New private home sales at three-month low in May, with only one major new launch; developers sell 447 units in all

[SINGAPORE] With only one new project launch in May, developers in Singapore sold 447 private homes in the month, hitting a three-month low, well below the 1,548 units transacted in April.

Still, the latest May sales figure – which excludes executive condominiums (ECs) – was 43.3 per cent higher than the 312 units moved in the same month the year before, data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) showed on Monday (Jun 15).

The relatively sluggish home sales came mainly from a quieter project launch calendar. Only Hudson Place Residences was launched during the month, noted Wong Siew Ying, PropNex head of content and research.

Leonard Tay, head of research at Knight Frank Singapore, said that the volume of new project launches remains the key driver of monthly sales performance, with the supply of fresh units having a greater influence on buyer demand than broader geopolitical uncertainties.

Hudson Place Residences sold 64 per cent or 209 of its 327 units at a median price of S$2,465 per square foot.

Sales at the one-north project accounted for about 47 per cent of developers’ sales in May, said Wong. About 80 per cent of units changed hands at below S$2.5 million, a price point that remains a sweet spot for many owner-occupier buyers.

Developers sold about 4,008 new homes in the first five months of 2026.

Tricia Song, CBRE Singapore and South-east Asia head of research, said: “While 2026 got off to a rocky start... homebuying appetite has remained resilient despite heightened volatility and economic uncertainty, amid low mortgage rates and a decent pipeline of attractive new launches.”

New home sales are expected to remain subdued during the June school holidays, and then rebound in July as new projects, including Lentor Garden Residences and Dunearn House, hit the market.

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The slower pace of new project launches would give developers more time to calibrate pricing for upcoming projects, especially as market sentiment improves following the preliminary US-Iran agreement to halt the war, said Nicholas Mak, chief research officer of Mogul.sg.

Knight Frank’s Tay added that expectations that the US Federal Reserve may hold off on further rate hikes in 2026 could provide clarity to borrowing costs for the rest of the year.

“Against this backdrop, underlying demand for well-located and sensibly priced new launches is likely to remain supported,” he said.

“Households that held back amid uncertainty may be encouraged to make a purchase, with the perception that current prices still offer long-term value.”

But he also said that if job security takes a hit from the revolution in artificial intelligence, causing unemployment to rise above current stable levels, homebuyer sentiment could be restrained by cautiousness.

Huttons Asia CEO Mark Yip noted that Singaporean buyers made up 89.6 per cent of the purchases in May, while foreigners accounted for just 1.8 per cent of total transactions.

Top purchases included a S$19.8 million detached house in Mount Rosie sold to a Singaporean; and two units in 32 Gilstead and Skywaters Residences sold to two permanent residents for S$14.49 million and S$14.48 million, respectively, he added.

Among the three segments, the Rest of Central Region (RCR) led in condo and private apartment sales, accounting for about three-quarters of sales. The Outside Central Region accounted for about 20 per cent of primary sales, and the Core Central Region, just about 5 per cent of new sales last month.

With only the 1,268-unit Thomson Reserve and a 428-unit project in Dorset Road, the RCR’s new launch supply is expected to remain thin, said ERA Singapore CEO Marcus Chu.

“New launches in the RCR next year are likely to establish new benchmark prices for new homes, following high land rates for government land sale sites, such as Dover Drive and Tanjong Rhu Road,” he noted.

Including ECs, 493 units were sold in May with 357 units launched; in May 2025, 336 units were sold and 20 units were launched. In April 2026, 1,649 units were sold and 1,426 units were launched.

Coastal Cabana emerged as the second-best-selling project last month. Since its launch in January, the project has sold over 81 per cent of its 748 units.

Some of the renewed interest may have stemmed from the recent tightening of EC rules, said SRI head of research and data analytics Mohan Sandrasegeran.