Private home resale prices up slightly in August but market still under pressure: SRX

The Laguna Park condominium at Marine Parade can be seen in this file photo. Resale prices of non-landed private homes crept up by 0.4 per cent last month over the previous month, latest data from the Singapore Real Estate Exchange shows. -- ST PHOTO
The Laguna Park condominium at Marine Parade can be seen in this file photo. Resale prices of non-landed private homes crept up by 0.4 per cent last month over the previous month, latest data from the Singapore Real Estate Exchange shows. -- ST PHOTO: TED CHEN

SINGAPORE - Resale prices of non-landed private homes crept up by 0.4 per cent last month, compared with the previous month, latest data from the Singapore Real Estate Exchange (SRX) showed.

The month-on-month increase came about as non-landed private home sales in the core central region and rest of central region rose by 4.8 per cent and 1.5 per cent respectively, the SRX said on Monday.

But compared with the same period a year ago, the price index dropped 5 per cent.

SRX also said prices have fallen 5.3 per cent since the recent peak in January this year.

The number of resale transactions have remained stable.

An estimated 418 non-landed private homes were resold in August, in line with the 417 units transacted in July, as well as the 413 units resold in August last year.

But the SRX noted that the resale volume has dropped 79.6 per cent compared with the peak of 2,050 units resold in April 2010.

Homebuyers also seem to have the upper hand in the market, with the overall median transaction over X-value (TOX) remaining in negative territory.

The TOX, which measures whether people are overpaying or underpaying the SRX property X-value estimated market value, stood at negative $10,000 last month, up from negative $20,000 in July.

SRX said non-landed private homes continue to face downward pressure and negative market sentiment, adding that the median TOX has been negative since October last year.

The downbeat market sentiment has also led to the continued fall in rental prices.

The non-landed private residential price index for rentals declined 0.6 per cent in August compared with July, the seventh straight month of price decline.

Compared with the same period a year ago, rents in August fell 6.6 per cent, despite rental volume being 25 per cent higher with an estimated 3,539 homes being rented out.

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