In astounding figures, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) reported that new private home sales in September doubled from the previous month, to a total of 987. This is a year-on-year increase of 18.3% when compared to the figures from September last year.
The rapid bump in September sales can be attributed to August being a traditionally slow month for home sales, overlapping with the Hungry Ghost month. However, the real star of the show were two new project launches, Sky Eden@Bedok and Lentor Modern, which together took 64% of the month’s total sales.
With the two Outside Central Region (OCR) projects propelling sales in the sub-market, OCR sales clinched 69.5% of new sales last month, while Core Central Region (CCR) sales made up 20.1% and the Rest of Central Region (RCR) sales came in at 10.4%.
September’s bumper sales mark the second highest for this year, with May topping sales records at 1,355 units sold.
Strong OCR sales in September set new benchmark prices
Excluding the two new launches, new private home sales in September were actually relatively meagre. In fact, that has been the case also due to limited unsold units in existing projects.
Consequently, we see OCR sales shooting up due to Sky Eden@Bedok and Lentor Modern, while CCR and RCR sales remain tepid. Moreover, the popularity of the two new projects can be seen from the fast uptake: Reports show that Sky Eden@Bedok found buyers for 75% of units within the first day, while 84% of units in Lentor Modern were snatched up during the launch weekend.
Besides boosting sales numbers, the two new projects also set new benchmarks for the prices of new homes in this category. The median price for the 512 units sold at Lentor Modern was $2,108 psf, while Sky Eden@Bedok’s median price was $2,118 psf for their 121 units sold. Along with AMO Residence, which launched earlier this year, the proportion of OCR projects launching above $2000 psf is now 80.3% in September, a significant jump from 12.6% in January.
Considering the high price points and climbing interest rates, the strong take-up at Lentor Modern and Sky Eden@Bedok was highly impressive. This shows that demand for new private homes remains robust, especially with high numbers of HDB upgraders who recently sold their homes to take advantage of the strong HDB resale market.
What’s next for private home sales
Can we expect the same strong showing for October? What are the next popular projects to look out for?
It seems that the focus in October will shift to Executive Condominiums (ECs), given that there are quite a few anticipated launches in that segment. Ask any landed property agent in Singapore, and they will probably point you to projects like Copen Grand, Tenet, Hill House, and Sophia Regency.
Copen Grand in Tengah, along with Tenet in Tampines, are the largest EC projects launching currently, with 639 units and 618 units on offer, respectively. As supply for new condo units dwindles, sales in the private home market (excluding ECs) are expected to slow down, and buyers are likely to turn instead to the EC segment.
That said, we may also see slower growth overall or in subsequent months due to new property cooling measures and the possibility of developers postponing their launches till next year.
Conclusion
The surging demand in the private home market continues to drive prices through the roof, especially with the limited supply of new homes. Yet, it can be advantageous to upgrade to a private home due to the thriving HDB resale market.
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