Condo resale volumes rebound, up 35.6% in March: SRX, 99.co

CONDOMINIUM resale volumes rebounded in March 2022 after slipping in February, while prices continued upward for the 20th straight month.

Some 1,302 resale units changed hands March 2022, 35.6 per cent higher than the 960 units resold in February 2022. Year on year, volumes were 31.4 per cent lower but 7.8 per cent higher than the 5-year average volumes for March.

A majority of resale transactions, or 61.1 per cent, came from the outside of the central region (OCR). About 25.4 per cent of volumes were from the rest of central region (RCR), while 13.6 per cent was from the core central region (CCR).

Property analysts noted that market activities gained some ground in March after the Chinese New Year lull period. The Singapore government had also relaxed Covid-19 safe management measures, which helped facilitate more property viewings.

Overall resale prices continued to climb in March, rising 0.8 per cent from February. Prices were up 9.7 per cent on the year, despite the cooling measures introduced in mid-December last year. 

Month on month, resale prices rose by 1.4 per cent in the OCR and increased by 0.6 per cent in the CCR. However, prices in the RCR slid 0.2 per cent.

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All regions experienced price gains compared with the year-ago period. The OCR registered the highest rise at 11.8 per cent, followed by the RCR at 7.7 per cent and the CCR, which rose 7.1 per cent.

“Prices are being propped up as demand far outstrips supply in some locations, especially in the suburban region,” said Christine Sun, senior vice-president of research and analytics at OrangeTee & Tie.

OrangeTee & Tie estimates that less than 7,000 new condominiums (excluding executive condominiums) will be released for sale this year. Only 30 per cent of this number will be located in the OCR, which is likely insufficient to meet the annual housing demand from HDB upgraders, Sun noted. 

According to SRX and 99.co, the most expensive resale condo resold in the month was S$13.6 million for a unit at The Marq on Paterson Hill. In the RCR, the highest transacted price was S$5.1 million for a unit at Silversea, while the OCR's most expensive resale condo was S$3.4 million for a unit at Elliot At The East Coast.

99.co and SRX said the overall median capital gain for March was S$238,000, S$28,100 lower than the month before.

District 21 (Clementi Park and Upper Bukit Timah) posted the highest median capital gain at S$889,500. District 4 (Sentosa and Harbourfront) was the only district with a median capital loss of S$17,127

99.co and SRX calculates capital gain or loss of a condo resale unit by comparing the current transacted price with the previous transacted price of the same unit. Capital gain data only includes districts with more than 10 matching transactions.

Looking ahead, PropNex Realty head of research and content Wong Siew Ying said the easing of travel restrictions could potentially see more foreign buyers visiting and buying residential properties in Singapore. 

“Despite the 30 per cent additional buyer’s stamp duty levied on foreign buyers for residential property purchase, Singapore continues to be an attractive investment destination, with its stable political environment and currency, its safety and security, as well as pro-business policies,” she added. 

In contrast, ERA Realty Network head of research and consultancy Nicholas Mak said the residential property market will be subjected to various forces such as the geopolitical tension from the war in Ukraine, leading to the uncertainties in the investment market. 

Rising interest rates could also weigh on the minds of investors, he added.