Executive condo prices are stretching affordability limits. Is it time to refine the model?

MANY young persons struggle in chasing private housing aspirations in Singapore. A cost-effective way for locals to get into private homeownership is to buy an executive condominium (EC). New EC units are way cheaper than comparable new condo units – by possibly over a third.

Appetite for new EC homes is healthy. For the Lumina Grand EC in Bukit Batok, developer City Developments Ltd said that as at 12 pm on Jan 28, a total of 269 units or 53 per cent of the development’s 512 homes were sold following the official launch the day before. The average price achieved was around S$1,464 per square foot.

While new ECs are cheaper than new condos, some new EC units nowadays are hardly affordable.