Outlook
Looking ahead, Lee said sales are likely to drop in February “due to lower sales due to large-scale launches and the Lunar New Year period.”
With several projects scheduled to launch in the next two months, sales are likely to surge again.
“Sales will recover to around 400-600 units in March 2024,” Lee said.
Projects scheduled to launch in March and April include Aadhaar Residences, Arena East Residences, Koon Seng House, Rentria, Rentria Mansions, The Hillshore and The Hill @ One-North.
“Barring unforeseen circumstances, developers could sell up to 7,000 new homes, but prices are expected to remain stable and rise by up to 5% in 2024,” Lee added. Ta.
Despite the slow start to the year, “there is cautious optimism heading into 2024, with expectations that the private home sales market will be relatively resilient,” Chia said.
“Buyer caution will continue into (the first half of 2024) due to market cooling measures, economic uncertainty, high interest rates and high prices,” he said.
“However, while additional, more stringent buyer stamp duty measures will continue to deter foreign buyers and investors, the current market continues to show gravitational pull and purchase momentum remains is driven by genuine local buyers looking to buy a home for sale.”
Chia predicted that the number of new private home sales in 2024 will be around 7,000 to 8,000 units, with prices expected to rise by 3 to 5 percent.
“The favorable combination of low unemployment, ample market liquidity, and an expected improvement in the economic and interest rate environment (in the second half of 2024) is expected to boost buyer confidence,” he said.
“Past trends also suggest that the market slowdown could quickly reverse once external conditions improve, leading to a recovery in home sales and higher prices.”