Despite the recent cooling measures, private home prices moved up quarter-on-quarter in Q1 2013, according to a DTZ report.
The consultancy revealed that price growth for the first quarter was stronger compared to the same period in 2012 following the first round of additional buyer’s stamp duty (ABSD) in December 2011.
Price increases across non-landed segments declined by over 50 percent in Q1 compared to the previous quarter. Resale prices of freehold condominiums in prime districts 9, 10 and 11 rose by just 0.5 percent quarter-on-quarter following a larger increase of 1.4 percent in the last three months of 2012, while leasehold condominium prices in suburban areas increased 0.8 percent in Q1 this year.
Luxury property prices remained unchanged even after the ABSD for foreign buyers increased to 15 percent from the previous 10 percent.
The stronger price growth for Q1 could be attributed to buyers’ adjustment of their home purchase budgets. Also, demand continued to be supported by first-time local buyers who are not affected by the regulations.
“Barring further government measures and with interest rates still remaining low, we expect purchase demand to be sustained, especially from first-time buyers unaffected by the cooling measures,” said Lee Lay Keng, DTZ’s Research Head for Singapore, adding that prices of new projects are expected to rise especially for those located near transport hubs and amenities.
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor of PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
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