Amid housing rental boom, where are Singapore’s sweet spots for yield?

A dramatic jump in private residential rents last year boosted yields for many owners. Which regions and postal districts recorded the highest rental yields? How should one select a property to buy for rental income?

Kalpana Rashiwala

Published Fri, Mar 31, 2023 · 02:00 PM

Residential

PRIVATE residential rentals surged in Singapore at a much faster pace than private home prices last year, resulting in an increase in rental yields.

Knight Frank’s analysis of URA Realis data showed that the island-wide gross rental yield for 99-year leasehold non-landed private homes stood at 4.1 per cent in the fourth quarter of last year, a 0.6 percentage point year-on-year increase. From the trough during the pandemic in the second quarter (Q2) of 2020, the yield has risen 0.8 percentage point.

For freehold properties, the yield has appreciated 0.5 percentage point year on year and 0.6 percentage point since Q2 2020 to reach 3.4 per cent in Q4 2022, for the first time since Q4 2014.