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Shophouses in prime districts snapped up; owners put more assets on market

"Robust interest" in such properties is seen continuing into the next year

Published Thu, Dec 10, 2020 · 09:50 PM

Singapore

SOFTER asking prices in Singapore's shophouse market have continued to pique buyer interest for tightly-held assets in prime locations, and the flurry is showing no signs of abating.

"During the last few years when there was a run-up in prices for shophouses, many interested buyers were priced out of the market," Clemence Lee, senior director of capital markets at CBRE, told The Business Times (BT).

Such properties, especially conservation shophouses, also tended to have sticky prices because of their rich heritage value and limited supply, said Steven Tan, Colliers International's senior director of investment services.

But with the Covid-19 pandemic this year, sellers who need to let go of their properties are becoming "more realistic" with their pricing, according to CBRE's Mr Lee. "As such, we're starting to see demand coming back from buyers who were previously priced out and are now looking capitalise on the situation to purchase a central business district (CBD) shophouse at a slight discount," Mr Lee noted, addi…