Sales of new private homes by developers plunged almost 50 percent to 384 units in December 2015 from the 759 units sold in the month before, according to data released this afternoon by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).
PropNex Realty stated that cautious market conditions and the year-end holiday period contributed to the fall in demand. Only 173 private homes were launched for sale in the month, the lowest number in the year.
“December is traditionally a lull period for property sales due to the festive season. Many prospective buyers usually go on holidays and prefer to delay their property purchases to the next year. December’s low volume and launches can thus be attributed to the seasonal effect and the continued impact of the various measures together with the TDSR,” said PropNex CEO, Mohamed Ismail.
The top-selling project was the 731-unit Poiz Residences (pictured) in Potong Pasir, which sold 64 units in December at a median price of $1,430 psf.
The 5 top-selling projects in December 2015
Meanwhile, PropNex revealed that the primary sales volume in 2015 totalled 7,625 units, a slight increase of 2.5 percent from the 7,437 recorded in the previous year. In addition, developers launched 7.4 percent less units for sale within the same period due to the impact of the tough cooling measures.
Looking ahead, Ismail expects 2016 to be another challenging year for the property market.
A combination of the restrictive loan environment, along with the pending interest rate hikes will prevent market activity from picking up, he said.
“Buying interest will remain selective. It is highly unlikely that volume of transactions will return to the boisterous level as witnessed in 2012,” said Ismail, noting that a project’s pricing and location will be the main drivers of demand.
He expects developer sales to remain muted until after Chinese New Year. The next hotly anticipated launch will be in Toa Payoh – which is slated to be launched in March.
The property agency expects new private home sales this year to reach about 8,000 units as developers will likely dangle incentives to move their unsold units.
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
