Private home sales down last month, set to stay low this month

Private home sales slipped last month and are poised to stay low this month as show flats close and more launches are expected to be pushed back on account of the circuit breaker measures.

Developers in Singapore sold 660 private homes last month - the worst showing in five years - down 32 per cent from 976 in February, as the property market grappled with increasingly stringent safe distancing measures.

"This year's March, April and May, the traditional peak sales period, would undoubtedly be dry. April's numbers would plunge possibly the most due to the forced shutdown of developers' show flats and work-from-home orders," said Mr Karamjit Singh, chief executive of Showsuite Consultancy.

Mr Wong Xian Yang, Cushman & Wakefield's associate director of research, Singapore and South-east Asia, said the timing is "especially unfortunate" as March to May tend to be bumper months for developer sales. From 2015 to 2019, developer sales during March to May usually made up 26 per cent to 38 per cent of total sales in those years".

Last month, a total of 578 new private residential units were up for sale, of which 101 were in the prime district or core central region, 163 in the city fringe or rest of central region, and 314 in the suburbs or outside central region.

In comparison, 933 units were launched for sale in February, and 1,812 units were released in March last year. Year on year, the number of new private homes sold last month was down 37 per cent from 1,054 units in March last year.

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Excluding Ola EC, which sold 170 units at a median price of $1,139 psf, the four new private home launches did not do well.

The 378-unit Kopar At Newton sold one unit at $2,385 psf last month but reportedly sold 77 units this month.

The other prime district launch - 19 Nassim - sold one unit, while 77 @ East Coast and Tedge, both in the suburbs, sold three and eight units respectively.