SINGAPORE – Prices of Housing Board resale flats climbed 0.9 per cent in April, and more units were sold as the market picked up following a dip the month before.

HDB resale flat prices grew at a quicker pace in April than the 0.3 per cent rise in March, flash data from real estate portals Singapore Real Estate Exchange (SRX) and 99.co showed on May 6.

Year on year, prices climbed by 9 per cent.

The number of resale flats sold in April rose by 15.7 per cent to an estimated 2,387 units, in contrast with the 3.3 per cent decline the month before.

Compared with April 2023, resale volume was 6 per cent higher.

Property analysts said the rebound in demand for resale flats, which helped to prop up prices, could be attributed to the less frequent Build-To-Order (BTO) and Sale of Balance Flats exercises.

From 2024, BTO flats will be offered across three sales exercises – in February, June and October – down from the previous four launches a year.

Mr Mark Yip, chief executive of property firm Huttons Asia, said home seekers who were unsuccessful in the only Sale of Balance Flats exercise in 2024 – which took place in February – could have turned to the resale market rather than wait till 2025.

Such launches, which give applicants a chance to apply for balance flats from earlier BTO sale exercises, previously took place twice yearly.

On the supply end, the healthy resale market could have led to more home owners putting up their flats for sale, said Ms Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist at property firm OrangeTee Group.

“Some sellers may be motivated by the prospect of earning a substantial profit, while others may want to upgrade to a bigger home,” she added.

Sixty-eight flats changed hands for at least $1 million each in April, higher than the 61 such transactions in March.

Of the million-dollar HDB resale flats sold in April, 24 are four-room units, 22 five-room flats and 22 executive apartments.

Most of them are in mature estates such as Kallang/Whampoa, Toa Payoh and Bukit Merah, while seven are in non-mature towns including Jurong East, Sengkang, Bukit Panjang and Hougang.

These transactions made up about 2.8 per cent of total transactions in April.

The most expensive resale flat was a five-room, 1,259 sq ft unit between the 22nd and 24th storeys at The Peak@Toa Payoh, which sold for $1.438 million.

A 1,539 sq ft executive flat in Toh Guan Road in Jurong East fetched $1.088 million, the top transaction in a non-mature estate in April.

The non-mature town of Sengkang recorded its first million-dollar flat transaction in April, noted Mr Mohan Sandrasegeran, head of research and data analytics at Singapore Realtors.

The 1,539 sq ft executive maisonette in Compassvale Lane changed hands for $1 million.

Still, Mr Sandrasegeran does not expect significant shifts in resale prices in the Sengkang area.

“Million-dollar resale transactions are generally exceptional and not indicative of broader market trends,” he said.

The analysts also noted that in April, Kallang/Whampoa recorded 15 million-dollar flat transactions, a record high for a town.

Mr Yip said 11 of the 15 transactions were at the St George’s Towers project, which recently reached its five-year minimum occupation period.

“Eight of the 11 transactions at St George’s Towers are located on the 19th storey and above. Hence, they are likely to have unblocked views,” he said.

He noted that the 34-storey project is beside the Whampoa River and is about a five-minute walk to Boon Keng MRT station.

Ms Wong Siew Ying, head of research and content at real estate firm PropNex Realty, said there were a total of 253 million-dollar flat transactions in the first four months of 2024.

“(Such transactions are) on track to possibly exceed the record 469 units sold in the whole of 2023,” she added.

Ms Sun said: “It seems that the global economy has experienced an upturn, which gave prospective home buyers the confidence to take the plunge and make their entry into the property market.”