New private home sales down 59.8% from year ago

Launch crowd at The Tapestry showflat. (Photo: City Developments Limited)

UPDATED: Sales of new private homes, excluding executive condominiums, fell by 59.8 percent to 716 units in March 2018 from 1,780 a year ago due to fewer major launches, according to data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority on Monday (16 Apr).

But on a monthly basis, the sales volume rose by 86.5 percent from 384 units in February, helped by the launch of the 861-unit The Tapestry in Tampines.

More: 149 Units At Park Place Residences Sold At Average $2,000 Psf

Developed by City Developments Limited, The Tapestry was the only major launch in the month and also the best-selling project, with 329 of the 450 units released sold at a median price of $1,408 psf. According to marketing agent PropNex Realty, the project contributed 46 percent of all new units sold in March.

Analysts revealed that The Tapestry’s median price is higher than previous launches in the area such as The Alps Residences, which was launched in 2016 at a median price of $1,078 psf, and The Santorini in 2014 ($1,108 psf).

Other top sellers in March included existing projects such as Grandeur Park Residences in Tanah Merah, which sold 40 units at a median price of $1,532 psf, Kingsford Waterbay at Upper Serangoon (32 units at $1,377 psf), and Parc Botannia in Sengkang (30 units at $1,310 psf).

OrangeTee head of research Christine Sun noted that Grandeur Park Residences and Parc Botannia were launched last year at lower median prices of $1,406 psf and $1,287 psf respectively.

“The healthy take-up rate of these projects at new benchmark prices this month lend testimony that the higher selling prices are gaining market acceptance. The demand could be driven by homeowners who are keen to snag a unit now before prices trend higher in the coming months,” she said.

Meanwhile, the total sales volume of new private units in the first three months of 2018 is estimated at 1,627, down 45.1 percent from Q1 last year, according to Eugene Lim, key executive officer of ERA Realty.

He cited the fewer project launches as the main reason for the drop in sales. “As (the) Lunar New Year was later in 2018 (February compared to January in 2017), developers delayed their launches,” said Lim.

Incidentally, The Tapestry was the only major condo launch in Q1, while there were three during the same period last year (The Clement Canopy, Grandeur Park Residences and Park Place Residences).

Looking ahead, PropNex CEO Ismail Gafoor expects sales to increase in April to more than 1,000 units following the launches of The Verandah Residences and Phase 2 of Park Place Residences, as well as sales of previously released but unsold units.

“The second quarter of 2018 will definitely see a better performance as buyers’ confidence in the property market continues and developers lining up more launches within that period,” he said.

According to ERA, the next project slated to launch is Twin Vew at West Coast Vale, which will open the showflat for preview on 21 April. Developed by CSC Land, the 99-year leasehold project comprises 520 units. Other upcoming launches include the estimated 275-unit Margaret Ville in Margaret Drive by MCL Land and UOL’s Amber 45 at Amber Road (139 units).

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Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg