URA released today the number and prices of private property units sold in May 2008, a number which revealed a 73% increase in the number of units launched and an increase of 58% units sold as compared to April 2008.
While these appear to be positive on the surface, Mohd Ismail, CEO of PropNex says that numbers are always expected to increase from the first quarter onwards.
“In fact,” he points outs, “upon closer scrutiny, we can see that less than 50% of the units launched were actually sold, as just over half the sales are derived from launches of previous months.”
Most of the sales in May also saw a median price of below $1,000psf, which is in stark contrast to the end of 2007 when the median price of almost two-thirds of all sales were over $1,000psf.
However, he also notes that although developers and buyers still remain cautious on pricing while purchasing respectively, a clear positive sign of the figures tell us that people are now willing to spend on units,.
For instance, over half of the 70 Nassim Park Residences units launched in May 2008 also sold within the month, albeit at a median price of just under $3,000psf. But this does indicate that people are willing to purchase private
property if the price is right.
Ismail also cautions, though, that he does not expect to see developers drastically dropping prices anytime soon, as Singapore’s economy is expected to remain strong. In fact, barring any major market upset, we can expect the current prices to stay with us for the next six months.