Approvals for new home loans in Singapore have continued to decline in the third quarter, as the current status of financial markets have caused lenders and borrowers to become wary.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) noted that approximately S$12.41 billion in new housing loans were approved in Q3, 3.5 percent lower than S$12.86 billion in Q2.
Approvals of new loans for owner-occupied property fell from S$9.29 billion in Q2 to S$8.86 billion in Q3, while loans for investment property decreased by 0.6 percent, from S$3.57 billion in Q2 to S$3.55 billion in Q3.
However, the number of outstanding housing loans approved climbed 3.6 percent to S $152.1 billion. Meanwhile, the volume of home loans actually utilised grew 4.4 percent to S$129.9 billion in Q3, from S$124.4 billion in Q2.
Outstanding loans approved for owner-occupied property climbed from S$101.64 billion in Q2 to S$105.57 billion in Q3, with the amount utilised increasing 4.3 percent to S$91.3 billion.
Investment property, as per outstanding loans approved, rose 2.9 percent to S$46.5 billion, while the amount utilised rapidly increased at 4.8 percent to S$38.6 billion.
The average loan-to-value (LTV) ratio for housing loans in the industry was stagnant throughout Q3 at 44.1 percent.
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