SINGAPORE - There are 336,000 new private residential units in the pipeline in Malaysia's Johor region, including in the Iskandar area - more than the total number of private homes in Singapore.

Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) board member Lawrence Wong revealed this in Parliament on Monday while cautioning about an oversupply of properties about a glut of properties in Johor and its Iskandar development zone, where many Singaporeans have made investments.

The oversupply situation may lead to a fall in prices, he warned.

Ms Lee Bee Wah (Nee Soon GRC) had asked about the number of Singaporeans who had invested in Iskandar properties and the ways which Singapore's banks safeguard against major defaults in property loans to these buyers.

Mr Wong, who is Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, said the banking system in Singapore does not have large exposure to these property loans.

Overseas property loans form only 2 per cent of the housing loan portfolios of key mortgage lenders in Singapore, he said.

He added that MAS and the Council for Estate Agencies will step up their efforts to help investors better understand the risks of investing in overseas property - such as price movements and abrupt changes in foreign regulations - and how to do their due diligence.

Earlier in May, the Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) had warned local buyers about the risks of buying foreign properties, a move prompted by the recent flurry in Singapore of advertisements on foreign property investments and concerns over a housing glut in Iskandar.