SINGAPORE - Japanese tycoon Katsumi Tada's eye-popping $15.8 million loss on a penthouse unit at St Regis Residences may be the largest but several other sellers have also taken hefty losses at the project this year.
Three other buyers have lost more than $1 million there so far this year, with losses of $1.06 million to $4.78 million each.
This comes amid a rise in the pace of loss-making transactions in the residential market this year, characteristic of a softening market where sellers are coming under selling pressure, experts say.
Including two landed properties, 11 transactions this year have sustained losses of more than $1 million apiece, according to a compilation by SRX Property. This is up from only five for the same period last year and three in the period in 2013.
Overall, 78 loss-making transactions have taken place so far this year up from 46 last year and 45 in 2013, over the same period.
The number of unprofitable transactions also went up from 132 in the whole of 2013 to 188 last year, SRX Property said.
The pace of unprofitable transactions has picked up and is likely to grow even faster amid continuing cooling measures, as both sale and leasing markets soften further, experts say.
Here are some of the larger loss-making transactions this year:
1) According to caveats, the largest loss this year so far is at St Regis Residences, where 4,941 sq ft four bedroom penthouse on the 22nd floor went for $9.5 million, or a $4.78 million loss in January.
Mr Tada's loss for his 6,017 sq ft five bedroom penthouse at the same project in February was far larger, but there was no caveat in this case.
2) A three bedroom unit on the 36th floor of The Orchard Residences was sold for $5.5 million in January, at a loss of $2.253 million.
3) A four bedroom unit on the 17th floor of The Grange went for $4.15 million in February, at a $2.05 million loss.
4) A four bedroom, fifth floor unit at Turquoise sold for $4.55 million in January, at a $2.715 million loss.
5) A four bedroom, second floor unit at The Coast at Sentosa Cove sold for $3.125 million in January, at a $1.215 million loss.
