The mass-market segment will still be resilient in the coming months, particularly for developments in the Outside Central Region (OCR).
Last year, mass market homes, excluding executive condominiums (ECs), hit a record, selling 65 percent or 10,374 units of the total number of new private homes in the OCR, based on the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s (URA) figures.
Comparatively, OCR home sales reached 7,357 units in 2010, accounting for a 45 percent share, while sales hit 6,060 units or 41 percent in 2009.
According to the URA, the Core Central Region (CCR) comprises the Downtown Core, Sentosa and districts 9, 10 and 11. On the other hand, the Rest of Central Region (RCR) covers central areas except for those under the CCR.
Meanwhile, the OCR, which covers the rest of the island outside the central region, is where most of the private mass-market housing and HDB towns are located.
The strong take-up for new mass-market homes last year is attributed to supply and population growth, backed by low interest rates and healthy economic fundamentals.
Data from Singapore’s Department of Statistics shows that the country’s total population jumped from five million in 2009 to 5.08 million in 2010 and 5.18 million last year. The proportion of households that reside in private apartments and condominiums also grew to 11.2 percent in 2010 from 10.4 percent in 2009.
The country’s open economy also continued to draw foreign interest. URA figures show that foreigners and permanent residents (PRs) acquired 4,337 new private homes in 2011, up from 3,887 in 2010.
Supply-wise, developers brought a total of 17,710 new homes into the market last year, an increase of 6.8 percent from the 16,575 units launched in the preceding year. About 64 percent of these launches or 11,248 units were in the OCR.
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