Singapore condo resale prices may be stabilising, say market watchers

SINGAPORE - Resale prices of non-landed homes may by stabilising, market watchers said on Tuesday after SRX Property released its latest index for the sector.

The narrowing volatility of the overall SRX resale index points to a stabilising market, OrangeTee Research manager Wong Xian Yang said on Tuesday.

"New information has to come in, such as the tweaking of cooling measures or a higher than expected hike in interest rates, before we see any large price movements in the market."

Mr Wong was commenting following the monthly update of resale prices by SRX Property. Private non-landed resale prices in March dipped 0.2 per cent from February, and fell 3.9 per cent from March 2014.

ERA key executive officer Eugene Lim noted that while sellers have become more reasonable in their expectations, they are not pressured to sell, and will not consider "ridiculously low offers from opportunistic buyers".

Resale volumes were up 31 per cent month on month to about 440 units in March, which was after the end of the Chinese New Year season, in line with broad market expectations.

"Resale properties may be more appealing to owner occupiers looking for more spacious units," Mr Lim said. New project launches have been tending towards featuring smaller sized units as developers keep prices within the affordable price band of less than $1.5 million.

"The stabilising resale prices have also attracted more buyers back and we are hopeful that the momentum can continue in the months ahead," said Mr Lim. A total of 4,860 resale units transacted last year, but this could be up to 5,000 to 6,000 this year.

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