The HDB resale prices up 0.3%, transactions volume up 5.3%
Prices of Housing Board resale flats rose for the eighth time in May, as prices climbed upwards by 0.3 percent or more units being sold.
According to data flashed out by the real estate portals Singapore Real Estate Exchange and 99.co on the 5th of June, the increase was less than 0.9 percent in April. The prices increased by 6 percent over the course of the year.
In May, an estimated 2,513 HDBs sold – up 5.3 percent from the 2,387 HDBs resold during April.
Seventy-four flats sold for minimum $1 million in May, which is equal to the record set in January, and up from the 68 lodged in April.
The durability of the public housing resale markets to home buyers who failed to find a home during February’s Build To Order exercise (BTO) and also home owners who put their houses on the market due to an increase in price.
The outcomes of February’s BTO exercise as well as the Sale of Balance Flats (SBF) launch were released in the first week of April and towards the end of the month in the latter part of the month.
SBF launches allow applicants to apply for flats that were sold in previous BTO sales.
Buyers looking to buy a home immediately and who were unable to secure a flat within the first two attempts would shift to resales, increasing resale volume and prices.
A lack of BTO launches and an increase in the number of units available led to more units being returned to the market.
The increased demand for larger units may be a contributing factor.
In the month of May, 176 executive flats have been resold. This is the most number of resales that have been sold since 2022, when the 15 month wait period for home owners to buy HDB resale apartments was introduced.
40.1 per cent of the 327 million-dollar resale transactions from January to May 2024 included five-room apartments that showed a significant demand for larger flats.
The 74 million dollars apartments that were resold in May included 33 units with five rooms. 22 executive apartments are also on the market, along with 18 four-room apartments. A three-room terraced unit was also offered.
A large portion of these flats were in mature estates such as Kallang/Whampoa Bukit Merah Toa Payoh, and Queenstown, while six were in non-mature towns Jurong East, Bukit Batok, Yishun and Hougang.
The 74 flats offered for resales made up 2,9% of the resale transactions in May. This is the same as April.
The greater number of flats sold at least $1 million, indicating the possibility of buyers seeking properties that are likely to be in high demand in the future. These flats do not come with resale limitations.
Five-room, 106 sqm flat that is located between the 39th and 37th floors located at Pinnacle@Duxton Cantonment Road changed hands for $1,515,000, which makes it the most expensive HDB resale flat in May.
The demand for resale apartments is expected to continue to grow, with former home owners who are looking to the market to sell their homes, as well as buyers with urgent housing needs.
Resale apartments are also in demand by those who would like to live in a more central location, but don’t want to be bound by the new, stricter classification system.
All BTO flats that are launched in the second quarter of 2024 will be classified into three categories – Standard, Plus, or Prime in accordance with the attractiveness of their location. Prime flats, which are at the most desirable places close to the city centre, will have the strictest limitations.
There is a possibility of a moderated trend in the HDB marketplace for resales in June since the BTO exercise is the final step before the roll-out of the new classification system as well as due to the school holidays.
Some potential home buyers may be interested in exploring BTO flat options, which were announced in June. They might want to make use of the current classification structure prior to the October BTO exercise.
