Upbeat start to HDB resale market in 2020 with more flats changing hands in January

[SINGAPORE] The Housing Board resale market started this year on an upbeat note.

More HDB flats changed hands in January compared with December and their prices inched up by 0.5 per cent.

In all, 1,920 HDB resale flats were sold last month, 3.3 per cent more than December, according to flash estimates from real estate portal SRX on Thursday. It reversed a 3 per cent slide in December from the preceding month.

It was also 23.1 per cent more than the 1,560 units sold in January 2019.

Resale prices have inched up by 0.5 per cent, compared with December. Compared with January last year, this was a 0.3 per cent increase.

Flats in non-mature estates rose by 0.8 per cent, while flats in mature estates fell by 0.1 per cent compared with December.

The most expensive resale flat that changed hands last month was an executive apartment unit in Lorong 2 Toa Payoh, which sold for S$1.025 million. An executive maisonette unit in Hougang Street 21 went for S$853,000, the highest price in a non-mature estate.

There were also four HDB resale flats which transacted for at least S$1 million last month.

Resale flat buyers last month underpaid, according to what SRX estimates to be the market value for flats. The overall median transaction over X-value (TOX) was negative S$500 last month, a decrease of S$1,500 compared with December.

TOX measures how much a buyer is overpaying (positive value) or underpaying (negative value) for a property based on SRX's computer-generated market value. The data includes only districts with more than 10 resale transactions.

Flats in Woodlands recorded the highest median TOX at positive S$10,500, followed by flats in Bukit Batok, at positive S$6,800.

Meanwhile, flats in Punggol recorded the lowest median TOX, at negative S$6,500, followed by flats in Toa Payoh, at negative S$6,100.

OrangeTee & Tie research head Christine Sun said last month's figures might be due to the festive season. "Some buyers could have returned after the year-end holidays. Those who are in urgent need of a home may have preferred to settle their purchase before the Chinese New Year, as house viewings are harder to arrange during the festive period."

Around 5,902 flats will be eligible to join the HDB resale market in the next three months as these units approach their five-year minimum occupation period.

THE STRAITS TIMES