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13 May

HDB Resale flat sales lowest in 16 years

The numbers are low but the prices may not be so. Is this a case of rare treasures raking in high prices?

HDB’s reports have shown that there were only 4,335 resale flat transactions in Q1 of this year, as compared to the average of 8,000 for the first quarters in previous years. However resale flat prices have continued to increase with a 1.3 per cent rise this year. Albeit slower than the 2.5 per cent increase from Q4 of 2012, it is still a 0.6 per cent rise when compared year on year.

Photo by HDB.

Photo by HDB.

The latest property curbs could have had a part to play here. HDB flat buyers can now only loan up to 35 per cent (previously the cap was at 40 per cent) from HDB and bank loans are now capped at 30 per cent of the household income. Thus with these restrictions, some may now not be unable to upgrade to larger flats and thus taking away a considerable pool of buyers from the resale HDB flat market. PRs who previously form a significant number of buyers, may also be out of the picture as they are now subjected to an additional 5 per cent tax on their first home.

Skypeak @ Bukit Batok. Photo by HDB.

Skypeak @ Bukit Batok. Photo by HDB.

But with the drop in flat buyers, there is in turn an increase in flat renters. HDB reported a 15 per cent rise in subletting transactions, to 7,410 this quarter. The money is coming through rental now as more HDB owners hold on to their flats, hoping to reap in enough profit to help them make the leap to private property.

This, plus the number of new HDB flats being launched and built last and this year, have drawn buyers away from the resale market. Which type of resale flats are seeing the most activity? Is there now less competition for the larger 4 and 5-room flats? Are 3-room flats the current “hot property”? Come July, singles will also be able to purchase new flats directly from HDB. Will this impact the demand for the smaller 2 and 3-room flats?

6 May

No quick-fix to managing HDB flat prices

So says National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan.

Ever since the Government announced that new HDB flats will come at a lower price, HDB flat owners have been expressing fears of losing their nest egg should prices of flats drop. But as new flats are limited to only certain groups and limited in terms of type and location, will there necessarily be a drastic drop in resale flat prices and are we worrying too early? Though the number of resale flat transactions have decreased, prices continue to remain high. And there will always be those who wish to choose a flat of their liking in a location they prefer, as opposed to trying perhaps numerous times in the HDB ballot queue.

HDB Flats THinkStockMr Khaw reassured Singaporeans that while prices of HDB flat will only drop “a few per cent over the next few years”, but in the same breath said that the prices of HDB flats cannot keep rising forever. “If housing prices keep rising,it won’t be good. When I came into the MND (Ministry of National Development) two years ago, that was my target”. And much has been done since then, with the ramp up of BTO flat supply, changes in income ceiling, limits on HDB flat sizes, increase in number of allocated flats for both first and second-timers, and even allowing singles to buy new HDB flats.

During the recent Our Singapore Conversation (OSC) dialogue, the idea of selling back new flats only to the Housing Board was faced with much opposition. Homeowners naturally worry that their homes will lose  their value and cut them off from the profit they can earn by selling it in the open market. Mr Khaw admits that resale flat prices are difficult to manage as they are largely subjected to the market demand. SLP International executive director Nicholas Mak speculates that one way of gently letting resale HDB flat prices drop is to decrease the prices of new HDB flats in the same estate.

Forestville Executive Condominium.

Forestville Executive Condominium.

Recent debate also surround the Executive Condominium (EC) scheme\. While some have said that those who can afford an EC should not receive subsidies from the Government, the scheme was specifically initiated to help those who may not qualify for other HDB subsidy schemes. Thus should ECs still be considered a value-added profit-making asset for their owners?

30 Apr

Changes to Exec Condo housing scheme?

2013 might be the year of housing policies shockwaves. Earlier in the year, news of singles being about to purchase new HDB flats directly from housing board stirred the market a little, then there were the limits placed on dual-key apartments which are now only available to multi-generational families. A cap was also put on the size of executive condominium (EC) units, at 160 sq m. ECs have been put under the microscope of late, with some questioning the amount of subsidies buyers are receiving from the government.

Forestville Executive Condominium.

Forestville Executive Condominium.

Certain members of public have questioned whether EC buyers should receive any government subsidies at all, since they are able to or willing to afford million-dollar units in both new and resale developments. The executive condominium scheme was initially set up by the government in 1996 to help families transit between public and private properties. But as the price gap between ECs and private properties now draw close, there has been a niggling thought about whether changes should be made to this scheme.

National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan recently highlighted that there might soon be changes in the EC scheme and buyers and developers are poised to react. Forestville, the next EC to launch in June this year, might benefit from increased response since buyers might be leaping at what may very well be their last chance to secure a unit under the current conditions. EL Development‘s Lim Yew Soon has this to say: “Whenever policies change or are alikely to, the immediate launches will have the biggest benefits. There’s a good change that buyers may snap up existing ECs to ensure they still receive the grant.” Will resale ECs also benefit from this rush?

Should there be a drastic adjustment in government subsides, the most affected might be first-time buyers. Buyers and owners of existing ECs are imploring the authorities and public to see things from their point of view. Engineer Eddy Lau, 40, said, “It’s not right to just look at the profit we make. We also pay more in interest over the years for the EC. For us who are sandwiched, ECs are the only option to upgrade.”

Ultimately, the question that probably begets the Government is, what defines “sandwiched class” and what are the housing schemes actually meant to do. And perhaps only honest answers will help everyone fully understand and accept Singapore’s future housing situation.

2 Apr

What does Q1′s slow private property growth rate indicate?

A cooling real estate market? Perhaps. But not by much. Of course, we do have to give the cooling measures time to work. But if we go by the response from the previous rounds, it may not do much. Although the pace has weakened somewhat, a 0.5 per cent growth as compared to the 1.8 per cent jump in the last quarter, private home prices still reached a record high.

QBay Residences

QBay Residences

Private non-landed suburban homes alone showed a 1.7 per cent rise, still a rise, but well lesser than the previous quarter’s 3.8 per cent. Property analysts are expecting further effect from the cooling measures to kick in this year, maintaining home prices at the current levels.

In the HDB flat market, resale flats may expect a fall in demand as singles will be allowed to purchase new Build-to-Order (BTO) flats directly from the Housing Board come July. The bumper crop of new flats being rolled out within the first 3 months of 2013 alone has also taken away the need to purchase from within the resale market. The quota plus the lowering of home loans to 30 per cent of a borrower’s gross monthly pay, 40 per cent if receiving a HDB home loan, has also taken some wind out of the sails. PropNex cheif executive Mohamed Ismail is however still expecting a rise in resale HDB flat prices, of between 4 to 5 per cent.

The Singapore Real Estate Exchange has reported a fall of HDB resale transactions from 4, 635 in Q4 of 2012 to 3, 028 in Q1 of 2013. The median COV prices have dropped by very slightly, from $34, 000 to $33, 000. This may not be quite the comfort buyers are hoping for, especially since resale prices have risen to an average of $457,000.

This could be the time to suss out potential long-term investments in the private property market as many developers are dangling carrots in the form of discounts, rebates and other incentives in order to secure more sales. Recent launches at D’Nest and Urban Vista have also boosted sales. The authorities seem more determined this year than ever to help tame the roaring property lion, but they will need to give property curbs some time to take effect before deciding their next move.

26 Mar

Suburban condominiums may be in for a downturn

The recent property measures seemed to have been forgotten, but its effect may just be taking root. Despite all the suburban homes which developers have been launching and selling this first quarter, it may be headed towards a limp finish.

Urban VistaOnly 1,544 resale homes were sold up till March 12, maybe hitting 2, 200 by the end of the month. But this is a far cry from the 3, 647 homes sold in the last quarter of 2012. In 2011, 3,761 homes were sold on a year-on-year comparison. Recent private residential apartment launches such as Sennett Residences, D’Nest and Urban Vista may pick things up by the scruff of the neck and pull numbers up after all. Since their launches, 1,400 new homes have been sold, including three other property launches.

So new homes seem to be doing well. But resale homes may be at the opposite end of the success spectrum. Most owners are keeping their current private home, what with the increased ABSD (Additional Buyers’ Stamp Duty) and tighter loan limits which were part of January’s property cooling measures. And it seems they are not so quick to lower their prices as well, unlike developers who have dangled discounts and other incentives to new home buyers.

What the ABSD has done is to increase the stakes for property owners who are looking to buy their second home. There will now be a 7 per cent stamp duty. And owners of completed homes may not see the urgency to offload their current property, perhaps only with the exception of those looking to downgrade. But until resale HBD flat prices drop, they may not act so quickly as well.

Activity will not wane in the private property market, but instead, it seems like it may be the battle between new and resale. Which will you go for?

25 Mar

4000 spanking new HDB Flats. 470 in Punggol

Once it was a merely place with large open spaces where grass grew long and was a prime spot for wedding photos, and really nothing much else, but now Punggol is living up to its name as one of the top waterfront living areas in Singapore.

Watertown condominium.

Watertown condominium.

Besides all the parks, waterways, malls, transportation updates and new condominiums, HDB dwellers will be joining this fleet of new residents. At least 470 or them, but definitely more. HDB has announced last Friday that up to 4000 HDB flats will be rolled out in the latest BTO flat sales launch, with almost one-fifth of them in Punggol alone. This is one of the first time since July 2012 that new HDB flats have been offered in Punggol. The pent-up demand may now be unleashed with abandon. As one of new towns with the fastest rising median HDB flat prices, a 3.7 per cent rise within the last 6 months is certainly nothing to scoff at.

Other units will be launched in Sengkang and Bukit Batok. But experts are expecting most of the interest to be focused on Punggol. It’s not difficult guessing why, what with the Government lauding this area as an up-and-coming buzzing new town, the premium model for waterfront living within mainland Singapore. Four and five-room flats ranging from $294,000 to $363,000 are expected to fly off the shelves the quickest.
Matilda Portico HDB BTO Flat in PunggolThis is the last launch before the new initiative making 15 to 30 per cent more flats available to second-timers is set in stone in May. This applies mainly to the two and three-room flats but it may also mean more competition for these HDB flats, especially since singles may also be allowed to purchase new HDB flats in July this year. Not forgetting that the National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan has make a promise to lower the prices of new HDB flats in future, will some buyers be willing to wait it out and see if they can catch a fresh crop of cheaper, newer flats?

12 Mar

New HDB flats 30% cheaper

National MInister Khaw Boon Wan has pledged last Friday to keep prices new HDB flats 30 per cent cheaper, keeping to their promise to help Singaporeans own a home.

Their aim? To make new HDB flats affordable once again, before the property bull run which sped well ahead since 2005, to have one in a non-mature estate paid off within “four years of salary”.  Current HDB flat prices are at about “5.5 years of salary”.

HDB Flats THinkStockThe Government’s new moves and announcements are clear indications that they plan to play an active part in Singapore’s real estate situation, at least in providing “alternative housing options”. Beyond price stabilisation, Mr Khaw has said that bringing down BTO flat prices are also part of the property cooling measures.

He has also raised a series of questions pertaining to Singapore’s long term housing plans:

  1. Should Housing Board flats continue to be an appreciating asset or return to being treated simply as a social need?
  2. Should the HDB build to meet sophisticated tastes or go back to the basics?
  3. How to keep flats affordable while continuing to encourage couples to be prudent?
  4. How should public housing respond to the needs of an ageing population?
Tampines Green Forest BTO Flats. Photo by HDB.

Tampines Green Forest BTO Flats. Photo by HDB.

There is still the issue of whether these low starting prices of HDB flats will be kept around the same affordable rates or will resale HDB flats continue their flight to higher heights. This may only be revealed in 10 to 15 years’ time but how immigration and housing policies are structured may very well be the rudder that steers the ship. To troubled waters or calm ones. Those at the helm will have an important role to play. And they have to act now.

11 Mar

Singles will be allowed to buy new HDB Flats by July

This rang clear in the National Development Khaw Boon Wan’s message last Friday. And many are already cheering.

Currently singles above the age of 35 are allowed to buy HDB flats, but only from the resale market.

Currently singles above the age of 35 are allowed to buy HDB flats, but only from the resale market.

There are caveats however.

  • The age limit for singles buying flats has not changed, resale or new, you have to be 35 years of age before you can buy a public housing unit.
  • Singles can only buy 2-room flats . These flats are either 375 or 485 sq ft in size. This is just slightly smaller than some studio apartments or shoebox apartments in private condominiums.
  • There is an income cap at $5000.
2-room Bukit Batok HDB flat for sale.

2-room Bukit Batok HDB flat for sale.

A new 2-room HDB flat in Punggol went for around $100,000 last year, and that was before available grants kicked in. Currently singles can apply for a $15, 000 HDB grant if they earn $5000 or less. Mr Khaw has said that they recognise that those earning under $5000 a month will face difficulties owning a home in Singapore.

Part of the reason behind pushing out this new ruling by July this year is that the increased supply of new HDB flats have cleared “a backlog of applications from married couples seeking a Housing Board home for the first time”.

Is this new move a response to Prime MInister Lee Hsien Loong’s National Day Rally speech last year, where he acknowledged that singles have housing needs too?  Are these restrictions fair and what are the possible loopholes? Will this cause a drop of resale HDB flat prices and how will that change the landscape of this market?

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