Many luxury condominium units in Singapore are still vacant even after completion, as the luxury home market remains quiet in the previous years.
According to new data released by property consultancy firm CB Richard Ellis (CBRE), 12 condo projects have been completed this year, each with over 10 units yet to find a buyer as of last month. Out of the 12 projects, 10 are located in the prime areas, with a total of 384 units still unsold.
For instance, Belle Vue Residences in Oxley Walk has yet to find buyers for the 61 of the 176 units as of October, while Paterson Suites has only 79 units sold compared to 102 units yet to be sold.
CBRE added that another eight condo developments are expected to obtain temporary occupation permit (TOP) soon, each with at least 10 units still unsold. Seven of the eight condo projects are located in the prime areas of districts 9, 10 and 11, which cover Holland, Orchard, Bukit Timah and Newton, and the Tanjong Pagar and Sentosa areas.
Overall, buyers are still needed for over 1,000 posh condo projects already completed or expected to be completed by early next year. Most of the projects were first launched during the property boom in 2007, including Marina Collection in Sentosa Cove and Riveria Gardens in River Valley.
However, not all the completed units are available for sale, and many experts noted that some developers are holding back the launch of the remaining units because prices are still below the previous peak.
Li Hiaw Ho, executive director at CBRE, said many developers have either slowed down or stopped selling units when Singapore was hit by the financial crisis.