upper tiers, DTZ said.

Conversely, HDB upgraders' share of caveats lodged for private home purchases slipped from 56 per cent in Q1 to 44 per cent in Q2.

'HDB upgraders have been able to participate in the current home buying wave due partly to the wealth effect brought about by rising HDB resale prices,' said DTZ South-east Asia research head Chua Chor Hoon.

'As well, wages went up in the past few years prior to the stagnation and wage cuts seen last year and this year. As a result, prices of entry-level private condos are generally still quite affordable for HDB upgraders.

'But if developers keep on increasing prices, mass-market private condos will become less affordable again to HDB upgraders.'

DTZ's analysis shows that 75 per cent of total private housing deals involving buyers with HDB addresses were at or below $1 million in Q2, down from 87 per cent in Q1.

Also, 37 per cent of buyers with HDB addresses picked up properties in the $600,001-800,000 band in Q2. In contrast, 60 per cent of buyers with private addresses purchased units costing above $1 million.

DTZ found that buyers with HDB addresses acquired smaller homes than buyers with private addresses.

It said that 77 per cent of purchases involving HDB upgraders were for homes up to 1,400 sq ft, compared with 52 per cent of transactions by buyers with private addresses in Q2.

The property consultancy also said that 88 per cent of purchases by HDB upgraders were for homes outside districts 9, 10 and 11. HDB upgraders bought mostly mass-market condos. Their most popular picks were Mi Casa in Choa Chu Kang and Double Bay Residences in Simei, with respective median selling prices of $633 psf and $663 psf.

Looking ahead, Ms Chua reckoned that activity will continue to filter to the upper levels of the private housing market for the rest of this year in tandem with a general improvement in the Singapore economy.

'As well, most economies seem to have seen their worst and are improving,' she said. ' That will help to bring back more foreign buyers to the Singapore property market.'

Some market watchers said that whether the upper end of the market sees more transactions hinges partly on developers' willingness to launch more high-end and luxury projects.

But Knight Frank executive director (residential) Peter Ow reckoned that the likelihood of a significant pick-up in launches over the next few months in these segments is slim.

'We can see that for the mass-market and mid-tier projects, the take-up rate slows when developers raise prices,' he said.

Property Transactions For Districts 1 To 22 With Contract Dates Between Aug 5th - 11th, 2009

2 GCBs At Queen Astrid Park To Be Auctioned

Source : The Business Times, August 27, 2009

They are to be sold together as the land is yet to be divided into 2 titles

Two good class bungalows (GCBs) at Queen Astrid Park will be auctioned together by TM Asia Life Singapore as part of its plan to dispose of non-core assets.

'We are seeking offers in excess of $36 million, which works out to $890 per sq ft of the land area,' said Irinn Lee, auctioneer and director at Credo Real Estate, which will conduct the auction.

'Going by recent sales of GCBs and the condition of the houses, which overlook lower-lying bungalows, we believe they may even be knocked down at auction well above $36 million.'

The bungalows - numbers 29 and 29A Queen Astrid Park - sit on a sprawling 40,453 sq ft site.

They are for sale to one buyer as the land is yet to be sub-divided into two titles.

The bungalows were built around 1999 and each has a built-up area of about 8,500 sq ft. The auction will take place on Sept 24.

Ms Lee said that the values of GCBs in Queen Astrid Park have held up well, even during down markets.

In June last year, a 10-year-old house at No 1 Queen Astrid Gardens, on a 15,680 sq ft site, was sold for $20 million or $1,276 psf.

And in November last year, an old bungalow at No 25 Queen Astrid Park, on 38,549 sq ft of land, was sold for $31.8 million or $825 psf.

Sales of GCBs have picked up over the past few months as high-net-worth individuals stepped up purchases.

The action started in April when $56 million of GCBs were transacted. It gathered steam in May and June, when $188 million of deals were done each month.

Then in July, more than 20 GCBs changed hands for more than $300 million.

In contrast, GCB sales totalled only $27.5 million in the first quarter of this year.

GCBs are the premier form of housing in Singapore.

They are confined to 39 designated areas and there is an estimated total stock of about 2,500 units only.

More Buyers Now Going For Pricier Homes

Source : The Straits Times, Aug 27, 2009

THE property boom is fast spreading to the upper reaches of the market, with more people buying premium-priced homes, according to data from property consultancy DTZ.

The DTZ data highlights that 25 per cent of property hunters snapped up homes in the prime 9, 10 and 11 districts in the second quarter, up from 14 per cent in the first quarter. -- ST PHOTO: CHEW SENG KIM

The firm's analysis of caveats lodged shows that 22 per cent of total private home sales in the second quarter were for homes priced above $1.5 million, compared to 10 per cent in the first quarter.

Buyers living in private residences bought 4,651 homes between April and June, more than the 3,710 homes purchased by HDB-based buyers. DTZ said that this showed a spillover of demand from the mass market to the mid- and higher-tier segments.

It is a turnaround from the first quarter, when HDB upgraders and first-time buyers outnumbered buyers living in private homes. Seven in 10 buyers of new private homes in the first three months of the year had Housing Board addresses.

















The DTZ data highlights that 25 per cent of property hunters snapped up homes in the prime 9, 10 and 11 districts in the second quarter, up from 14 per cent in the first quarter. It was the first time in 11/2 years that sales in prime districts exceeded 20 per cent of total sales.

DTZ head of South-east Asia research Chua Chor Hoon said: 'We have definitely seen more investors coming back in recent months... As private home prices have corrected 10 to 33 per cent from their 2007 peak to the lows of the first quarter of 2009, Singapore households have ploughed savings accumulated during the prosperous years in 2004 to 2007 into the property market.'

Resilient HDB resale prices have created a wealth boost for HDB upgraders, causing the proportion of buyers with HDB addresses in the second quarter to reach 44 per cent. Though a smaller proportion than in the first quarter, this was well ahead of the 29 per cent seen in 2006 when the market started to pick up, notes DTZ. HDB upgraders and first-time homebuyers typically buy into mass market condominiums, which are usually lower-priced homes in suburban areas.

In the second quarter, about 75 per cent of buyers living in HDB flats bought homes for less than $1 million. Nearly half spent from $600,001 to $800,000. In comparison, some 60 per cent of buyers living in private homes bought units costing more than $1 million.

A larger group of buyers living in HDB flats bought smaller units of 1,400 sq ft or below. This can prove to be more affordable as the total quantum price can be relatively low, even if the per sq ft price is on the high side, experts said.

Keen buying interest spilled into the secondary market, with sub-sales of non-landed homes trebling to 1,200 units in the second quarter. The sub-sale price of these homes rose 18 per cent to $960 per sq ft (psf) from $813 psf, said DTZ.

Foreign buyer numbers rose, but they still bought only 15 per cent of private homes priced above $1,110 psf in the second quarter, compared with 29 per cent for the whole of 2006. Such buyers are increasingly moving to mid-tier properties on the city fringes, DTZ observed.

Ms Chua predicted more units to be transacted at $1.5 million-and-above in the current quarter, as more projects in the $1,500 psf to $2,000 psf price bracket came onto the market in July and August.

But if private home prices continue to move far ahead of HDB resale prices, HDB upgraders could be forced to pull back, said Jones Lang LaSalle's head of research for South-east Asia, Chua Yang Liang.

Foreign Buyers Warm To Mid-Tier City-Fringe Homes

Source : The Business Times, August 27 2009

Q2 resurgence sees Indonesians pick up 5 times the number they bought in Q1

Foreign buying of private homes rose in Q2 but is not back in full force in terms of its share of higher-priced transactions, according to a caveats analysis by DTZ. The quarter also saw a resurgence of purchases by Indonesians, who were the top buyers in the upper-tier segments.

Foreigners, excluding Singapore permanent residents (PRs), made up only 15 per cent of those who bought private homes costing over $1,110 per square foot (psf) in Q2 2009, much lower than their 29 per cent share in 2006 when the property market began to heat up.

In terms of absolute price quantums, too, non-PR foreigners made up 14 per cent of total transactions done at above $1.5 million in Q2 2009 - considerably below the 20 per cent figure in 2006.

'The profile of foreigners has changed gradually over time. They are increasingly moving to mid-tier homes located at the city fringes,' DTZ said.

Knight Frank executive director (residential) Peter Ow said the trend is also due to several city-fringe projects being launched recently in locations such as Novena and Holland Road at prices that foreign buyers have found attractive.

'Their prices are about 30-40 per cent lower than prime Orchard Road properties with similar-quality finishes. And most of these projects are near MRT stations and often 10 minutes' drive to Orchard Road,' he added.

DTZ's analysis showed that homes in the prime districts of 9, 10 and 11, as well as district 15, accounted for 47 per cent of total private homes bought by non-PR foreigners in Q2 - much lower than a 62 per cent share in 2006.

The total number of private homes bought by both PRs and non-PR foreigners more than trebled from 497 units in Q1 to 1,678 units in Q2.

The most popular projects among non-PR foreigners in Q2 were Rivergate (33 purchases), The Arte (31 units), Martin Place Residences (26 units) and The Lakeshore (23 units).

Among PRs, their top picks were The Arte, Martin Place Residences, The Lakeshore, Mi Casa and Melville Park.

The second quarter saw a big resurgence in Indonesian buying. They picked up 349 units in Q2, almost five times the 70 units they bought in Q1. As a result, Indonesians accounted for 21 per cent of private homes bought by foreigners and PRs, up significantly from a 14 per cent share in Q1.

However, they still trailed Malaysians, who made up the lion's share or 29 per cent of purchases by foreigners and PRs. Mainland Chinese accounted for 15 per cent and Indian citizens, 12 per cent.

Although Indonesians made up about one-fifth of total private residential purchases by PRs and non-PR foreigners, they bought one-third of homes costing above $1,110 psf that were picked up by foreigners and PRs in Q2.

In terms of absolute price quantums, Indonesians also had a one-third share of total purchases by PRs and non-PR foreigners done at above $1.5 million in Q2.

优质洋房市场续升温

Source : 《联合早报》August 27, 2009

优质洋房(Good Class Bungalow)市场进一步升温，又有两栋位于荷兰路一带的优质洋房，将被推上拍卖台寻找买家。

负责这项拍卖活动的齐乐行（Credo）说，两栋位于爱士特女皇园（Queen Astrid Park）29号和29A号的优质洋房，占地4万零453平方英尺，必须卖给同一名买家，因为它们还没有申请分割成两张独立的地契。

两栋即将拍卖的爱士特女皇园优质洋房，必须卖给同一名买家，因为它们共同拥有一张地契。（Credo提供）

这两栋别墅的业主是TM亚洲人寿（TM Asia Life），这家保险公司持有这两栋别墅已数十年，它在1999年重建了这两栋别墅，目前两栋别墅的楼面各约8500平方英尺，都拥有泳池。

拍卖会将在下月24日举行。齐乐行透露，它希望以3600万元以上，即每平方英尺890元来帮业主卖出这两栋别墅。“从最近优质洋房的交易情况，以及这两栋别墅本身的条件来看，我们相信拍卖会上的出价可能远远超出3600万元。”

它认为，这两栋别墅非常适合大家庭居住，例如两个兄弟可以联手买下这两栋别墅，一个分占一栋，以便彼此照应。它也适合投资者自己住一间，另外一间租出去。

齐乐行指出，在39个优质洋房区内，爱士特女皇园是最受欢迎的其中一个区。即使是雷曼兄弟倒闭后的楼市低潮期，这一区的优质洋房价格仍然持高。例如2008年11月，位于爱士特女皇园25号的一栋老洋房仍然以3180万元，即每平方英尺825元成交。

2008年6月，一栋位于爱士特女皇园1号、只有10年屋龄的洋房，则以2000万元，即每平方英尺1276元成交。

市场人士说，本地优质洋房市场是在今年4月开始“动”起来的，单单4月份就有总值5600万元的优质洋房成交，5月和6月的交易总额都各别攀升，7月份更进一步飙涨至3亿元以上。

市场估计，过去七个月来，本地已有大约50栋优质洋房转手，交易总值超过8亿元。齐乐行董事经理卡南吉透露，今年来优质洋房价格估计已经攀升了10％至20％。