Resale prices of private non-landed homes fall 0.4% in Oct

Resale prices of private non-landed homes declined for the third straight month in October. PHOTO: ST FILE

The cooling measures imposed in July continue to crimp the property market with resale prices of private non-landed homes down in October, the third straight month of decline.

Values dipped 0.4 per cent last month from September, which in turn recorded a drop of 0.5 per cent, a figure revised up from an earlier estimated decline of 0.2 per cent.

They also dipped 0.2 per cent in August, which is seen now as the turning point.

Resale prices had enjoyed an unbroken 12-month run to new highs up to that month. They are still up by 8.7 per cent from October last year but have fallen 1 per cent in the past three months since the additional curbs were announced in July.

Buying activity in the resale market remained lacklustre, according to flash estimates by real estate portal SRX Property yesterday.

While the 703 units resold in October was 3.7 per cent more than the 678 homes moved in September, resale volumes were 53 per cent lower than the 1,497 apartments sold in October last year.

SRX data also showed that the premium that buyers were prepared to pay over market value continued to inch up last month after tumbling, following the July property curbs.

SRX's overall median transaction over X-value (TOX) rose to $4,000 last month, up from $1,000 in September and zero in August. The TOX had sunk to $4,000 in July from $17,000 in June.

  • 703

  • Number of private non-landed units resold last month, 3.7 per cent more than the 678 homes moved in September, but 53 per cent lower than the 1,497 apartments sold in October last year.

TOX measures how much a buyer is overpaying or underpaying on a property based on SRX Property's computer-generated market value.

District 4's Telok Blangah and Harbourfront posted the highest median TOX of $50,000, followed by District 28's Seletar with $44,000, among districts with more than 10 resale transactions.

Balestier, Toa Payoh and Serangoon in District 12 posted the lowest median TOX of negative $49,000, followed by District 20's Bishan and Ang Mo Kio at negative $20,000.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on November 14, 2018, with the headline Resale prices of private non-landed homes fall 0.4% in Oct. Subscribe