Q1 PropertyGuru Affordability Sentiment Survey Results Released

Singapore, 28 April 2011 - PropertyGuru, Singapore's leading property site, today revealed the first quarter 2011 survey results on property market affordability sentiments among Singaporeans. The majority of consumers feel that property along all categories in Singapore is too expensive and that the government can do more to manage property prices.

The survey shows that the majority of consumers are uncertain about the property market, with many adopting a ‘wait-and-see' approach towards property purchases in the next 12 months.

Impact of Government intervention

Despite the recent cooling measures on property purchases, an increase in respondents still feel that the government is not doing enough to keep property prices affordable (48% versus 41% in Q4). As much as 68% of respondents are of the view that HDB flats are expensive, almost similar to the 67% in Q4. Similarly, the majority (80%) consider Private Residential Property as expensive, compared to the 75% in Q4. 76% of those surveyed indicated that they will neither ‘upgrade' nor ‘downgrade' their property within the next 12 months, compared to 70% in Q4 last year, opting for a ‘wait and see' approach. The biggest impact of the cooling measures was on new and resale condominiums with 40% expecting transaction volumes to reduce.

The introduction of the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) was viewed as a positive move by consumers. 89% agree that the CEA will result in more transparency and protection for consumers, as well as increased confidence in property agents.

Key findings of the PropertyGuru Affordability Sentiment Survey

The key findings of the PropertyGuru Affordability Sentiment survey include:

• The consumer property sentiment index for Q1 2011 is 2.4 on a scale of 5. Compared to an index of 2.4 in our Q4 2010 survey, there is no shift in the affordability index. The index was 1.25 in Q2 2010.

• An index of 2.4 compared to 1.25 in Q2 2010 shows that consumers are optimistic towards affording properties. This can be seen as an aftermath of the recent cooling measures announced in January.

• 71% of respondents still feel that property along all categories in Singapore is expensive, similar to the 71% in Q4.

• Similar to our Q4 survey, almost 68% of respondents feel that HDB is too expensive, showing still the same sentiment towards HDB.

• 80% of respondents consider Private Residential Property as still expensive.

• 56% are of the view that HDB prices will further increase in the next 6 months, compared to 41% in Q4.

• A fewer number of respondents (44%) feel the prices would decrease in the next 6 months, compared to the 59% in our Q4 2010 survey.

• The biggest impact of the cooling measures: 40% of respondents feel condominium transactions would decrease. Overall, less respondents expect prices of commercial and private property to decrease in the next 6 months.

• Despite the recent cooling measures, 48% (almost half of the respondents) still feel the government is not doing enough to keep property prices in Singapore affordable as compared to the 41% in Q4.

"There is considerable ongoing debate about property affordability in the run up to the Singapore general elections. Our latest quarterly survey reveals that the majority of the 1,670 respondents still feel that the property market is too expensive with almost half wanting to see the Government doing more. In addition, an increased number (almost three-quarters of all respondents) are now adopting a ‘wait and see' approach, presumably uncertain about the future of the market. Despite this, the January cooling measures seemed to have impacted sentiment towards the private residential market, more than HDB, with 40% expecting condo transactions to reduce and less respondents this time round who feel that private and commercial prices would decrease within 6 months. We will see whether the latest Government measures this month will impact sentiment in our Q2 survey," said Steve Melhuish, CEO of PropertyGuru.

Some of the other key findings of buying behaviour include:

• There is less appetite for Singapore properties, with the number of respondents who would purchase locally dropping to 62% in Q1, compared to 70% in Q4.

• More respondents now adopting a wait-and-see approach after the announcement of the cooling measures in January.

• Fewer respondents are looking to upgrade to better homes as the majority is neither interested in upgrading or downgrading.

• With the rising property prices in Singapore, more investors are seeking opportunities outside of Singapore. 42% of respondents now prefer property investments outside Singapore, compared to 40% in our Q4 survey.

• Top two motivation factors in purchase of property are price and location. Potential capital appreciation is the third most important factor but it has reduced in importance from 31% in Q4 to 22% in Q1.

• 68% say that ‘both myself and my spouse' are the decision makers when purchasing property.

This third edition of the PropertyGuru Property Sentiment Survey was conducted in early April 2011 with 1,670 respondents, the majority were between 30 to 49 years of age. The quarterly online survey aims to gain a better perspective on the property market, current consumer sentiment and how it may affect future property decisions, including the tracking of a consumer property sentiment index. The next survey will be conducted in June 2011.

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About AllPropertyMedia Pte Ltd - Asia's Property Guru

PropertyGuru Pte. Ltd. is a firm founded in 2006 by two successful entrepreneurs in Singapore and is best known for running www.PropertyGuru.com.sg, Singapore's leading property site (sources: Hitwise, Alexa and Google). It also runs www.CommercialGuru.com.sg; Singapore's only dedicated commercial and industrial property portal, as well as www.LoanGuru.com.sg, an online mortgage brokerage with access to over 300 mortgage deals from 23 major local and international banks.

In 2010, PropertyGuru Group recorded a 70 percent increase in users to PropertyGuru.com.sg, clinched some major advertising clients and secured partnerships with major online websites and overseas property portals. That same year, the company won the Singapore IT Federation (SITF) award for "Best E-Enterprise Company 2010", as well as the Singapore Venture Capital & Private Equity Association (SVCA) award for "Best Performing VC Backed Company 2010". It was also voted "Top Digital Media of the Year 2010" by Marketing.

For 2011, the company has set its sights on expanding into neighbouring countries. It has entered into a joint venture with Redberry, one of Malaysia's top media companies, to accelerate its expansion into Malaysia and launched HomeGuru.com.my, a website to help users find available properties for sale and rent in Malaysia. It has also acquired FullHouse Media Sdn Bhd, owners of leading North Malaysian property portal, FullHouse.com.my and Rumah.com, Indonesia's top property website, with over 500,000 visitors viewing eight million impressions every month.

PropertyGuru Group is now operating across 7 countries (Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, India, Australia and Macau) with our new set ups, acquisitions and strategic partnerships.

Asia's Leading Property Portal Group includes:

www.PropertyGuru.com.sg is used by over 2 million consumers who view 35 million pages, generating over 225,000 leads for advertisers every month. The site provides real-time access to multi-media rich content covering property and home-related products, services, news, advice, guides, tools and the largest online property database in Singapore and works closely with prominent real estate developers, housing agents and home-related firms in Singapore and overseas.

www.CommercialGuru.com.sg was launched in August 2010 and is used by 140,000 business users browsing 1.6 million pages and generating over 50,000 leads for advertisers every month. It is Singapore's only independent, dedicated commercial and industrial property portal.

www.LoanGuru.com.sg was launched in January 2010 as an independent online mortgage brokerage providing real-time access to over 300 mortgage packages from 23 major local and international banks. It generates over 500 loan leads per month.

www.HomeGuru.com.my is a Malaysian property portal set up as part of a joint venture between PropertyGuru Pte. Ltd. and Malaysia's RedBerry. It provides consumers a platform to identify available properties for purchase, sale, rental or investment and a direct channel to search for and contact agents. Designed with the end-user in mind, it features real-time access to multi-media rich content, covering property and home-related products, services, news, advice, guides, tools and a rapidly growing online property database in Malaysia. It works closely with prominent real estate developers, housing agents and home-related firms in Malaysia and overseas.

www.FullHouse.com.my was established in 2005 to allow all Malaysians to efficiently and conveniently search for properties on the Internet. It has grown in popularity, attracting over 160,000 visitors and viewing more than 1.2 million page views every month to become one of Malaysia's top property portals. With hundreds of housing projects and more than 80,000 property listings to date, Fullhouse.com.my is the preferred online marketing channel for major real estate players. It constantly explores ways to serve customers through innovative and effective strategies. The company's objective is to enhance the experience of finding a new home and leading the industry into a new era of real estate marketing.

www.Rumah.com was founded in 2007 and is Indonesia's top property website with over 500,000 visitors viewing 8 million page views every month. Over 120,000 properties for sale and rent in Indonesia and the website have a database of 11,000 opted-in members. Rumah.com is an online media campaign that provides the ideal search experience for all types of property: residential, commercial and industrial. Rumah.com allows sellers and renters to place on its site property advertisements which can be easily viewed by prospective buyers, who can search for property based on location and / or price.

For recent news, please visit www.propertyguru.com.sg/customer-service/press-releases. For more information, visit www.PropertyGuru.com.sg, www.CommercialGuru.com.sg, www.LoanGuru.com.sg, www.HomeGuru.com.my, www.FullHouse.com.my or www.Rumah.com

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